As autumn deepens and the weather transitions from
cool to cold, my thoughts turn to pie. Pumpkin, apple, mincemeat – the pie
fillings of the season beg for warming spices and a dollop of gingered whipped
cream on top. But pie is a two-part
dance. The crust, too, must pull its weight. Whether single or double, a good
pie crust will be substantial enough to hold the weight of its savory, fruity
filling, yet light and flaky enough to lift the pie's character along with its
seasonal ingredients.
If your pie crust must be gluten-free, the burden of
balancing substance and loft can be particularly challenging. Over the past few
months, I have had the pleasure of testing a few brand new gluten-free pie
crust recipes.
Over the course of my testing, this crust was
subjected to temperatures as high as 425°F for over an hour and did not
crumble, scorch or otherwise behave as though it were gluten-free. It is a more
traditional style of dough, ie, dough that is briefly kneaded, then rolled and lifted
into the pan.
The second recipe, courtesy of Nutiva, an organic superfoods company, is cut
from a different cloth - this is not your grandma’s pie crust! As this crust
does not require rolling out before being placed in the pan, it took me a
moment to visualize what to do with the dough once it was mixed. But, if
rolling out gluten-free dough is the bane of your existence, consider this
dough your new best friend. Simply drop the dough into the pan and press evenly
up, out and around the edge of the pie pan. This dough will shrink when it
bakes so be sure to extend the dough over the edge of your pie pan. The
resulting crust is heartier in texture and flavor than the first crust, a good
match for savory fillings such as quiche. In my testing, the crust did not life
easily out of the pan after it was filled and cooked. Grease well and carry on.
Check back here next week for my completely updated, completely vegan pumpkin pie recipe
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| GFF's Perfect GF Piecrust, photo courtesy of Maren Caruso |
GFF’s Perfect GF Piecrust
MAKES
ONE 9-INCH STANDARD OR DEEPDISH
This
dough doesn’t need to rest in the refrigerator before use. But you can wrap it
in plastic and refrigerate it for a night or freeze it for a month or more;
just bring it back to room temperature before you roll it.
Recipe
can be doubled.
VEGANIZE IT!
Making this piecrust vegan is easy. Just replace
the butter with an equal amount of Earth Balance Buttery Sticks, and replace
the sour cream with 2 tablespoons cold water.
1⁄2 cup (60 grams) brown rice flour, plus more for
rolling the dough
1⁄3 cup (34 grams) tapioca starch
1⁄3 cup (48 grams) potato starch (not potato flour)
1⁄4 cup (34 grams) sweet rice flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
1⁄2 teaspoon kosher salt
1⁄2 cup (4 ounces/1 stick) cold, unsalted butter,
diced
11⁄2 tablespoons sour cream, or 2 tablespoons ice
water (for vegan)
11⁄2 tablespoons rice vinegar
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| GFF's Perfect GF Piecrust filled with pimpkin pie |
1. In a medium bowl or food processor, mix together the 1⁄2 cup brown
rice flour, the tapioca starch, potato starch, sweet rice flour, sugar, xanthan
gum, and salt. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender or a fork until it forms
pea-size pieces. Add the sour cream and rice vinegar and combine with your hands.
2. Turn the dough out onto the counter and knead gently. If it seems
dry, add 1 teaspoon of cold water at a time and knead the dough until it’s
smooth.
3. Sprinkle a sheet of parchment paper with brown rice flour. Flatten
the dough into a disk on the paper. Sprinkle it with a little more brown rice
flour and roll it out until the dough is 11 to 12 inches in diameter.
4. Invert a 9-inch pie plate on top of the dough. Slip one hand under
the parchment paper while holding the pie plate with the other hand. Carefully
flip the whole thing over so the dough is on the pie plate.
5. Carefully peel off the paper while easing the dough into the
plate. Gently press the dough into the pie plate, press any cracks together,
and trim the edges of the dough so they just reach the edge of the pie plate.
(You can use the trimmings to
6. patch any breaks.)
7. To create a decorative edge, make a pattern with a spoon or fork;
if the spoon sticks to the dough, dip it in GF fl our before each use. Prick
the crust with a fork on the bottom and partway up the sides. Proceed with your
preferred pie filling.
Nutiva’s Gluten-Free Pie Crust
MAKES
ONE 9-INCH STANDARD OR DEEPDISH
If you are short on time, swap 1 ½ cups oat flour for
the rolled oats. Do not grind. Proceed with the recipe.
1 tbsp
+ ½ cup Nutiva Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil, melted
1 tbsp
Nutiva Organic Milled Chia Seed
1/4 cup
water
1 1/2
cups rolled oats
1/2 cup
teff flour
1/2 tsp
sea salt
1/2 cup
Nutiva Organic Coconut Sugar
1 tbsp
vanilla extract
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| Nutiva's GF Piecrust before it is placed in a pie pan |
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 375ºF.
- Lightly oil a pie pan with
the melted coconut oil.
- In a small bowl, combine
chia and water. Let sit, undisturbed, for 10 minutes before proceeding.
The chia will mix with the water to become a gel.
- Place the rolled oats in a
food processor and grind to a flour. Transfer to a large mixing bowl along
with the teff flour, the rest of the melted coconut oil, coconut sugar,
vanilla, sea salt and chia water gel, and mix well. Reserve ½ cup of the
mixture to use as a crumb topping.
- Transfer the rest of the
dough to the prepared pie pan and use your fingers to press it out in an
even layer over the bottom and up the sides of the pie pan. Poke a few
holes in the dough with a fork.
- Bake for about 10 minutes,
until it loses it shine, before proceeding with your preferred pie
filling.
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| Nutiva's GF Piecrust Before Baking |
Labels: chia seed pie crust, dairy free pie crust, gluten free forever magazine, gluten free pie crust, nutiva, vegan pie crust