Come to find out, “apple pie” is one of the most popular food search terms during the month of November, and far be it from me to leave you gluten free and Paleo pie eaters drooling with envy. That’s why, once again, I did the heavy lifting and suffered and sacrificed through many a pie, to bring you the perfect gluten free apple pie recipe just in time for Thanksgiving! Life really is tough for a food blogger. 🙂
The truth is that coming up with a gluten free apple pie recipe was really a cinch. It’s basically just replacing the flour with a suitable substitute. I’m not always a fan of flour in pie fillings anyway, as the flour flavor can come through if you’re not careful. Now of course you can use corn starch, but did you know that corn is a very common cross reactor to gluten? If you’ve gone gluten free, but are still eating corn, cut it out for a couple of weeks and see if your symptoms improve even more. Read more about gluten cross-reactivity here.
I really love instant tapioca as a pie thickener (you can see that I made the pie below with instant tapioca), but once again we’ve got a cross-reactivity problem, as most instant tapioca brands contain soy. That left me with arrowroot powder, one of my favorite thickeners anyway. There are no cross-reactivity issues, it is flavorless, and boy does it know how to congeal a pie!
At first I thought it didn’t work (because I’m impatient and can’t wait for a pie to cool before I slice into it), but after I let the pie cool (as a proper lady would), it had gelled up nicely. The pie fortunately made it through the next two days (this took threats and hiding on my part, as the kids and husband can sniff out a pie like a hound dog), and when made with my gluten free pie crust, did not leave it soggy. Honestly, it was perfection!
I asked my friends and family on Facebook whether they peeled, sliced, or diced the apples for their apple pies, and everyone had a different answer. I personally like to peel and thinly slice a mix of mostly green (granny smith type) with a firmer red apple or two to sweeten it up a bit. What’s your favorite method and type of apple(s) to use? Leave it in the comments below, along with why you slice, dice, peel, etc. so the rest of us can make an informed decision!
Roll out your dough. My favorite pie crust recipe is my Gluten Free Pie Crust, however it works quite nicely with my Paleo Pie Crust made with almond flour as well. If you choose the Paleo pie crust, you’ll have to do a bit of a patch job for the top layer, but it will taste divine!
I stumbled across a fantastic little produce stand that had about 10 different varieties of apples. I picked out a variety called Liberty and Elstar that were best suited for baking. It was honestly the best apple pie I’ve ever had!
Dot the fruit filling with butter (you can see in this picture (the little white dots) that I used instant tapioca as my thickener).
You can simply press the top crust to the bottom one, but when working with a gluten free pie crust (which can be a little bit more fussy), I like to use a little of the egg wash on the edges just to ensure a good seal.
Pinch the top crust to the bottom. Everybody’s got a method. I like to use my knuckles, but the point is to squish the top and bottom crusts together and make it look pretty when you’re done. Some people just take a fork and smash them together, so seriously, relax, experiment, and have fun! You can pretty it up after the next step anyhow.
Cut off the edges with a sharp knife. You’ll also want to make some slits in the pie so that the steam can escape.
Now you can spend time making the edges perfectly fluted.
I like to put an egg wash on my pie’s. However, there are all different types of washes that one can do to have different looks (glossy, golden brown, dark brown, etc). Click here to learn how to get the perfect finishing touch on your pie.
If you forgot to make the slits in the top of the pie crust (like I did) do it now.
Voila!
Canned pie filling doesn’t hold a candle to homemade apple pie. Plus, not a soul will know this is gluten free. I kid you not, it tastes and looks like something Grandma would have on her Thanksgiving table.
5 from 1 reviews
Gluten Free Apple Pie Recipe
Flaky, tender and oh so pretty. Friends and family will never suspect this isn't Grandma's apple pie recipe.
Author: Alison
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Roughly 6 cups (2-3 lbs*) baking apples,** peeled, sliced, or diced
⅔ cup organic sugar (click here diabetic friendly sweetener I recommend)
2 Tbs. arrowroot powder or instant tapioca (click here for a brand that is soy free)
½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
dash sea salt
squeeze of lemon (optional)
2 Tbs. butter (for dotting)
1 egg, lightly beaten (for egg wash at end)
Instructions
Place a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 375° F.
Mix apples, arrowroot powder, sugar, spices, salt and lemon juice in a large bowl and let stand for 15 minutes.
Line a 9" pie plate with pie crust.
Fill with fruit mixture.
Dot with butter.
Brush the edge of pie with egg wash.
Cover filling with top crust; seal and flute edge.
Brush the top with egg wash.
Cut several slits in top crust.
Bake in preheated oven for 45-50 minutes, or until juices form bubbles that burst slowly (through slits and around edges). You can also test the done-ness of the apples by sticking a sharp knife through one of the slits to test if they are tender.
Let cool.
Slice and serve.
Notes
*1 lb of apples= 3 medium apples or 3 cups peeled and sliced apples **I like a combo of mostly tart green apples such as Granny Smith, with a sweeter red or golden delicious thrown in.
3.2.2807