A quick post for a quick crust. One that is crumbly without crumbling biscuits. Buttery without any butter. Pressed with no pressure (too far? probably) and so fragrant and more-ish you’ll want to use it for every pie you make ever again (I do love a bold assumption).
As a side note this crust was photographed a couple hours before the fully assembled pie — smack-bang in the middle of a make-the-morning-dark-as-night thunderstorm.
The pics have been adjusted within an inch of their lives yet are still all moody and completely at odds with the shiny-happy-people-lime-pie pics taken once the sun had come back out and the board flipped.
I’m sure there’s some life lesson or inspirational quote I should put here about light after dark and this too shall pass and so on and so forth…but I’ll spare you and call it quits with the late night rambling (it’s becoming quite the habit). It’s time for pie.
Vanilla Amaranth Crumb Crust
Fragrant and a little bit nutty, like a crumbly biscuit crust, but better. The recipe just-covers the base and part way up the sides of a 9 inch tart tin — for more crust, simply increase the recipe or decrease the tin. Simples.
Makes 1 crust
INGREDIENTS
- ½ c amaranth flour
- ½ c buckwheat flour
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- scant ¼ tsp sea salt
- 1 Tbsp coconut sugar
- ¼ c coconut oil
- 2 Tbsp water
- 1 tsp vanilla extract (see note)
METHOD
Lightly oil an 8 or 9 inch tart tin. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F).
In a small bowl whisk dry ingredients until well combined. In a medium sauce pan heat oil and water until just bubbling — it will only take a moment.
Remove pan from heat and, using a long-handled wooden spoon, immediately stir dry ingredients into hot oil all at once. Drizzle over vanilla and beat briefly until crumbly, before tipping into prepared tin.
Press crust gently across base and up sides, prick lightly with a fork and refrigerate 10 minutes. Bake 10 – 12 minutes until just golden, if necessary using a large metal spoon to smooth out any small cracks while the crust is still warm.
Cool and fill as you wish. Perhaps with Vegan Key Lime Pie or Vegan Lemon Custard Cheesecake Bars.
COOK’S NOTES
- Vanilla: you’ll want to use vanilla extract with alcohol in it (most of them have it) so it evaporates while baking. You can also use vanilla paste or powder mixed with a tsp of vodka or gin. Because, gin.
vegan // gluten-free // dairy-free // soy-free // refined sugar-free // nut-free
Love the sound of this JJ, I bet it makes for a super tasty base.
Ooohhh! Another one of your genius creations JJ! I’ve never cooked with amaranth flour…must try!
Wow, how amazing that looks! I’ll definitely give this a try when I get home!
Vegan Key Lime Pie or Vegan Lemon Custard Cheesecake Bars … Wow makes me crave,,,
Loving this crust, and you are right, so many uses.
Ohhhh this is BEAUTIFUL JJ! I love amaranth, I only discovered it a couple of years ago but it’s beautiful in anything crumbly and baked like this. Love your photographs. I am definitely going to give this a go and fill it with my husband’s fave lemon cheesecake. Delish! Thanks lovely x
I just made this with the Vegan Key Lime Pie filling….the filling is the most delicious filling ever I love it!!!….but the pastry…don’t know but it kind of tasted like sand, I’ve never baked with amaranth or buckwheat before so i’m not sure if I did something wrong or maybe on of the ingredients could have been off but it just wasn’t very nice. If you could give me some feedback on why this happened so I could try again it would be very helpful! Thanks
Hi Tia, glad you liked the pie filling. Regarding the crust, I’ve never had an issue with it, however both amaranth and buckwheat are quite nutty tasting flours – where as wheat flour has very little flavour at all, so if you aren’t used to it that may be the issue.
The crust could have been burnt during baking or maybe you’ll want to add more sugar to make it sweeter. You can make a pancake batter with the flours (1 c buckwheat or amaranth or combo of both, 1 egg or egg replacer, 1 c liquid plus extra if needed) and make pancakes from it to see if it’s the flavour of the grain (they are both seeds actually, not grains) that’s the issue.
Alternatively you can simply use a different pie crust (there are a bunch here: http://84thand3rd.com/tag/piecrust or use one you know you like) with the lime filling. ~ JJ
I made a pumpkin pie using this pie crust and it was so delicious! After I formed the crust in the pie pan, I placed it in the fridge to cool just long enough to make the filling. I prepared my pumpkin mixture and poured on to the cooled crust and placed in the oven for an hour (425 for 15 mins and 350 for 45 mins). I wasn’t sure how the crust would turn out with the high temperature and length of baking time but was pleasantly surprised to see how nicely formed it looked and how great it tasted. Thank you so much for sharing this pie crust recipe!
Great to hear it worked out for you Denise! ~ JJ
Was nearly going to ask what is buckwheat, then googled and found out what it is. Most of these grainfree cereals are commonly used in Indian food during a nine day period of fasts that comes twice a year when conventional grains are refrained from in order to cleanse the body. Strange how these are now being rediscovered for Western cooking! Will try this soon and hope it turns out as good as some of the other recipes on your blog.
It’s great that many ‘lost’ foods are experience a wide renaissance in new cultures! Hope you enjoy the crust. ~ JJ