If
you’re celebrating today, Happy Thanksgiving!
We
won’t be eating a turkey dinner today because we’re hopping on a plane to visit our friends in Germany. However, we will be helping to cook an expat
Thanksgiving meal on Saturday after we’ve seen some of the infamous German Christmas markets for the first
time.
Yesterday,
I baked a healthier version of my normal pumpkin pie and I’m carrying it on the
plane this afternoon. I hope it arrives safely with me!
Since
I’ve been trying to do gluten-free
baking, the biggest obstacle was how to make a gluten-free crust. I’ve tried an
almond flour crust a couple of times, but funny enough, I find it tastes too
nutty. So I went back into the kitchen to figure out a recipe that didn’t
require xanthum gum or some other strange gluten-free replacements.
The
easiest solution was using a combination of almond and coconut flours. Then, I
used melted coconut oil instead of butter to make it a bit healthier. The crust
did brown faster than others I’ve used, so I would definitely recommend
covering the crust with aluminum foil while baking the pumpkin pie.
Now
that I’ve got the crust figured out, I’m just hoping I can get through airport
security with my Gluten-Free Pumpkin Pie in tact! I’ll let you know how it
goes!
Happy
Thanksgiving!
Joy
My previous version of Gluten-Free Pumpkin Pie with an almond flour crust. |
Gluten-Free Coconut & Almond Crust
Yields:
one 9-inch crust
120 g. almond
flour
70 g. coconut
flour
70 g. melted
coconut oil
3 Tablespoons maple syrup
Pinch salt
Using
a food processor fitted with a blade, combine the almond and coconut flours and
salt.
Slowly,
drizzle in the coconut oil and maple syrup, and blend until you have a wet
dough.
Press
this dough into your pie pan. I use my hands and then a flat-bottomed glass to
get the crust pressed down evenly.
Bake
at 350 F/175 C until lightly browned, about 7-10 minutes.
While
the tart shell is baking, make the pumpkin custard recipe below.
For
the Pumpkin Custard:
255
g. homemade
pumpkin puree
130
g. organic
palm sugar
70
ml. almond milk or cream (36% Smietanka Tortowa)
1 tsp. vanilla
extract
1 tsp. ground
cinnamon powder
¼ tsp. ground
cloves
¼ tsp. ground
allspice
¼ tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
¼ tsp. salt
2 ea. organic or free-range large
eggs***
60
g. melted coconut oil
In
a medium-sized bowl, place all the ingredients together and whisk until smooth.
Add the melted coconut oil last as it can seize up into little chunks of
solidified fat.
Pour
the pumpkin filling into the prepared pie shell.
Place
the pumpkin pie onto a flat baking sheet. Bake the tart in a preheated 350
F/175 C for about 25-30 minutes until the center is set or a toothpick or cake
tester inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Let
cool at room temperature. Then refrigerate. Garnish the pie with whipped cream,
slightly sweetened either with maple syrup or your choice of sugar substitute.
***Note:
I still use eggs in my baking, but if you would prefer an egg-free version,
simply blend 1 Tablespoon of ground flax seeds with 3 Tablespoons of hot water.
Let rest 5 minutes or so until the mixture has the texture of a raw egg. This
ratio = 1 egg.