Gluten Free Pie Crust

I LOVE pie! Out of all the desserts in the world, I think pie would be tops. My favorite filling is debatable. There are just too many great ones to choose from.

I gave up wheat a couple years ago, for health reasons.
I know there are plenty of wheat recipes scattered on the blog.
But, many of the recipes can be used with other flours.
A lot of the recipes I wrote before I quit wheat.

The biggest thing I missed was pie.
It is really hard to make a gluten free pie crust in the way I always made a crust.


Most recipes I came across were for using parchment paper to roll it out.
I didn't want to do that.

Or, they were just for single crust pies.

So, I came up with this recipe. The crust came out flaky, just like a pie crust should.
This is best made ahead at least a few hours or even overnight.

You will need plastic wrap for wrapping the dough in.

Ingredients:

2 cups Gluten Free All purpose flour blend- I used Namaste Perfect Flour Blend, but use what works for you.
1 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup butter
1 egg
2 to 4 Tablespoons water
2 teaspoons lemon juice

In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, 2 Tablespoons water, and the egg.
Set aside.
In a larger bowl, mix the flour and salt.
Work in the butter with your hands or a fork until the mixture is crumbly like.
Some of the butter pieces can be bigger and some smaller.
Add the egg mixture and stir in with a fork.
If it is really, dry add another tablespoon and the last tablespoon, if needed.
Work it in with your hands just until it you can get it to come together in a ball.
Divide the dough in two and make into slightly flattened balls.
Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for a few hours, preferably a day.
When ready to make your pie, take a piece of dough out of the refrigerator about five to ten minutes before rolling it out.
Flour the counter well, put the dough on it and flour the top of the dough.
Carefully roll it out to a little larger than the pan size, turning over every so ofter so the dough doesn't stick to the counter or the rolling pin.
Transfer the pie crust to the pan and fill it.
Repeat with top crust.
Stick the pie, covered, in the fridge while preheating the oven.
Place a cookie sheet or pizza pan in the oven before you preheat.
Preheat according to the recipe.
To bake the pie, place the pie on the pan. It will make for a crisper crust.
Make sure to put slits in the top crust before you bake. 

Pumpkin puree

There are different ways to cook up your pumpkin. You can cut it up and peel it and than steam it.

That is one way.

I do mine different and I think it is a much simpler way to do it.

First off, smaller pumpkins are easier to work with.

Use pie pumpkins for baking, if possible. They are meatier.

You can also use all purpose pumpkins that are grown for baking or jack-o-lanterns. But, the great big ones have a lot of liquid in them and your baked goods don't turn out quite as well .

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
You will need a an or two to hold the pumpkin halves.

You will also need a large knife to cut the pumpkin and a spoon to scoop out the seeds

To puree, you will need a blender or food processor.

Wash your pumpkin.
Now, cut your pumpkin in half. 
Cut it in half so that the top half is one piece and the bottom half is the other piece. 

Don't cut it in half the other way. It is easier to cut that way. But, it takes a lot longer to get the pumpkin to cook though. I really don't know why, but it just seems to.

Now, you need to scoop out all the seeds. Those you can either save to roast for a treat. Or you can save them to dry and plant later for more pumpkins.

Take the pumpkin halves and place cut side down in the pan.

Pour a small amount of water into the bottom of the pan.

Put the pan in the oven. 
Bake for about an hour and a half or until the pumpkin is tender when pierced with a knife.

Check once in a while to make sure there is still water in the bottom of the pan.
If the pan is dry, add a little more water.

When the pumpkin is tender, take out of the oven and let it sit until it is cool enough to handle.

When you are able to handle the pumpkin, take a spoon and scoop out the pumpkin pulp out of the shells. Add to the container of a blender or food processor.

Puree.

Now,you are ready to bake or freeze it.
Canning is no longer recommended by the USDA.

Pear Crisp

I love a nice warm from the oven crisp. Until this year, I had never tried it using pears. I don't know why, because it tastes fabulous.

You will need a baking dish that holds 2 quarts. I usually use a round glass casserole, but you could use a 9" square baking pan.
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit/190 Celsius

Ingredients:
5 cups sliced and peeled pears
1/2 cup oats
1/4 cup oat flour(all purpose flour will also work)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ginger
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup butter

Peel and slice the pears and spread evenly in the baking dish.
In another bowl, combine the flour, oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger.
Cut in the butter until you get coarse crumbs.
Sprinkle the brown sugar mixture over the pears.

Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the pears are tender when pierced with a sharp knife.

Serves 6.

Frugal Me Fridays- What Is It?

I can't believe it is Friday already.
I've been busy canning and freezing and time is just flying by.

I've spent a lot of years learning how to stretch a dollar.
I make everything from scratch.
I make stock from a turkey carcass.

We all have a different idea of frugality.

Some people clip coupons to save money.
I don't use coupons much because I don't use what I can find coupons for.

I would like to know what is frugal for you
or do you have any questions on how to be frugal with something.

Leave me a comment or send me an email.
My email is greatcookrep@live.com.

Have a great Friday!

Peaches, Pears, and Apples OH MY

Sunday was a busy day.
There was plenty of picking going on.

My husband, daughter, and I went to my parent's place to pick fruit.
My sister showed up to help too.

Dad has a apple tree with a bumper crop.
A couple pear trees and a couple peach trees too.

The peach are the small white Iowa peaches.
Here is some of what we brought home.

These are not everything either.
The fruit crisper drawer is full of apples and there is a cooler full in the garage.
I have a cooler full of pears that isn't in this pictures.
There is also a huge box of peaches sitting in the back of the truck.
Too full for us to want to move until some of the peaches are gone.

Mom and Dad also have tons at home.

I did make butterscotch peach jam yesterday.

Today I am planning on making applesauce.
I may freeze some apples today too.
Later this week, I will be doing apple butter.

The pears aren't ripe yet.
They don't ripen til picked off the tree.

I am still doing tomatoes too.

One day I need to find time to cook my neck pumpkin.
This I got from a friend.

I'm going to be busy.
But, a good kind of busy.

Frugal Me Fridays- Freezing Fruit

If you find yourself with an abundance of fruit, freeze it for later.

Sometimes there are discounted or free bananas because they are over-ripe.
Grab them!

If you are given fruit, take it.

Fruit is so simple to freeze.

Peel and cut if needed.
Or just wash.
Freeze.

If you want to make sure the pieces don't stick together, freeze in a single layer on a baking sheet for a couple hours.
Take out of the freezer and put into containers or freezer bags.

Bananas are super simple.
You can freeze them for a frozen treat or for baking.

For treats, you will want to peel and either leave whole or mash.
My daughter likes them left whole, but you can mash them until smooth and than scoop out like ice cream.
If you are planning to bake with them, you can peel and mash or you can just stick the whole banana in the freezer.

My mom peels and mashes. She measures and than freezes.

I just stick the unpeeled banana in a bag and into the freezer it goes.
To use, thaw out and snip off one end of the banana and squish out the banana.
What I like about doing it this way, is that the mashing is virtually unnecessary.

I have heard frozen grapes are good treats too.
I have not tried it, but it's an idea worth trying.

Spaghetti Squash

 

 This is a spaghetti squash. A squash this size will feed a family of four or five. It is called spaghetti squash because you rake the flesh out with a fork and it comes out in strands somewhat like spaghetti.

You serve it like you would pasta. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper and maybe a little Parmesan cheese. You can also top it with a sauce like Alfredo or marinara.

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit/190 Celsius.

You will need a pan large enough to lay the squash in.

You will also need a knife, a large spoon, and a fork.

A towel is nice, but not necessary. 

Ingredients:

1 spaghetti squash

Wash your squash off and pierce the hard skin a few times with a knife.

Lay in the pan and put in the oven.

Bake for one hour and poke with knife to see if it is tender. If the knife goes in fairly easy, it is ready. 

Take out and let it rest a few minutes.

With the knife, slice it in half lengthwise.

With the spoon, scoop out the seeds and spongy stuff.

You might want to hold a towel against outside of the squash so it's not so hot.

Rake the fork down the pulp and it will come out in strands.

Serve with sauce of your choosing.

The seeds can be roasted like pumpkin seeds or dried and saved for future planting.