I’ve mentioned before that my mom is an awesome cook – like
the best I know! She has a pie crust called “Never Fail Pie Crust” that she
uses for all her pies (of course my favorite being her pumpkin pie). It is
awesome – flaky, buttery, crisp. This is my attempt at her pie crust with
gluten free flours. It doesn’t hold a candle to hers but it will work for me!
This recipe makes about 2 pie crusts.
2 cups GF all-purpose flour (I used a mix of sweet
sorghum, white rice and tapioca starch)
1 tsp xanthan gum
2 tsp baking powder
1 Tbsp Stevia or sugar
¾ cup butter or shortening, cold (I used dairy free
butter)
¼ cup lukewarm water
1 egg, divided in half (save the other half for an egg
wash to brush over the pie tops)
½ tsp vinegar
- In a mixing bowl, combine flour, xanthan gum, stevia, baking powder and butter. Blend until mixture is slightly crumbly.
- Add in water, egg and vinegar and blend until ingredients are well combined. Pour dough mixture onto a clean, floured surface.
- Split into two equal portions and roll each portion out as desired.
- NOTE: This also freezes well. After rolling, place parchment paper over crust and roll crust up. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze up to two months. To use after freezing, just thaw at room temperature or in refrigerator. This crust is good for pies, cobblers, pot pies, etc.
BANANA COCONUT CREAM PIE
My father’s favorite pie is Coconut Cream. Over the last
couple years, his health has declined rapidly. He has grown up eating junk and
refuses to change his habits. His typical Coconut Cream Pie was loaded with
sugar, fat, carbs, etc. Little does he know that I’ve greatly modified my
coconut masterpiece into a low carb, low fat, low sugar, gluten free treat! For
Thanksgiving this year I decided to add a little twist to it and add some
bananas. It turned out great and gave the pie extra flavor! This makes one
regular pie.
1 pre-baked GF pie crust (recipe above)
1 overripe bananas
1 cup almond milk
1 cup coconut milk
3 Tbsp arrowroot starch
1 tsp vanilla
½ tsp sea salt
¼ cup coconut flakes, unsweetened
½ cup whipped topping (for dairy free, use coconut cream)
1 Tbsp coconut flakes, toasted
- In a small blender, combine ½ banana and almond milk and blend until smooth. Pour mixture into a sauce pan over medium heat. In the blender, mix together arrowroot starch and coconut milk until smooth. Add in vanilla, salt and starch mixture to banana mix.
- Bring to boiling and cook for about 5 minutes until mixture starts to thicken. Remove from heat and continue stirring for about 5 minutes. Let pudding set up for a few minutes.
- Meanwhile, thinly slice the remaining banana half and place slices in a single layer along the bottom of the prebaked pie crust. Pour on pudding mixture.
- Refrigerate for about 2 hours or until pie is set. Top with whipped cream and sprinkle on toasted coconut flakes.
