Thanksgiving holds special memories for me as a child. My mother would often create great spreads of gourmet dishes discovered in her favorite cookbooks and magazines. When I began cooking and baking, I fell in love with creating pies. My mama always felt that pie crust was a fussy thing to make and left that to me. One of her favorites is an apple pie made with plump Honey Crisp apples. It smells and tastes like the love we shared.
When I bake it now, I love to share it with friends along with a cup of spicy tea and enjoy it with the memory of her spirit. Here is the recipe.
Crust
2 Gluten Free Pie Crusts
2 parts barley flour
1 part millet
1 part oat
2/3 cup ghee
Crack of salt
2 tsp grated Jaggery or date sugar
2 Tbsp Almond Milk
Prep time: crust 20 min. Filling 20 min.
Assembling: 20 min.
Bake time: 40 min. at 380F until golden brown or a little darker as you like.
Water as needed to bring the dough together – start by adding 2 Tbs.
Mix all dry ingredients gently with a whisk and then add the ghee. Crumble and squish the ghee into the flour until it looks like course cornmeal.
It is OK to have a few larger lumps of ghee. This actually makes it better!
Add the milk and squish the mixture around with your finger. Add a little water and begin to fold the dough in on itself. Continue to add a little water just until it begins to come together. Gently knead the dough and let it sit. Do your best to not overwork it as it will become tough.
Rolling out gluten free dough takes some ingenuity. Use extra flour for the cutting board and try a large spatula. The dough is more crumbly due to the lack of gluten, and it is important to be patient and forgiving. With a little practice you are going to become a pro! Keep some flour out to use for rolling and dusting the pie plates.
Apple Pie Filling
3 large Honey Crisp apples
½ cup of Barley Malt
¼ cup Maple Syrup
2 Tbsp. Vanilla
2 tsp. ground Cardamom
½ tsp. ground Ginger
1 tsp. ground Cinnamon
¼ tsp. Clove
¾ cup toasted chopped Walnuts—you can leave these out if you do not like them.
¾ cup Raisins, Currants, or Sultanas—you can leave these out if you do not like them.
1 Lemon juiced
I like apple peels but not everyone does. When I make this for other people, I take them off. Cut the apples in small random cubes and shapes.
Juice the lemon in a mixing bowl and add the Barley malt and maple syrup. Whisk gently until it comes together smoothly and add the rest of the spice ingredients.
Add the apples as you are cutting them and immediately stir them into the liquid. This keeps them light and bright.
Grease your pie plates with a little ghee and lightly dust them with some of your flour mix. Place your crust in the dishes. Crimp in your favorite design.
Gently lay the apple mixture in the crust. Let excess liquid remain in the bowl. You don’t want a soggy bottom on your pie! I like to drink it up!
Use the leftover crust to make a decoration for the top of the pie. Be creative! You can make a traditional full lid if you like but be sure to poke a few holes in it to let steam escape during baking.
Bake for 40 minutes at 380F until golden brown or a little darker as you like.
Let the pie cool and enjoy!
Ambika Devi
Ambika Devi is an international award-winning best-selling author, expert astrologer, meditation Jedi, speaker. She grew up reading her mother’s copies of Gourmet Magazine and traveling the world with her family to learn about other cultures through their art and of course their food!
