Maple Walnut Pie

One again... ate 90% of it before a photo could be taken..... :)

Happy Thanksgiving! This is a festive pie that I actually made for a pre-Halloween pumpkin carving party.  It was delicious, and I liked that it was less traditional than your typical pecan pie. (and also... walnuts are cheaper than pecans! :) )

Crust:

1/2 c + 3 tbs millet flour
1/2 c garbanzo bean flour
1 tbs potato starch
1/8+ tsp salt           ---> combine dry ingredients
3 tbs ghee              ---> mix into dry ingredients to make velevety consisitency
3 tbs ghee              ---> mix coarsely to form pea sized balls
~1 tbs ice-cold water   ---> drizzle in, gently mixing until dough forms into a ball

Roll out for a 8.5" pie pan (8 or 9" would work too) on waxed paper. Place the pie pan upside-down on the rolled dough, and use the waxed paper to flip the crust into the pan. Repair any cracks that may form, then crimp edges
Prick bottom and sides of pastry with fork. Line edges of crust with double thickness of foil. Bake 8 minutes at 450 F.. Remove foil, them bake 5 minutes more or until crust is lightly browned cool. Reduce oven to 350 F.


Filling:


1.5 c maple flavored agave (or maple syrup, if you can eat it)
3 eggs
4 tbs ghee
2 tbs coconut oil
1/3 c coconut sugar
1/4 c erythritol (or more coconut sugar)
2 c chopped walnuts, toasted
1 tbs vanilla
1/4 tsp nutmeg
2 tsp tapioca flour


Beat eggs until thick and lemon colored, ~5 minutes. Add ghee/coconut oil (softened), beat in. Add all other ingrdients and mix, then fold in walnuts. Pour into crust. Bake on baking sheet for ~45 minutes, or until middle just begins to set but edges are not burned. If edges seem to be cooking too quickly (browning) before middle begins to set, turn temeprature down slightly.  Cool before serving.


Tastes like a cross between a pecan pie and maple stick donuts. :)

Pecan Pie

This version may be sans-rum, but all other deliciousness is preserved.

THE RECIPE:

Crust:
1/2 c garbanzo bean flour
1/2 c millet flour
1/2 tsp potato starch
1/8 tsp salt
3/8 c extra light olive oil (or coconut) / add until crust just barely sticks together.

Cut oil into the dry ingredients using two knives, pastry-style. Mix until beads of dough are pea-shaped.
To save time, I didn't even roll out the crust-- just plopped the dough into the pie tin, then used a spoon to press it into shape. 

The Filling:
2 eggs
1/4 c coconut oil, melted
1/4 c ghee, melted
1 tbs tapioca flour
1 tsp vanilla
1 tbs milk
1/4 c xylitol/erythritol
3/4 c agave nectar
1 c chopped pecans

Beat eggs until foamy, then stir in melted oil/ghee. Stir in sweeteners, vanilla, and flour. Mix well, then stir in pecans. 
Pour mixture into crust in pie tin:

Bake for 10 minutes at 400 F, then reduce heat to 350 and bake for 30-40 minutes-- or until filling doesn't tremble when touched, /is no longer foamy and light.
 

This pie makes a delicious custard filling with pecans on top. It's delicious. And, funfact: my mom made a sugary family-pie at the same time that I made mine. And, hers ended up far LESS successful than mine. This could be due to the fact that she accidentally added twice the necessary butter, but I can still state that my recipe worked way better than the standard one.






Success! A wonderful Christmas dinner dessert.

22/7

22/7, 3.141592..., pi, ... , PIE!!

Call it what you want, it's delicious.

Actually, to be honest, I've never been much of a pie person. Ice box, pudding pies? Well, maybe those. But nothing with fruit in it!

This is probably due to the fact that when growing up, I don't think my mom ever once made a home-made fruit pie. Thus, the only pies on which my opinions were based were those from boxes in the freezer.

Ah, the store-bought pie: cardboard-crust; gel-like, corn-syrup filling; unnaturally slimy-yet-crunchy fruit chunks. No, thank you.

There was, however, one freezer-fruit-pie that I could slightly bear, years ago. It was a Sara Lee "Fruits of the Forest" pie, and- like I said- it was bearable.


But then I went to Montana, this year and last year, and my grandparents made their own "Fruits of the Forest" pie. The berries may have been from the frozen section of Walmart, but the crust was purely from scratch. But of course full of butter and wheat and sugar and I couldn't eat any of it.

Thus, I created my own masterpiece upon return to the East coast. And, I must say, this is possibly my favorite thing I've ever made, and, I am now a pie convert.

So, I present: FRUTAS DEL BOSQUE: THE BERRY PIE
(when I was in Granada there was a Frutas del Bosque ice cream flavor at heladeria tiggliani, and thus anything "Fruits of the Forest" reminds me of that.)

THE RECIPE:

Crust:
1.5c garbanzo bean flour
1.5c millet flour
1.5 tsp potato starch
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 c extra light olive oil (or coconut)

Filling:
1 bag frozen mixed berries (raspberry, blackberry, blueberry, strawberry combo)
1 tbs tapioca flour
15 drops stevia
1 tsp lemon juice

Prepare crust:
Combine dry ingredients, then slowly add oil, cutting it into the dough. Consistency should be stiffer than cookie dough. Place in fridge to chill.

Prepare filling:
Dump thawed berry mixture into a bowl. Use a fork and scissors to cut up large chunks (like big strawberries).Add tapioca flour and lemon juice, mixing thoroughly. Then sweeten with liquid stevia to taste. (Tapioca flour will thicken when heat-activated, so don't worry that filling will be runny until then)

Prepare pie!:
Remove about half of the crust dough, and roll out to 1/4 inch thick between two sheets of waxed paper.
Dough will slightly stick to paper, so use it to flip rolled dough into a pie tin.

Next, pour filling mixture into the crust.

Roll out the rest of the crust to make the top of the pie. Since this GF crust brakes rather easily, I don't recommend a solid top, unless you are feeling particularly brave, and have a whole lot of patience. Instead, I opted for the lattice.

Slice dough into 1-inch wide strips.
I insisted on a completely alternating under-over weave- which traditionally requires folding back the "over" strips. Seeing as this dough doesn't exactly "fold", I ended up doing a lot of patching.

This turned out fine, but it might be easier to be less rigorous with your weave, and instead just start laying a strip at one corner. Place the next strip to form the rest of the corner, 90 degrees to the first one. Continue working across the pie, laying each strip at 90 degrees to the last one. No folding necessary, but you also don't get the genuine weave.

Place pie on a cookie sheet lined with tinfoil, so that any overflowed filling doesn't make a mess.

Bake at 425 for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 325 degrees, and bake until done- about 30 minutes.


Remove from oven and let cool until slicing.

Enjoy the flaky crust, fresh berry filling- just the right level of firmness!

Deeeeeelicious.

Seriously, this pie is delicious. I bought Rice Dream to put on it, but didn't even use it, because it was too good on its own. I gobbled it up within a week!

Letter from 'Ome: The Butte Pasty

Brought to you from Butte, MT!

(half eaten because I couldn't resist taking a bite before taking a photo!)



Pasties are delicious. They're all the fun and convenience of hot pockets without the disgust and indigestion! Plus, they've got their own historical and cultural significance!


From the Butte Heritage Cookbook:

"Old-timers claim the pasty arrived in Butte, Montana along with the first housewives who followed their husbands into the mining camp. Long favored in the copper miner's lunch bucket, the pastry-wrapped meal was an ideal way for "Cousin Jeannie" to provide a hearty meal for the hard working "Cousin Jack." As the miner unwrapped his lunch, he would refer to the pasty as a "letter from 'ome." Its popularity spread quickly throughout the camp, and today the pasty is as much a part of Butte as the Berkeley Pit."

Image from www.bozemannet.com

Above:  Butte, Montana-- clearly celebrating the deliciousness of their pasties! And, the fact that I'm presenting you with a (relatively) ACD friendly version. Yippee!



Traditional recipes were made with beef, potatoes, and onion. As I don't eat red meat, I swapped that ingredient for chicken. This recipe is still high in carbs for the ACD, so use in moderation... or just fill with your favorite veggies!




THE RECIPE:


filling:

Boneless chicken thighs, chopped
White onions, chopped
Potatoes, diced

crust:

1.5 cups garbanzo bean flour
1.5 cups millet flour
3/4 cup extra light olive oil
1.5 tsp potato starch
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt (a few pinches)

1. Chop filling ingredients and combine in a bowl.

2.  Combine dry crust ingredients. Add oil, and just barely mix (so that dough forms small beads). Chill in fridge before rolling out.





Roll a lump of dough between two floured sheets of waxed paper, until a bit less than 1/4 inch thick.












Next, place a lump of filling on one half of the dough circle, leaving space around the perimeter.




(this filling is actually too centered)

Fold dough over filling to form the pocket. Use the waxed paper under the dough to assist in the folding process.


Seal the two dough layers together around the perimeter of the pasty.


Use a toothpick or knife to poke steam holes on top of the pasty. For authentic pasty labeling, poke your initial into the top to let it be known that this is YOUR treat!


Preheat oven to 350 (??? TBD), and bake for ~45 minutes, or until golden brown, or edges are just beginning to brown. Remove and enjoy!

Pasties can be eaten hot or cold, with a fork or picked up sandwich-style.

Generally I find that hot-out of the oven, it's easier to go the fork route.

The cold leftover pasty to many is actually more delicious than the fresh version! Plus, its cold-ness makes it easier to pick up and bite, which is always fun.

Yummo!