Earlier this week I received a request for a vegan, gluten-free crust for veggie pot pie. I’ve been meaning to come up with this recipe for a long time, because my veggie pot pie is a dinner that my picky husband will eat — especially if I’m lazy and top it with pre-made puff pastry (white flour and butter). But then again, he also told me he’d “eat garbage if it were wrapped in puff pastry.” *Sigh*
I came up with a crust recipe that he approves and is also fairly easy to make. So no more artery-clogging puff pastry for us!
In 2011, Green Kitchen Stories published a tart recipe that used a crust made of chickpea flour and almond flour. My version is an adaptation of their recipe. I love this crust because the flours make it a good source of protein, the fresh herbs make the whole house smell amazing, and the coconut oil creates a delightful flaky texture.
To me, the hardest part of crust making is the rolling and transfer of the dough to the top of the pie. This process usually results in a broken crust and lots of cursing. I decided to avoid this potential disaster by pressing the dough directly onto a baking sheet and baking it like a giant cookie, letting it cool, and then placing it on top of the pie. If you’re really good at shaping crusts, you’re welcome to attempt the standard pie crust look with this dough. Also, if you’d like the crust to be on the top and bottom of the pie, you will have to double the recipe.
Chickpea Herb Pie Crust
Ingredients:
- 1 cup chickpea flour (I use Bob’s Red Mill)
- 1/2 cup fine almond flour (Bob’s Red Mill)
- 1/4 cup tapioca starch, potato starch, or cornstarch, plus more for sprinkling on baking sheet
- 3/4 t. fine sea salt
- Cracked black pepper
- 2 T. finely chopped fresh rosemary and thyme
- 1/4 cup coconut oil, chilled
- 1/3 cup cold water
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and sprinkle it with starch.
- Stir together first 6 ingredients in a mixing bowl, breaking up any clumps.
- Take chilled coconut oil and roughly chop into small pieces. Add to dry mixture, along with the cold water. Work the dough with your fingers, breaking up large oil clumps and dampening all of the flour. (You want small clumps of oil dispersed throughout the dough. These melt when baked to create a flaky texture.)
- Roll or press your dough onto the baking sheet in a circle the size of your pie plate (you might want to trace it onto the bottom side of your parchment paper), about 1/4 inch thick. Prick several times with a fork to prevent bubbling.
- Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the edges are golden. Cool on baking sheet about 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Note: Dough can be made a day ahead. Just wrap tightly and store in the refrigerator.
I’ll admit, this isn’t the prettiest crust I’ve ever made. I’m sure all of you could make yours look better than mine! I care more about how it tastes, and it shows :-/ But honestly, I could eat this crust by itself — it’s that good!
And as a nice bonus, it’s a crust I don’t feel bad about serving to my family!
[…] good you won’t even miss the chicken (there’s plenty of protein from the beans and the chickpea herb crust). And let’s be honest, the best part about pot pie is the crust anyway, […]