This strawberries and cream pandowdy is topped with a flaky rye crust and double baked until the strawberry juice overflows its edges.
Strawberries and Cream Pandowdy with Rye Crust

I was brainstorming recipe ideas a few nights ago and made the irreparable mistake of looking at Pinterest recipe trends for inspiration.

Let’s just say there are some things that you can never unsee.

Strawberries and Cream Pandowdy with Rye Crust

Like, for instance, people who are PINNING PUMPKIN RECIPES IN AUGUST.

Unforgiveable.

Look, I’m sure there’s a Target somewhere with Christmas decorations already on display, but can’t we just live in the moment for a hot second?

And this moment is all about peaches, plums, berries, cherries, apricots, and tomatoes. Maybe figs, but even that might be getting ahead of ourselves. If someone even tries to talk to me about pumpkin desserts when we have so many other fresh fruits to ponder, I will scream. Consider yourself warned.

Strawberries and Cream Pandowdy with Rye Crust

Back to the topic at hand – strawberry pandowdy! As fun to eat as it as to say.

It is kind of like a pie but it’s baked in a skillet with a more free-form rustic-style top crust. You bake it halfway through, then make cracks in the crust to “dowdy” it up, and then you pop it in the oven again until it’s a bubbly delicious mess. This version gets topped off with a layer of custard (essentially, since it’s just egg yolks and cream) that’s cooked over and into the sweet-tart filling.

Serve it still slightly warm with a dollop of vanilla ice cream on the side and you will not be disappointed. Unless, that is, you’ve already got your mind set on pumpkin, in which case I can’t help you there.

Strawberries and Cream Pandowdy with Rye Crust

Strawberries and Cream Pandowdy with Rye Crust
 
This strawberries and cream pandowdy is topped with a flaky rye crust and double baked until the strawberry juice overflows its edges.
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients
For the rye crust
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • ½ cup rye flour
  • ¾ tsp kosher salt
  • 10 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes
  • 3-6 tbsp ice water
For the filling and assembly
  • 2-2½ lb strawberries, hulled
  • ⅓ cup dark brown sugar
  • ⅓ cup granulated sugar
  • ¼ cup quick cooking tapioca
  • pinch of kosher salt
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • 1 large egg, white and yolk separated
  • 2 tbsp demerara sugar
  • ½ cup heavy cream
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
For the rye crust
  1. Combine the flours and salt in the bowl of a food processor and pulse to combine. Add the butter pieces to the flour mixture and pulse until the butter is pea-sized, about 6-8 pulses. Add the water, 1 tablespoon at a time, pulsing 1-2 times after each addition, adding just enough water that the dough starts to come together.
  2. Plop the dough onto a piece of parchment paper. Gather it into a rectangular mound that is about 12x4 inches. Use your hand to smear about ⅙th of the dough away from you, pushing it against your work surface, starting from the far end of the dough. Repeat until all of the dough has been smeared, then gather it again into a 12x4-inch mound. Repeat the smearing process. Mound the dough into a 4-inch disk and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.
For the filling and assemply
  1. Heat oven to 400F.
  2. Whisk together the sugars, tapioca, and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.
  3. In a 10-inch ovenproof skillet, toss the strawberries with the sugar mixture and lemon juice. Let sit while you prepare the crust.
  4. Roll the dough into a 12-inch round on a lightly floured work surface. Lay it on top of the fruit filling and tuck in the edges around the fruit so that a rim forms around the sides of the skillet. Brush the crust with the egg white and sprinkle with the demerara sugar. Poke a few small holes in the crust for venting.
  5. Place the pandowdy in the oven and bake it for 30 minutes. Remove the skillet from the oven and break the dough into large pieces. Return to the oven and bake for another 20 minutes or until the crust is golden and the juices are bubbling.
  6. Meanwhile, whisk together the cream, egg yolk, and vanilla in a measuring cup. Remove the pandowdy from the oven and let it settle for a minute. Pour the cream into each of the cracks in the crust.
  7. Place the pandowdy back in the oven and bake until the cream is just set, about 8-10 minutes. Allow to cool completely on a cooling rack.
Notes
Recipe from Food52

 

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4 Responses to Strawberries and Cream Pandowdy with Rye Crust

  1. I am 100% with you with the pumpkin! I’m hanging on to the local blueberries and peaches for dear life. Meantime – pandowdy! Yours looks AMAZING, as usual. Pinned! xx

  2. Pam says:

    YUMMY! I’ve actually had a pandowdy recipe brewing in my brain for awhile… I love that you used rye flour – great idea.

  3. Kate says:

    I love pumpkin as much as the next guy, maybe more, but I’m with you. This is berry and stonefruit season.

  4. Kelsey says:

    Yes girl. This looks amazing. I have yet to experiment with rye flour, which is a shame. What a great reason to do so.

    And pumpkin? Nope. I’ll love it when it’s time, but its not. We’ve got delicious summer to enjoy still and then fall can start with figs and apples.

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