Gluten Free Apple Pie
What's great about it
This is an exclusive recipe from HEALTHY BAKING. A delicious apple pie straight from the oven - topped with a dollop of thick yoghurt or cream fraiche. The pastry is made purely from ground almonds. The apples have been briefly cooked in a little apple juice and vanilla and the sweetness of the pie depends on the sweetness of the apples. I've also added a hint of organic maple syrup to the apples that marries wonderfully with the cinnamon.
Ingredients
Serves 12
Almond + Vanilla Shortcrust
4 cups almond meal
2 tablespoons raw honey or organic maple syrup
80 g quality butter or macadamia nut oil
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or powder
2 organic eggs
Apple Filling
10 sweet red apples or golden delicious apples – skin on
½ cup fresh apple juice
2 teaspoons vanilla extract or paste
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 - 2 tablespoon raw honey or organic maple syrup or a small handful of appropriate dried fruit - choose from (fresh pitted chopped dates, dried pears, muscatels/raisins). Adjust according to your palate.
Method
Prepare the apple filling
- Quarter the apples and remove the core.
- Cut each quarter in half and place into a large pot.
- Add the apple juice, vanilla and cinnamon.
- Place onto the stove over a medium heat.
- Cook, stirring every now and again until the apples start to soften and collapse. This should take about 15 – 20 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and drain any liquid from the apples if needed.
- Fold through the maple syrup or dried fruit then allow the apple filling to cool.
Make the almond and vanilla shortcrust
- Combine the almond meal, honey, butter into a bowl.
- Mix lightly with your fingertips until you get a soft crumb.
- Add eggs and mix into a soft dough.
- Rest the dough for 30 minutes in the fridge.
- Roll 2/3 of the chilled pastry between 2 sheets of greaseproof paper to fit a 20 cm pie dish.
- Line the pie dish evenly and fill in any gaps in the pastry as needed.
- Spoon in the apple filling.
- Roll out the rest of the pastry and gently place over the apple filling.
- Seal any edges and cut a cross at the top of the pastry with a sharp knife.
- Sprinkle some flaked almonds over the pastry for decoration.
- Bake in a preheated 160°C oven for 45 minutes or until golden.
- Serve warm or at room temperature with custard or your choice of ice cream, yoghurt or coconut cream.