We will be celebrating Thanksgiving the Sunday before, so I had to make this pie tonight to try it out.
I found that the main roadblock would be the pie crust. Since I am not an expert baker to begin with, this is going to be a challenge. A challenge that I will hot out of the ballpark!
I search the internet for loads of recipes. I wanted something that tasted good and I found most recipes were bland. I asked a friend of mine who has Celiacs disease and she told me to look for a recipe that combines different kinds of Gluten free flour. I did and found this one.
It looked a little intimidating, but, like I said above, I am facing this challenge head on.
First was to find the right flour. Surprisingly, Red Mill makes a lot of great Gluten Free flours. And my local Safeway carries them! Now, the price for these can be a little steep, but I had a $10 off my entire bill coupon, so that helped. And I will just have to discover what else I can bake with these flours.
I also discovered that I don't have a paddle attachment for my stand mixer (see, shows you how much I use it....I have had it for 5 years!) so creaming the butter was a little more work, but I used my hands to help out as well (GASP!).
After I added the rest of the ingredients, I rolled it between two pieces of plastic wrap and discovered that this recipe makes slightly less then I anticipated. I like a full crust, and I was afraid that this would not make a full crust.
Biggest advice at this point....after you cool it in the fridge for at least one hour (I did 2), take it out, and let it warm up for about 15 mins. It will be so much easier to work with!
The great thing about this pie crust, is that you can't overwork it like a regular pie crust. If you have holes, just pinch them closed! If you are lopsided, you can work it with your fingers and not worry about making it tough,
I made two crusts. One for my Pumpkin Pie and one to bake and taste. And I will admit, it tasted pretty yummy! You can taste the oats and a smidgen of almond. It is more crumbly then a regular pie crust and the corn meal helps with that. I think maybe I should try adding crushed hazelnut, too!
Now on to the filling! (Full recipe here)
I decided to make homemade pumpkin pie by roasting sugar pumpkins as opposed to canned pumpkin. I needed 1 1/2 cups and I guessed 2 sugar pumpkins would give me that. I bought three to be safe!
I cut the pumpkins in half and scooped out all the seeds.
Then I chopped them up and added them to a buttered down baking sheet covered in foil.
Next, I roasted these babies for about an hour. My house smelled so good!
After they cooled for a bit, I just separated the skin from the "meat". I found some pieces just peeled off while others needed the knife.
I pureed away!
Then added the brown sugar, molasses, vanilla, ground cinnamon, ground ginger, ground cloves and some freshly grated nutmeg. Heated all of this up with the pumpkin for about 5 mins on the stove, then put it all back in my food processor.
To this, I added some milk, eggs, and a couple of tablespoons of yogurt (I used greek yogurt).
Then it was ready for my crust!
After I baked the pie, I noticed the crust kinda "ran away" from the edge. So it is not the prettiest crust ever.
Basically, the original recipe is not really two full 9 inch pies, in my opinion. More like one and a half. Luckily I was only making one!
Final verdict: I think I will make this again!!
And a token picture of Stella waiting for Daddy to come home:
Full Recipe for Gluten Free Pie Crust:
From www.NYTimes.com
160 grams (approximately 1 1/4 cups) corn flour or finely ground cornmeal
150 grams (approximately 1 1/3 cups) oat flour (make sure it is from a gluten-free facility)
168 grams (6 ounces) butter, preferably French style Plugrà
4 grams (1/2 teaspoon) fine sea salt
50 grams (approximately 1/4 rounded cup) sugar
40 grams (approximately 1/3 rounded cup) almond flour
9 grams (approximately 2 teaspoons) vanilla extract
63 grams egg (approximately 1 extra large plus 2 teaspoons), beaten
1. Sift together the corn flour and the oat flour. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a bowl with a rubber spatula, cream the butter and salt on medium speed for about 1 minute, taking care not to whip. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and the paddle with a rubber spatula and add the sugar. Combine with the butter at low speed. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and the paddle.
2. Add the almond flour and vanilla extract and combine at low speed.
3. Gradually add the egg and one fourth of the flour mixture. Beat at low speed until just incorporated. Stop the machine and scrape down the bowl and the paddle.
4. Gradually add the remaining flour and mix just until the dough comes together.
5. Scrape the dough out of the bowl, weigh it and divide it into 2 equal pieces. Place each piece between sheets of plastic wrap and gently roll out to a 10-1/2 inch circle. Place on a sheet pan and refrigerate for 1 hour or (preferably) longer.
6. Very lightly butter a 9-inch tart pan or pie dish (depending on the recipe you’ll be using this for). You should not be able to see the butter. Remove one sheet of dough from the refrigerator, and if it is very stiff set it out for about 5 minutes, until it’s pliable. Ease the dough into 9-inch tart pan or pie dish. If the dough cracks, just pinch the cracked edges together. You do not have to worry with gluten-free dough about over working and stiffening the pastry, but try not to press the dough thinner in some places than in others.
To prebake: I don’t use pie weights, because the grain flours tend to stick to the lining. The crust shouldn’t buckle. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. With a fork, pierce the bottom of the crust in rows. Place the tart pan on a baking sheet and place in the oven on the middle rack. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until lightly browned and dry. Remove from the heat and allow to cool completely before filling.
Full Recipe for Pumpkin Pie Filling:
Source: www.nytimes.com
1 gluten-free dessert pastry shell (or another crust of your choosing), lining a 9-inch pie pan (unbaked)
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups puréed roasted pumpkin (see below) or canned pumpkin
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon packed light brown sugar or raw light brown sugar
2 tablespoons almond flour
1 tablespoon molasses
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups milk
2 tablespoons drained yogurt (or crème fraiche)
To roast the pumpkin: Use a small pie pumpkin, which is perfect for pumpkin pie. Cut away the stem, cut in half and scoop out the seeds. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Cut the pumpkin into chunks. Line a baking sheet with foil, lightly brush the foil with butter and place the pumpkin on top. Cover the sheet pan tightly with foil and place in the oven. Roast for 30 to 40 minutes, until the pumpkin is thoroughly soft. Remove from the oven and allow the pumpkin to cool until you can handle it. Cut away the skin (or scrape the pumpkin from the skin) and purée the pumpkin in a food processor fitted with the steel blade, or with a hand blender.
1. Turn the oven down to 350 degrees. Place the rack on the lowest setting. Beat the eggs in a large bowl and brush the pastry lightly with the beaten egg. Place in the oven and prebake 7 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
2. Combine the pumpkin purée, brown sugar, almond flour, molasses, vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg and salt in a saucepan and heat over medium heat, stirring with a heat-proof rubber spatula, until the mixture begins to sputter. Turn the heat to low and simmer, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and transfer to a food processor fitted with the steel blade or to a bowl if using a hand blender. Add the eggs, milk, and yogurt and blend until thoroughly combined and the mixture is very smooth.
3. Scrape the purée into the pie shell. Place on a baking sheet and bake in the preheated oven for 50 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out almost clean and the pie jiggles when gently shaken. It should not bake until it cracks. Remove from the heat and cool on a rack.
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