How To Measure Almond Flour
Even though this crust is seriously easy, we are still baking. For a successful pie crust, it’s important to measure accurately and pay attention as you move through the steps.
For the easiest prep and most consistent results every time, I highly recommend using a kitchen scale. I use this affordable Escali digital scale. It’s currently $25 on Amazon, and there are plenty of other inexpensive options out there, too.
If you don’t have a scale, thankfully, measuring almond flour is different than measuring other flours. So it’s pretty easy to get an accurate amount even without a scale. Instead of whisking the flour and then spooning it into the measuring cup, like you would with all-purpose flour, measure almond flour like you would brown sugar. Scoop it up, and then lightly pack it into the measuring cup.
Tips For Making Gluten Free Pie Crusts:
- Roll the dough out on a lightly floured piece of parchment paper to prevent sticking.
- For a beautifully browned crust, brush the dough with egg wash before baking .
- Using a glass pie plate allows you to see the bottom of the crust, ensuring that it is nicely browned before removing the pie from the oven.
- If the top of the pie gets too dark before the filling is fulling cooked, tent it with aluminum foil.
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I’ve included more tips in the recipe below for rolling out the dough and for making both single- and double-crust pies. Here’s to a season of fearless, delicious pie baking!
How To Make Banana Cream Pie
Didnt think youd ever find a recipe for Low-Carb Banana Cream Pie?
Not only is this low-carb, its the best banana cream pie recipe around.
My five ingredient banana cream pie filling is made with a base of low carb coconut milk and coconut oil with bananas blended in.
This is not only a dairy free banana cream pie recipe, its vegan as well.
Throw this filling into my Almond Flour Pie Crust, and soon youll be enjoying your own delicious Banana Cream Pie!
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Keep Your Ingredients Cold
Keep your ingredients as cold as possible! By using ice water and cold butter, you will achieve a flaky crust. You don’t want the fat to melt too soon or your dough to be warm when you roll it out, otherwise, you’ll have a crumbly crust that won’t hold well. This is why you’ll also need to chill the dough, after cutting in the butter, for a minimum of 30 minutes, preferably an hour or overnight!
Shaping The Pie Crust
Trim the dough around the top edge of the pie pan to about a 1/2 past the rim. Save any pieces that you trim off in case you need to repair any areas. Use your fingers to press a decorative design around the edge of the crust or use a fork to press a design along the edge.
Now that you have it in the pie pan and the edge has been decorated put it in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to chill. After its chilled take it out and fill it with your pie filling and bake according to directions. I find that it bakes best on one of the lower racks.
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First Measure The Fat
Lets talk about measuring shortening for a minute. Its a messy thing. The recipe on the back of the bag calls for 20 tablespoons total of shortening. If you convert 20 tablespoons to ounces, it equals 10 ounces. I learned that, because of the water content of butter, a measure of 1/2 cup shortening does not weigh 4 ounces like its butter equivalent. Get the equivalents here on this post about how much shortening weighs. I now own a scale and find it much easier and less messy to weigh the shortening.
For this pie crust recipe I use 240 grams of a combination of the three butter substitutes. I probably use about 90 grams each of the shortening and Earth Balance then made up the rest of the measurement with the coconut oil
Once the fat is measured, place it in the fridge about 3 hours before you want to start. If you are like me and did not factor in those 3 hours, place the fat in the freezer to get extra cold for about 5-10 minutes. My coconut oil and shortening are always at room temperature.
One more thing: make sure the pieces of the shortening are cut into smaller pieces. For example, as part of the measurement I used a stick of the soy-free Earth Balance. Before this goes into the freezer, I cut the stick up into smaller pieces. This really helps with distributing the fat into the flour. If you dont do this step, the fat may not properly incorporate.
How To Use Gluten Free Flour
When baking with gluten free flour, your results will vary based on the gluten free flour you use.
Please read through my gluten free flour page for very thorough and detailed information about which gluten free flours work well, how to substitute one gluten free flour for another, and for my gluten free flour recipe.
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Can I Freeze The Pie Crust
This gluten-free pie crust is freezer-friendly! Weve tested two ways to freeze the pie dough.
Can I Make The Dough Ahead Of Time
Yes! This is such an easy gluten-free pie crust recipe that you can make the dough up to 4 days ahead stored in the fridge, or freezer the unbaked dough up to 3 months. Make the pie dough as directed, then wrap each dough disc in plastic wrap or place in a zip-top baggie and keep in the fridge until youre ready to finish making your pie. Alternatively, roll the pie crust out, place in your pie plate, cover with plastic wrap , and keep the dough-filled pie plate in your fridge until youre ready to fill and bake a pie.
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Does It Behave Differently
No! Other than paying attention to the texture of the coconut oil, this crust behaves just like any other typical butter or margarine crust .
Youll start by mixing the oil into your flour with a pastry cutter, then add ice cold water a little at a time until a dough forms. As with other crusts, be careful not to overmix. Last but not least, transfer to a floured surface and immediately roll it out! No need to let it rest. Its as simple as that.
Best Practices For Making Flaky Gluten Free Pie Crust
Always begin with cold ingredients. Dice chilled unsalted butter, and then place it back in the refrigerator to chill again. Begin with cold water, and then add ice to the water. Ice water is colder than cold water, and even colder than ice.
Do not chop up the butter into super small pieces or process them until theyre the size of small peas. That may be a common instruction in pie crust-making, but I am anti-small-peas in all pastry-making for one reason.
Very small pieces of butter not only melt too easily when they meet with the heat of your hands , but they melt right into the dough, so even rechilling the dough wont help once the butter in the raw dough has melted. Using butter in larger chunks, and then flattening them between your thumb and forefinger, solves all of those problems.
Handle the dough as little as possible when making the dough, but dont drive yourself crazy. Since we are working with larger pieces of butter than small peas, we can always re-chill the dough if it becomes too soft or difficult to handle.
If you are making a dairy-free gluten free pie crust by replacing the butter with Spectrum nonhydrogenated vegetable shortening, dont chill the chopped shortening for too long, or it will freeze and be difficult to flatten and roll out properly.
If you dont have to be dairy free and youre looking for extra layers, try our recipe for extra flaky gluten free pie crust. The added sour cream and rebalanced liquids bring it to the next level.
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How To Make The Best Vegan And Gluten Free Almond Pie Crust:
This crust pictured below I created just by pressing with my palms and finger tips no rolling pin!
Making A Lattice Design Pie Crust
If you want to do a lattice design cut the dough into strips. I use a pizza cutter but if you have one of those darling pinked pastry cutters use one of those for extra beauty!
Place the strips across the pie like a basket weave. Some of my strips did break but the dough is very easy to pinch back together. Seal the edges of the pie crust and decorate the edge using your fingers or use a fork to pinch together.
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Storing And Freezing The Pie Dough And Crust
You can keep the dough or shaped crust in the fridge for up to a week.
- To freeze the dough, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and then in a freezer bag. Store for up to 6 months. Thaw the dough out in the fridge overnight before using it.
- To freeze a shaped pie crust, freeze the entire pie dish, covered tightly in foil or plastic wrap, and then in a freezer bag for up to 6 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge or you can place it right in the oven and extend your blind baking or full baking time.
How To Make A Flaky Pie Crust
Making this flaky gluten free pie crust recipe is fairly simple, so here are the key pointers/tips:
- Dont melt your coconut oil. You need your coconut oil to stay in its soft but solid state so that it can melt in the crust while baking, giving off steam and creating the layers of flaky pie crust.
- Measure your coconut oil by spooning it into a measuring cup. Really press it in to try to get any potential air bubbles that might be hiding out.
- Use really really cold ice water. Again, you dont want your coconut oil to melt before hitting the oven.
- Add a tablespoon more of ice water at a time until you reach an elastic and slightly sticky dough.
Like I said, this recipe is fairly easy and has many of the same basic techniques of a regular pie crust.
This recipe makes two pie crusts so make sure to split in half before pressing into your pie plate. A gluten free pie crust does tend to work better if you press the dough into the pie plate to shape and form vs. rolling it out. If you are having any trouble with crumbling pie dough when you roll it out, its too dry and you should add 1 tablespoon at a time of ice water to the dough, working it in until you reach a better consistency.
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S To Make A Flaky Gluten Free Pie Crust
First, whisk together your gluten free flours, salt, and xanthan gum.
Add your cold butter or other chilled fat.
Cut the butter into the flour with a pastry cutter, or a fork and knife.
Don’t use your hands.
You want to have a really gentle hand to keep those chunks of butter.
Butter chunks = flaky crust.
You want your mixture to look like this…
Add the apple cider vinegar and lightly mix with a fork to combine.
Add iced water 1 tablespoon at a time and work it just enough for it to hold together if you squeeze a handful.
Move the gluten free pastry to a large piece of plastic wrap and use the plastic wrap to gently shape it into a round disc.
Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes to an hour.
Remove your gluten free pie dough from the fridge and roll the dough out between 2 pieces of plastic wrap,
You want to avoid adding any extra flour to your pie crust.
Extra flour can quickly make a flaky gluten free pie crust a crumbly mess, or make your touch hard and tough, instead of flaky and tender..
As a bonus, plastic wrap makes clean up a breeze!
Using the plastic wrap, move the dough to your pan and trim off the excess.
You can crimp the edges, or cut small shapes out of your gluten free pie crust scraps and use them to decorate the edge of your gluten free pie crust.
You can blind bake your gluten free pie crust if you are filling it with something that doesn’t need to be baked, like pudding, or you can fill it with your favorite pie filling and bake it as directed.