I love pie. Apple pie, cream pie, pumpkin pie, you name it and I probably like it. The hardest part about pie for me was always the crust. It was either wonderfully flakey or a perfect disaster, and there was no in between. So the grocery store pre-made crusts were my best friend! Oh to think of the pre-made grocery store days… Anyway, when I went grain free, I started trying to look for a pie crust recipe that was simple to make but also didn’t use a lot of expensive AIP flour. When I looked for recipes they almost always only used one type of flour. So I created an Easy AIP pie crust recipe that uses a blend of flours to create a flakey grain-free pie crust like the one we all know and love.
This recipe works great for the AIP Apple Galette or AIP Pumpkin Apple Butter Pie!
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This Easy AIP Pie Crust uses a blend of grain-free flours: cassava flour, coconut flour, and arrowroot flour. It achieves its flakey consistency using a blend of coconut oil and palm shortening. This crust is fairly easy to work with and the dough doesn’t crumble to pieces when you work with it. This crust can be whipped up in less than 10 minutes and makes a great starting point for all your AIP pies!
Tips on how to make the best AIP Grain-Free Pie Crust
Is it important to cook with chilled oil?
Using cold oil and fats in pie crust is very important. For the best crust outcome, make sure to work with COLD palm shortening, coconut oil, and cold water. It is important that the dough stays as cold as possible. The cold to hot ingredient shift is what helps achieve a crispy pie crust texture.
What is the best way to mix the pie dough?
To mix the pie crust dough use a pastry cutter (this is a great tool to have if you don’t own one already), food processor, or even a fork can work if you don’t have the other two items. Try and use your hands as little as possible as the heat from your hands will melt the oils in the dough.
How can I easily assemble this AIP pie crust?
The easiest way to work with the crust is to roll the dough out on parchment paper or foil. The dough is fragile so having it on paper will make it easier to handle. If you do not have either available make sure to use plenty of arrowroot flour or tapioca flour to prevent the crust from sticking to the rolling surface.
Why did my crust bake too crumbly?
If you made this crust and it came out too crumbly, chances are you did not use enough water in the recipe. Talking about food physics for a moment, flour and fat mixed together create a crumbly dough and texture which is great for a pie crust, but in order for the crust not to completely crumble, water is required to mix in to activate the flour so that it will also hold together. When you put the oil in, you may think the dough is too wet to add water, the cold water will actually help to solidify the pie dough, so make sure you use the recommended amount of water in the recipe!
Making the AIP pie crust
Start by measuring out the coconut oil and palm shortening into a small bowl. Mix the fats together until they are well blended. Next stick the bowl in the freezer to let the oil chill. Chill for at least 5 minutes. Using solid oil works best in this recipe!
While the oil is chilling, in a large bowl measure the flours and salt into a bowl. Stir the flour blend until well incorporated.
Once the oil has chilled for at least 5 minutes, add the chilled palm shortening and coconut oil. It is very important that the oil is COLD. The Coconut oil should be close to solid.
Use a pastry cutter until the shortening has mixed into the flour and there are no large chunks of coconut oil left. The dough will be very crumbly (if your oils were not solid enough your pie crust may seem like it does not need water, do not skip the water! It helps the pie crust keep its shape once it is baked).
Next, add in the apple cider vinegar, and add in the ice water 1 tablespoon at a time. When the dough starts to stick to itself and is workable do not add any more water. Make sure to use at least 3 tablespoons!
From your dough into a disc and store in the refrigerator until you are ready to use, or roll out the dough.
Form your dough into a large disc and place on parchment paper to roll out. Dust the dough with arrowroot flour or tapioca flour to avoid sticking.
Roll the crust to your desired size. This crust works best for an 8 inch to 9 inch pie plate but can also work for a shallow dish 10 inch pie plate. This recipe makes one pie crust.
If you Liked this AIP Grain Free Pie Crust, you should check out these!
AIP Grain-Free Pie Crust
Ingredients
- ½ Cup Cassava Flour
- ¼ Cup Coconut Flour
- ¼ Cup Arrowroot Flour
- ¼ Teaspoon Salt
- 3 Tablespoons Palm Shortening chilled solid
- 3 Tablespoons Coconut Oil chilled solid
- 1 Tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar
- 3-5 Tablespoons Ice Water
Instructions
- While the oil is chilling, in a large bowl measure the flours and salt into a bowl. Stir the flour blend until well incorporated.
- Once the oil has chilled for at least 5 minutes, add the chilled palm shortening and coconut oil. It is very important that the oil is COLD. The Coconut oil should be close to solid.
- Use a pastry cutter until the shortening has mixed into the flour and there are no large chunks of coconut oil left. The dough will be very crumbly (if your oils were not solid enough your pie crust may seem like it does not need water, do not skip the water! It helps the pie crust keep its shape and not be over crumbly once it is baked).
- Next, add in the apple cider vinegar, and add in the ice water 1 tablespoon at a time. When the dough starts to stick to itself and is workable do not add any more water. Make sure to use at least 3 tablespoons.
- Form your dough into a large disc and place on parchment paper to roll out. Dust the dough with arrowroot flour or tapioca flour to avoid sticking.
- Roll the crust to your desired size. This crust works best for an 8 inch to 9 inch pie plate but can also work for a shallow dish 10 inch pie plate.
- For cream pies, bake for 15-20 minutes at 375 Fahrenheit until it turns golden brown. Let cool before adding your filling. For other pies, Add your pie filling and bake in the oven as instructed. This recipe makes one pie crust.
