Gluten-Free Pie Crust: EVERYONE gets a piece of the pie.
November 6th, 2011 by PJ HamelRecipe: Gluten-Free Pie Crust
Now, I ask you-
Does this slice of pecan pie look any different than most pecan pies you’ve baked and enjoyed in the past?
Aside from the fact it’s made with chopped rather than whole pecan halves (personal preference), I’ll bet you can truthfully answer no – it doesn’t look any different than a typical slice of pecan pie.
And does it taste any different?
Well, I’d guess it tastes better than the plastic-wrapped, palm-sized mini pies you get at the the gas station. And I’d wager it tastes better than the pecan pie you’ve had at your local diner. It might even taste better than your mom’s special, once-a-year-at-Thanksgiving pecan pie.
Which makes me really happy, because this pecan pie is gluten free.
That’s right – from its flaky, tender, buttery crust to its rich, nutty, vanilla-scented filling, there’s no gluten present anywhere.
Baking Thanksgiving dessert? Need to make it gluten-free? The following pie crust can be filled with any of your favorite fillings. I just happened to choose pecan, but really, the crust is the star of this recipe.
Let’s make it.
Your first key ingredient: King Arthur gluten-free multi-purpose flour, the ideal blend for all your gluten-free baking.
Don’t have it? You’re missing out on a wonderful ingredient.
But you can still make this pie crust, using your own homemade blend of tapioca, potato, and brown rice flours:
*Make your own brown rice flour blend: Many of our gluten-free recipes use our King Arthur Gluten-Free Multi-Purpose Flour, which includes ingredients that reduce the grittiness sometimes found in gluten-free baked goods. Our flour also increases the shelf life of your treats, keeping them fresh longer. The following make-at-home blend, featuring stabilized brown rice flour, works pretty well when substituted; and it tastes better than a blend using regular brown rice flour.
Whisk together 6 cups (32 ounces) King Arthur stabilized brown rice flour; 2 cups (10 3/4 ounces) potato starch; and 1 cup (4 ounces) tapioca flour or tapioca starch. Store airtight at room temperature. Note: You can substitute white rice flour for the brown rice flour if you like; it’ll make your baked goods grittier (unless you manage to find a finely ground version).
Let’s start with the crust. Blend the following:
1 1/4 cups King Arthur Gluten-Free Multi-Purpose Flour or brown rice flour blend (above)
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons Instant ClearJel (optional; not packed in a gluten-free facility)
1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
1/2 teaspoon salt
Next, you’re going to add 6 tablespoons cold butter, working it into the dry ingredients. Here’s how:
Place the cold butter on a piece of parchment or waxed paper, and flatten it with a heavy object – a rolling pin works well. Add the flattened butter to the dry ingredients, and work it in with the flat beater of your mixer (or with a pastry fork or blender, your fingers, or the tool of your choice).
Flattening the butter first brings your pie dough halfway to where you want it – flour and other dry ingredients laced with large “flakes” of butter. These flattened pieces of butter will yield a nicely flaky crust.
Whisk together 1 large egg and 2 teaspoons lemon juice or vinegar.
Add to the dry ingredients…
…and stir until the mixture holds together. Add 1 to 3 tablespoons cold water if necessary, to make the dough cohesive.
Shape the dough into a rough disk, and chill for an hour, or up to overnight.
When you’re ready to bake, spray a 9″ pie pan with non-stick vegetable oil spray.
Remove the dough from the fridge, and allow it to rest at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes before rolling.
Roll on a piece of plastic wrap, a silicone rolling mat, or in a 14″ pie bag, heavily sprinkled with gluten-free flour or flour blend. Roll until the crust is about 13″ to 14″ in diameter.
Invert the crust into the prepared pie pan, and shape a tall, fluted edge.
Like this.
Next, the filling.
Place 1 1/2 cups chopped pecans on a baking sheet or into a 9″ x 13″ pan. Sprinkle them very lightly with salt. Bake in a preheated 325°F oven for 10 to 15 minutes, just until you can smell them. Remove them from the oven and set them aside to cool.
Increase the oven temperature to 375°F.
Beat together the following:
4 large eggs
1/2 cup dark corn syrup
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla
Stir in the chopped pecans, and pour the mixture into the baked pie shell.
Bake the pie for 45 to 50 minutes, or until it’s puffed, brown, and the center seems fairly set. Keep your eye on the crust; when it’s starting to darken at the top, cover it with a pie crust shield.
Remove the pie from the oven.
Ah, a pie of beauty is a joy forever…
Allow it to cool on a rack. As the pie cools, the center will sink; that’s OK.
Is that not one simply gorgeous gluten-free crust?
And look at how beautifully brown it is, both bottom and sides.
And now, the real test: dig in!
Tasty, yes? And look at how the crust is flaking into shards…
Read, bake, and review (please) our recipe for Gluten-Free Pie Crust.
Print just the recipe.
Note: the recipe for this pecan filling isn’t a formal recipe; it’s a variation sent in by reader Chris Parks. To find it in our archive, check out the “baker’s tips” at the bottom of our Pecan Pie recipe. The Pecan Pie recipe instructions are slightly different than these; they have you pre-bake the crust. I found that’s not necessary with this particular crust, though you can certainly pre-bake if you like.
November 6th, 2011 at 7:59 pm
It’s true! this crust is great.
Another thing we have learned about this crust recipe: rolling it out flat, folding it like a letter (into thirds), folding again (thirds, into a square); rolling it out again, repeat above – creates even more flaky layers. I used that technique when making homemade pop tarts and you couldn’t really tell the difference from “regular” pastry.
We use the at home flour blend; works wonderfully.
November 7th, 2011 at 5:49 am
Sounds yummy! The instructions for baking the pie shell before filling would help here, since you say it goes into a “baked pie shell.”
Also, the best tool for cutting butter into flour that I’ve found is your wonderful Pastry Fork. It is even better than fingers – mine, at least, and will be a Christmas stocking stuffer at my house this year.
Thanks for another great recipe. Your products and people are the best!
It’s true, I didn’t follow the recipe on the site exactly – I didn’t pre-bake the pie crust. Which is fine. There’s almost always more than one way to take a set of ingredients and come up with something tasty! PJH
November 7th, 2011 at 4:22 pm
Wait, are you pouring the mixture into a baked pie shell or not? The first “pie in oven” picture does not look like it was blind baked. There was also no instructions for the baking the crust if I wanted to.
No, Olivia, I didn’t bake the crust first. “Blind baking” (pre-baking) is an option, but not a requirement. If you want to blind bake, you’ll find instructions in our recipe for Pecan Pie. PJH
November 8th, 2011 at 4:42 pm
Hi PJ! It’s Glenda from Busy-at-Home. I have a pie crust question, not related to this gluten-free post and I wasn’t sure where to ask it. I have been making the pate brisee pastry recipe that we used this summer at Blog and Bake. It’s beautiful for filled pie crusts that need to bake already loaded, but if I try to use it for a pre-baked crust, the sides of the pastry slide down my pie plate and I end up with a lovely, tasty crust, whose sides are very thick and only about 1/2 inch tall. What am I doing wrong? Is there a better pastry for pre-baked crusts? Thanks so much for your help!
Hi Glenda, good to “see” you again.
Want to know my funky trick for blind baking crusts? Place your crust in the pie pan as usual, place another empty pie pan on top of it, then flip the whole assembly over. You are basically baking an upside-down pie crust sandwich between two pie plates. Gravity and the pie pan keeps the crust from drooping and everything stays in place. Give it a try, and let me know what you think. ~ MaryJane
MJ’s right, Glenda – I use that trick a lot. It doesn’t work with a tall fluted edge, but a flat edge – fine. The other thing that helps is to use a recipe that’s not all butter; butter has a lower melting point, and the crust slumps before it sets. Try an all-shortening (or shortening/butter) crust; it should work better. Enjoy – PJH
November 8th, 2011 at 6:00 pm
Great recipe….just in time for Turkey Day! Will use the crust recipe for the pecan pie I will take to my daughter’s that day (she mus eat g-free as is Celiac).
November 10th, 2011 at 9:57 am
Just curious about two things: (1) is there any reason why I can’t use my Cuisinart for the whole process, and (2) what about making the crust dough ahead and freezing the wrapped disk for rolling out in a few weeks?
You can use the food processor for mixing, but just be sure not to over mix. Yes, this GF crust can be made and frozen for later use. Happy GF Baking! Irene @ KAF
November 13th, 2011 at 9:31 pm
Hi PJ,
I want to share this recipe with my mom, who is gluten-free, but she can’t have dairy, so the butter is out. Any suggestions to make this with something else besides butter?
Thanks for the great gluten-free recipes and the best gluten-free flour ever!
Give it a try with vegetable shortening. Frank @ KAF.
November 18th, 2011 at 9:50 am
I am going to try this recipe for Thanksgiving! I assume I can make my pumpkin pie filling for it? Also, do you feel I should pre-bake the crust if I am putting the pumpkin in? Thanks!
No need to pre-bake your crust, Sheri – have a great (gluten-free) Thanksgiving! PJH
November 19th, 2011 at 3:27 pm
Hello! Your note indicates that you do not need to use the clearjel. Do I need to substitute anything else? What will the difference be without it? Thanks for your help with making a tasty GF pie!
The Instant Clear Jel is an optional ingredient. It helps to bind the crust together, but is not a necessary ingredient. If you don’t have the Instant Clear Jel on hand, there’s no need to substitute. If you have any other questions, please call our Baker’s Hotline and we’ll be happy to help! ~Mel
November 22nd, 2011 at 7:32 pm
My mom will love this!I just got her a pie plate that says RECIPE FOR AN AMAZING WOMAN.
November 22nd, 2011 at 8:56 pm
For a savory pie, would you just make this without the sugar? Does it work just as well in a two-crust pie (double the recipe)? What about as a free-form rustic tart/galette? Does it matter if other pie/filling recipes have a variance in temperature? Thanks! –Michele
Michele, you can certainly leave out the sugar; it helps with browning, and doesn’t make the crust noticeably sweet, but you can definitely omit it. Yes, works just as well when you double it. Yes, works fine for a rustic tart/galette. No, doesn’t matter about temperature variations – as you can see, this is one versatile GF crust! Enjoy – PJH
November 26th, 2011 at 8:47 am
Just wanted to thank you for making such a wonderful product. I made two pies and no one could tell the difference from a regular pie crust. I did not add the clear jel and both pie crust turned out fabulous. Keep up the good work!!!
January 10th, 2012 at 4:52 pm
Love the recipe, but a few questions. Do you know chemistry-wise why most GF pie crust recipes call for egg and vinegar, while regular pie crusts do not? Is the egg for binding or moisture? Also, would the use of vodka help with flakiness like used with regular pie crusts?
Yes, the egg helps bind the crust together in the absence of gluten; and vinegar helps “tighten” some of the other ingredients, helping with structure. I’ve never found vodka to help with flakiness, but if you like using it – go for it! PJH
January 24th, 2012 at 9:46 pm
How can I make a gluten free pie crust that doesn’t use any rice flour of any kind, tapioca, buckwheat, quinoa or spelt? I am extremely new to gluten free baking and would love to have the occasional treat.
Thank you for your help.
Nicole
I recommend using sorghum flour in this recipe. ~Amy
January 26th, 2012 at 2:07 pm
How can I make a gluten free pie crust that doesn’t use any rice flour of any kind, tapioca, buckwheat, quinoa or spelt? I am extremely new to gluten free baking and would love to have the occasional treat.
Thank you for your help.
Nicole
I think using sorghum flour in this recipe would be one of your only options, Nicole. You could combine with millet and amaranth flour also. ~Amy
March 6th, 2012 at 3:46 pm
Do you think this recipe would work for guava and cream cheese pastelitos? I was thinking of doing several rounds of rolling and folding and then cutting into squares to sandwich the filling. Thanks!
Yes, I think this would work well for making the pastelitos. They may be a little crisper, though. Elisabeth
May 8th, 2012 at 7:35 pm
Could I use this recipe for a apple and pear cobbler I am adapting for my gluten-free friends who are visiting soon? I usually use a regular pie crust which I think I would prefer over a more biscuit-like bread. Thanks.Yes, just make the cobble the way you usually do. betsy@kaf