Showing posts with label strawberry pie. Show all posts
Showing posts with label strawberry pie. Show all posts

Thursday, April 12, 2018

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie


Let me begin by saying, DAVID DOES NOT LET PIE GO TO WASTE.  David loves him some pie.  I mean, he loves all desserts, including pie.  This being his reality, his eyes lit up when he saw this Strawberry Rhubarb pie in Trader Joe’s this week.

Of course, he got it.  Heck, he has been working hard lately and deserves a special treat!  Only, when we served it later the same evening, it didn’t turn out to be a treat at all…

The label promised the dessert would be "mouth watering"
Here is David’s review of the pie:  “Surprisingly, I don’t like this pie.  And the CRUST is the heart of why, really.  The crust is underdone or something – it is not pleasant.  And then once you get through the crust all you have is tart rhubarb and not very strong strawberry taste.  I would like to take it back and return it, it’s that bad.  I would rather have a cherry pie instead of this, and I am not a big fan of cherry pies.  I like strawberry rhubarb pies, they remind me of when I lived in England and my friend Toby’s mom would make it.  But this pie by Trader Joe’s is not good.  I give it a 2, but those points are just because it is a PIE.”

Isn't it pretty?  Looks like something your Great Aunt would bring to the 4th of July picnic or something.
Here is what I thought of it:  “This was a beautiful pie.  It had sweet stars on the top, which gives it extra points in my book because they make the pie pretty.  😊  The colors of the strawberries and rhubarb peeking through the stars is also appealing to the eye.  I am not a “pie person”.  I would not usually choose pie from a dessert menu, but since David wanted this one, I jumped on board.  Surprisingly, I liked it.  the sweetness of the strawberries and the tartness of the rhubarb were a nice combination.  Sadly, the CRUST was underdone and sort of dough-y.  That was a turn-off.  I give it a 3.25.”

The trees are all in bloom in Washington DC!  HAPPY SPRING EVERYONE!
Note:  David did not end up taking the pie back.  He wanted to, but I cut another little slice out to eat for breakfast, and it seems tacky to take a product back and say, “This tastes crappy” when there is, like, 1/3 of it already eaten.  Trader Joe’s are great about accepting returns of things you do not like, and if we get a real clunker we don’t hesitate to take it back, but we don’t want to abuse their kind return policy.

Price:  $6.99
Rating:  2.5

Tuesday, April 28, 2015

Day 118 - Mini Pie Medley

Oh I wish I would have reviewed these Cabbage Patch Doll sized pies back when we had them this winter.  We really liked them, and they would have gotten a sweet review!

Alas, I didn’t review them then, and now I up and served them at our Trader Joe’s dinner party and they were not great.  L  The crusts were mushy and the filling just tasted like a glob of warm jam or jelly.  I made them the same exact way I did this winter – heating them (from frozen) in the oven, so I am not sure why the results were lack luster this go round.  I feel a bit guilty because I convinced a fellow Trader Joe’s shopper to buy these the other day!

Cute tiny pies
I should list the pros and cons of these little mini pies here:

Pros:
-          Perfect size for a little dessert
-          Mix of 3 flavors in one box (strawberry, blueberry, and peach) so you won’t get sick of one flavor
-          Nice sugar crystals on top
-          Easy to prepare

Cons:
-          Crusts were mushy
-          Filling was not “pie”ish but more jam/jelly-ish
-          Unsatisfying

If I were rating these myself, I guess I would give them a 3.5.  But because they were part of the dinner party spread, I will average all guests’ ratings for a final score.  But first, guest comments:

-          Sweet without being cloying – buttery crust.
-          Great yielding crust – tasty, fluffy, rich, and just the right amount of filling.  Just the right size as well.  4 – 6 small bits!
-          Supremely buttery, full of flavor, plenty peachy
-          Swarmy bland strawberry much inside a soggy pastry
-          Buttery, soft, sweet – lovely

OH!!!!!  Now that I have allowed myself to read these comments I think perhaps it was just the STRAWBERRY PIES that were not good in this box!!!  The people who had peach or blueberry really liked them!  Well, that makes me feel better.  I thought I served our guests something yucky!

Guest Joan demonstrates how adorable tiny pies can be.
Price - $4.49  (for 6 mini pies, which comes out to .75 cents per pie)

Rating (average of 6 guests’ ratings) – 3.75