Gluten Free Pumpkin Pie

Time to talk pie again, gluten free pumpkin pie to be specific.

I have made gluten free pumpkin pies before by simply leaving out the crust.  My daughter went through a massive pumpkin pie phase last year while we had her on a gluten free diet, so I started making pumpkin pie by just putting the pie filling into a well buttered pie dish (which works pretty well).  While that works, for Thanksgiving, one really needs, or dare I say deserves, a pie crust with their pumpkin pie.  We have friends with celiac disease as well as gluten allergies, so gluten free diets aren’t a trend for them, but a life long necessity.  I hate having them miss out on classic recipes, but I also don’t love complicated gluten free baking.  Dilemma.

My dear friend Jen, who does lots of gluten free baking for her husband who has celiac disease, gave me her recipe for gluten free pie crusts.  Super easy.  Delicious.  Thanks to Krusteaz Gluten Free Pancake Mix as the base of your crust, you can whip up a gluten free pie crust quickly, using ingredients you can find at your grocery store.  Woohoo!

This recipe makes enough for two pies.  You can easily cut the recipe in half if you like, but I find it’s no more work to make two pies, and around the holidays we always have people over or are visiting friends and family, and that extra pie can get put to good use.

I do find that this pie crust browns very quickly.  The first time I made it, it was really brown – and I do not love an over baked pie crust.  What I’ve found work best is to make my crust so that it is at the same level as the pumpkin – no pretty lip of pie crust around the pie.  I also use a pie shield, and put it on about 10 minutes into baking.  Admittedly I don’t like anything over browned (my version of burnt is much different than say my husband’s version) so you do what works for you.  But just a note, it does brown quickly, so know that ahead of time so that you can adapt like I do if you want to.

Now, let’s be honest.  This is a gluten free pie crust.  It is not identical to a traditional pie crust.  The texture is a bit different, both in the dough form and cooked form. That said, everyone in my family loved it (and they are some VERY honest critics, and gluten eaters), the texture is just a bit different from a pie crust made with flour.  I would not hesitate for a moment to serve it to my gluten loving and eating friends.  If we have gluten free guests in our house, I really prefer to make things that everyone can eat, versus different “special” versions for one or two guests.  It’s less work, and as the parent of a child with a food allergy, I can tell you it’s always awesome (and so very appreciated) when there are dishes that we can all enjoy together.

If you have a gluten free friend or family member, make them one of these pies this holiday season.  They will be thrilled, I’m sure of that.   And everyone, whether they eat gluten free or not, will love these pies.   🙂

EASY GLUTEN FREE PUMPKIN PIE

5 from 2 votes

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Gluten Free Pumpkin Pie

A delicious and easy pumpkin pie! This recipe makes two pies, perfect for large crowds or sharing with friends and family. Feel free to cut ingredients in half and make only one pie.

Servings 2 Standard Size Pies

Author Christi Johnstone

Ingredients

Crust

• 2 cups Krusteaz Gluten Free Buttermilk Pancake Mix
• 10 tablespoons cold butter cut into small cubes - approximately 1/4" in size
• 6 tablespoons cream cheese
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar
• 2-4 tablespoons cold water

Pie

• 1 29 oz can pure pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling. I use Libby's pumpkin)
• 1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 12 oz can evaporated milk
• 4 large eggs
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp salt

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

To Make Crusts: Using a food processor or pastry blender, combine Gluten Free Krusteaz Buttermilk Pancake Mix, cold cubed butter and cream cheese until the mixture starts to form into crumbs. Add in vinegar and pulse food processor a few times to incorporate. Add in water as needed. You want the mixture to form a dough ball, so do not add too much water if you do not need it. Once a ball has formed, divide in half and press each half into a 9" pie plate.

To Make Pie Filling

1. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, then add pumpkin, full can sweetened condensed milk and approximately 2/3-3/4 can of the evaporated milk (you can use the entire can, I prefer a more solid pumpkin pie, thus do not use the entire can). Stir well to combine. Add in cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla and salt. Stir well to combine.
2. Carefully pour mixture into into pie shells. Place pies in oven and bake for 15 minutes at 425 degrees F, then reduce the temperature to 350 degrees. Bake for an additional 35-45 minutes or until a knife inserted into the center of a pie comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow to cool for two hours. Serve immediately or refrigerate. Store in refrigerator.

Recipe Notes

I prefer to keep my crusts from over browning. The gluten free pie crust tends to brown quickly, so I keep my pie crust low, even with the pumpkin I pour in, this helps keep the crust from over browning. I also use a pie shield to help prevent further browning. I put the pie shield on after about 15 minutes and leave on for the remaining baking time. Adapted from Libby's Famous Pumpkin Pie.

And if you have your own pie recipe that you love, where the ingredients, except for the crust, are gluten free, you can totally use this pie crust recipe with your pie recipe.  Make it your own!   This isn’t limited to just this pumpkin pie recipe, the crust can be used for so many recipes, so have fun and get creative.

Looking for more gluten free recipe ideas?  Check out this great gluten free recipe collection that I put together.