I remember the first Thanksgiving that I told my mom I wanted to be in charge of bringing the pumpkin pie. We typically just had the frozen boxed pies from the grocery store, and I really wanted to try making a pie from scratch. After many years this version of a gluten free pumpkin pie is my favorite!
I was SO nervous attempting pie for the first time! I had been learning about the impact of processed foods, fake fats, and preservatives on the body, and I really wanted to keep my diet as clean as possible. But…the pumpkin pie is the main dessert after the big meal and everyone was going to be looking forward to it! Turns out it wasn’t so difficult, and I felt SO proud of myself for accomplishing it.
It has been years since that first Thanksgiving, and every year since I have tweaked my recipe and tried a myriad of different crusts. This year I committed to figuring out a great gluten-free crust. I have officially taken my oldest and myself completely off gluten since we just operate so much better that way. I did a combo of about 5 different GF crust recipes I could find and was very pleased with the result. The filling continues to be my favorite of all the variations I have tried and it is based on the Nourishing Traditions Cookbook by Sally Fallon (available on Amazon). I have tried so many and nothing compares to this filling to me.
I am so excited to share this recipe with you! If you have never made your own pie from scratch before, please try this for your Thanksgiving this year! I am on the edge of my seat excited for you to feel as proud as I did. Please come back and tell me how it went!
Gluten-free Pumpkin Pie
Ingredients
Crust
- 1 cup white rice flour
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp gelatin
- 2 Tbsp sucanat or pure cane sugar
- ½ cup cold butter or pastured lard cubed up small
- 4 Tbsp cold water
Filling
- 3 eggs
- ¾ cup sucanat or organic pure cane sugar
- 2 cups pumpkin puree or one 15oz can
- 2 tsp ginger
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp cloves
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- ¼ tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 cup sour cream
Instructions
- Put the dry ingredients for the crust in the bowl of your food processor (white rice flour, sea salt, sugar), and blend to combine.
- Add the butter and pulse to make pea size bits.
- Add the water and blend to combine. Start with 3 tablespoons and work up to 4 or 5 tablespoons if needed. When you pinch the dough it should stick together. It will be slightly crumbly still. This is fine.
- Scrape the dough into a plastic bag or wrap and press together into a disk. Put this in the fridge for an hour to set.
- Take the dough out of the fridge and let it sit at room temp for about 15 minutes while you make the pumpkin filling and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a medium mixing bowl, blend the eggs and sugar for the filling until smooth.
- Add the rest of the filling ingredients to the mixing bowl and blend to combine.
- Use the warmth of your hands to “knead” the crust dough until it feels pliable. Gently roll the dough out on a parchment paper to the size of your 9 inch pie plate. Put your pie plate upside down on the dough and flip so the dough is in the plate (it’s just easier for me to get the dough in the plate this way! This dough has no gluten, so it’s a bit fragile and not as stretchy/giving as gluten based dough). Use your fingers to mold the dough into the pie plate and stretch up the sides to crimp.
- Pour your pumpkin filling into the pie plate with the uncooked dough and bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes. A butter knife should come out fairly clean from the middle.
- Cool and refrigerate. Serve with homemade whipped cream.
Notes
Tips:
- This is the perfect dish to make ahead of time. You can do up the dough for the crust days before and just keep it in the fridge until you are ready to use it. The entire pie can be done even the weekend before Thanksgiving and just kept in the fridge until Thursday. It’s the perfect travel dish if you are going out of town for your meal!
- Don’t get frustrated with the crust – it is very forgiving – if it cracks or splits just press it back together in the dish. I actually found it less fussy than gluten based dough because it didn’t burn or need to be watched in the oven for getting too brown at all.
- Here are my methods for pumpkin puree making and my favorite whipped cream recipe!
Thank you, Renee! Can’t wait to try this!