Rustic Open-Faced Peach Pie

Peach pie from 350 Best Vegan Recipes by Deb Roussou © 2012 Robert Rose Inc. Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.

Ingredients

• 4 cups peach halves in light syrup (1 28-ounce can)
• 8 ounces vegan frozen puff pastry, thawed (1 sheet)
• ⅓ cup raw sugar, divided
• 1 cup chopped almonds
• 2 tablespoons vegan hard margarine
• 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
• 1 tablespoon plain soy yogurt or other vegan yogurt
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• Pinch of salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Drain peaches, reserving ¼ cup syrup. Pat peaches dry, lay on a kitchen towel and set aside.
3. On floured work surface, roll out puff pastry to a 16-inch square. Fit into 10-inch glass pie plate, letting pastry corners hang over edges. Refrigerate while preparing filling.
4. Set aside 1 teaspoon raw sugar for topping and place remainder in food processor. Add almonds, margarine, vanilla bean paste, soy yogurt, nutmeg and salt and process for 30 seconds. Scrape down sides and process until fairly smooth, for 30 seconds more.
5. Spread almond mixture in prepared crust, building up mixture a little higher around edges. Place peach halves, cut side down, on top of almond mixture. Press down lightly. Fold corners of pastry over top of peaches, scrunching square pastry to fit in round pan.
6. Bake in preheated oven until almond filling (showing around peaches) looks dry and peaches have a slightly golden color, 45 to 50 minutes. If pastry seems to be browning too rapidly, cover edges with strips of foil. Let cool on rack 10 minutes.
7. Meanwhile, place reserved peach syrup in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave on High until reduced by half, 3 to 4 minutes. Brush syrup over peaches and sprinkle with reserved sugar. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Frozen Strawberry Pie

• 2 cups strawberries, pureed
• 1 (8-ounce) package sugar-free vanilla pudding mix
• 2 cups low-fat plain yogurt
• 2 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 2 cups granola

Combine strawberries and pudding mix in 1-quart microwaveable container. Microwave on High until mixture thickens and boils, 5-6 minutes. Stir in yogurt.

In 9-inch pie dish, microwave butter on High until melted. Crush granola very fine, using food processor or blender. Stir into melted butter and press crumbs over bottom and sides of pie plate. Microwave on High until lightly toasted, 1-2 minutes. Pour strawberry mixture into pie shell and freeze until firm, about 4 hours. Let pie sit at room temperature about 30 minutes before serving. Garnish each serving with fresh strawberries.

Conventional oven: Preheat oven to 350 F. Cook strawberries and pudding mix in medium saucepan over low heat. Bring to boil 1 minute to thicken; stir constantly. Melt margarine in small saucepan and add granola crumbs. Press into pie plate and bake for 5 to 10 minutes. Continue as directed in microwave recipe.

Berry Topped Pudding Pie

Berry Topped Pudding Pie

Recipe from the American Heart Association, courtesy of Alton Brown.

(Makes 8 servings)

• Canola or corn oil for pie pan
• 2 large egg white
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup walnuts or pecans, finely chopped
• 1 small package fat-free, sugar-free instant lemon or vanilla pudding mix, prepared with 2 cups cold fat-free milk
• 12 ounces fresh berries or other fruit, sliced if needed
• 1/2 cup fat-free frozen whipped topping, thawed (optional)

Preheat the oven to 300 F. Pour small amount of oil onto paper towel and lightly wipe bottom and side of an 8- or 9-inch pie pan.

In large mixing bowl, using electric mixer, beat egg whites, vanilla, cream of tartar, and salt on medium speed until foamy. With mixer still running, gradually add the sugar in slow, steady stream, until stiff peaks form. (The peaks shouldn’t fold over when the beater is lifted.) Very gently fold in ½ cup of nuts.

Using flexible spatula or rubber scraper, spread meringue over bottom and up side of pie pan and onto lip of pan, but not over edge of pan. Sprinkle bottom of pan with remaining nuts.

Bake for 50 minutes, or until meringue is firm and lightly browned. Transfer to cooling rack and let cool completely, at least 2 hours.

Using package directions, prepare pudding. Spread over cooled crust. Arrange fruit decoratively over pudding. Top with whipped topping.

Note: In warm weather, meringues will get gummy after a few days, so it’s best to serve this dessert within 24 hours.

Deep Dish Cranberry Pie

Bowl of Cranberries

(Makes 8 to 10 servings)

Crust:

• 1 1/4 cup gluten-free flour
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
• 2 tablespoons vegetable shortening, chilled
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 tablespoons ice water, or more as needed

Place gluten-free flour and salt in medium bowl. Using pastry cutter or 2 knives, cut in butter and shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add 2 tablespoons ice water, mix just until incorporated. Continue adding ice water as needed, 1 tablespoon at a time, until dough is smooth. Form dough into disk, wrap tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 400 F. Remove dough from refrigerator, place on lightly gluten-free floured surface (we use an extra large Silpat-a sort of “rubber” nonstick mat, which really helps prevent dough from sticking to bottom surface). Lightly flour surface of dough with gluten-free flour. Roll pastry to large round, about 12 inches in diameter. Transfer to deep 9-inch pie plate, trim to within 1/2 inch of pan, crimp decoratively. If outer edges break off before folded under and crimped, just use excess dough. Press onto outer edge to form an even edge, then crimp. Prick with fork, cover. Refrigerate 20 to 30 minutes. Reserve any excess dough, reform into ball. Bake 15 to 30 minutes or until light brown. Remove form oven, let cool completely on wire rack.

Filling:

• 1 cup water
• 1 1/2 cups dried cherries
• 1 1/4 cups dried cranberries
• 1 (12 ounce) package fresh cranberries
• 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoons gluten-free flour
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 1 tablespoon milk
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

In small saucepan, bring 1 cup water to simmer. Add dried cranberries and cherries. Remove from heat. Cover, let stand 20 minutes.

In large bowl, stir together fresh cranberries, undrained dried cherry-cranberry mixture, 1 1/4 cups sugar, gluten-free flour, and lemon zest. Pour mixture into prepared pie crust. Preheat oven to 375 F.

Roll out excess dough. Using small knife, cut out leaf shapes. Using tip of knife, vein leaves without cutting through dough. Using spatula, remove “leaves” and place on top of pie in decorative fashion. Using pastry brush, brush “leaves” with milk. Sprinkle top with sugar and cinnamon.

Cover pie edges with foil. Bake 45 to 50 minutes or until juices bubble and top of “leaves” are lightly browned. Transfer pie to cooling rack to cool.

Sauce:

• 1 cup crème fraîche
• 3 tablespoons wildflower honey

In medium bowl, whisk together crème fraîche and honey. To serve, place slice of pie on plate, drizzle sauce over top.

Recipe from Glutenfreeda Online Magazine and Recipe Book.

Alton Brown’s Moo-Less Chocolate Pie

Alton Brown’s Moo-Less Chocolate Pie

(Makes 8 servings)

• 13 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/3 cup coffee liqueur
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 pound silken tofu
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 9-inch ready-made chocolate wafer crust

Place enough water in bottom of 4-quart saucepan to come 1 inch up sides. Bring to simmer over medium heat. Place chocolate chips and liqueur in medium metal mixing bowl, set over simmering water, and stir with a rubber or silicone spatula until melted. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract. Combine tofu, chocolate mixture, and honey in a blender or food processor and spin until smooth (about 1 minute). Pour the filling into the crust and refrigerate for 2 hours or until filling sets firm.