Gluten-Free “Mama’s Pie Crust Mix,” with Freshly Ground Almonds

by Cat, Aug 2012 (Photo, right, from Gluten Free Mama’s Pie Crust Mix (1))

Gluten Free Mama (1) is a newish business in Polson MT (at the other end of the large Flathead Lake from where I live), whose products are now distributed nationwide. She uses non-gluten grains and starches in her pie crust, including rice & coconut flours, plus tapioca & potato starch. Sweetened with evaporated cane sugar (like Rapadura). Other ingredients include sea salt and xanthan gum (from Bob’s Red Mill (2)).

So I decided to give this a try, with modification, to use for the 4th week of my high-carb-seed-avoidance, as a way of easing grains back into the picture, starting with non-gluten grains (rice). One package makes 2 rolled pie crusts for 9” pan and contains about 3 cups of floury powder. I made an experimental crust with part Mama’s mix and part freshly ground almonds.

Feb 2020 update:  I switched to keto in 2013, which meant giving up sugary and starchy foods; because this mix contains a fair amount of starches, I no longer use this mix.

See also: 1. Pie & Tart, Pastry Crusts Menu; 2. Almond-Meal Pie Crust; 3. Other Nut Pie Crusts (Walnut or Pecan);

Almond Plus Pie Crust (Gluten-Free Mama’s Pie Crust Mix, with Freshly Ground Almonds)

This recipe makes enough crust for my 9″x7″ baking pan (actually makes a bit too much so could cut it down by ¼ cup total flour mix). I don’t think it would work well for a rolled crust because of the almond meal texture. But it works well for a pressed crust.

Ingredients & Equipment: 

• pre-soak & dehydration
• ½ cup ground sprouted almonds (or about 1 cup chopped almonds, presoaked, then dried & ground), or Bob’s Red Mill Almond Meal (2)
• filtered water to cover
• yogurt or whey: 1 Tbsp for each cup soaking water
• crust
• ½ cup ground almonds (from above)
• 1 cup Mama’s pie crust mix
• ½ Tbsp Rapadura sugar or date sugar
• 1/16 – ⅛ tsp unrefined stevia extract powder (optional)
• ¼ tsp Unrefined sea salt
• 4 – 5 Tbsp unsalted butter, not chilled but not soft
• liquid egg white, about 1 Tbsp, optional (from ½ an egg)
• 2 – 3 Tbsp cold water
• equipment
• medium bowl
• dehydrator tray or stainless steel baking sheet
• dehydrator or other space that can be kept at 95 -100 degrees F; OR oven at lowest setting
• pastry fork
• 9″ pie pan

Method:

1. Almond pre-Soak (start 2 days before baking pie): NOTE: If you start with sprouted almonds, you do not need to do the pre-soak and dehydration. Simply grind the sprouted almonds into meal.
   1. Chop nuts coarsely, then cover with enough water to cover, keeping track of how much water you add. Stir in yogurt, whey or lemon juice, using 1 Tbsp for each cup of water.
   2. Cover bowl and let sit on counter overnight.
   3. Next day, dehydration: Drain and rinse through strainer.
   4. Spread the soaked nuts on a dehydrator tray and dry at 95 – 100⁰ F until crispy and dry. OR spread on a stainless steel baking sheet and place in a warm oven (no more than 150 degrees) for 12-24 hours, turning occasionally, until completely dry and crisp.
2. Prepare crust: Put pie crust mix, ground almonds, salt, stevia (optional) and date sugar in bowl; whisk to combine. 
   1. Cut in butter to pea-like texture. Work in egg white (optional) and cold water, 1 Tbsp at a time.
   2. Cover bowl and refrigerate at least 24 hours.
3. When ready to bake:
   1. Preheat oven, with rack in middle of oven.
   2. Press crust onto bottom, and up sides of buttered baking pan. Alternately, you might be able to roll the pastry between 2 sheets of oiled waxed paper.
   3. Add filling and bake according to recipe.

Testing

Testing 8/19-21/12: Made as written, with date sugar. I added egg white to the mix before I realized it was meant to be brushed on the top crust of a pie, then sprinkled with sugar. I think it was a fortuitous error because it helped the crust hold together. To test this theory, next time I won’t add the egg white. Instead of rolling out the crust, I pressed it into the bottom of my baking pan, to make a Plum Kuchen, then arranged sliced plums on top, sprinkled with the sweetened cinnamon and put it into 425°F oven to bake for 15 minutes. Then I got a phone call and forgot about the Kuchen in the oven until I smelled the hot pastry, after about 25 minutes in the oven. It wasn’t burnt but was a dark brown. I lowered the temp to 325°F, added the custard and finished baking per recipe. It turned out great – I don’t really notice any bad taste from the over-browning. Result: This crust has a nice flavor and holds together better than my Almond Meal and Coconut Flour Crust).  I do think the ground almonds are a good addition to the Mama’s Pie Crust Mix, for a crumb-crust. I also think that date sugar works well in this crust. Plum is my fav filling for the kuchen.

Testing 8/28-30/12: Made as written, with date sugar, but no egg white, to test whether it does/does-not hold crust together. Used 5 Tbsp butter and 2 Tbsp water (the extra Tbsp is in-lieu-of the egg white). Then into fridge for overnight rest. Warmed a bit in AM, pressed into 7” x 9” pan, pressing farther up sides than normal since this is a smaller pan, and proceeded with plum kuchen recipe (as half recipe). I note that it pressed nicely into pan.

Testing 9/30-10/1/12: Made as before, but added less than ⅛ tsp powdered stevia extract (new to this recipe but included in original spelt crust recipe). Used 5 Tbsp butter and 2½  Tbsp water. Into fridge for overnight. Baked at 425°F for 20 min, then 325°F for 40 min. The stevia in the crust is a good addition, but perhaps I added a bit too much. Overall, very good kuchen.

Testing 11/1/12: I’m still mostly avoiding grains but I’ve been cleared for spelt (NAET food sensitivity treatment) as long as I don’t eat it frequently, so I’m trying a variation on this recipe. I used 1 cup Mama’s Pie Crust mix, ¼ cup whole spelt flour and ¼ cup leftover mix from the 10/1 test above; total 1½ cups ‘flour’. Added ½ Tbsp date sugar and cut in 5 Tbsp butter and 3 Tbsp water. No time for overnight rest this day. Result: A bit tough. Much better when I add almond meal (ground almonds).

References:

1. Gluten Free Mama (glutenfreemama.com) and Gluten Free Mama’s Pie Crust Mix photo: (store.glutenfreemama.com/mamas-pie-crust-mix)
2. Bob’s Red Mill (link removed at their request)