Gluten Free Pumpkin Pie
For the filling:
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1.4 kg pumpkin
50g unsalted vegan butter
125g golden caster sugar
4 tbsp Amisa Chestnut Flour
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
½ tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp vanilla extract
3 tbsp flaxseed
7 ½ tbsp water
For the pastry:
250g Amisa Chestnut Flour
½ tsp xanthan gum
50g soft light brown sugar
Pinch of ground cinnamon (plus extra for dusting)
125g unsalted vegan butter (plus extra for glazing)
1 tbsp flaxseed
2.5 tbsp water
Oat milk (if needed)
Icing sugar, for dusting
Equipment:
Baking beans
- Preheat the oven to 180/160C fan. Lightly grease a 25cm non-stick loose-bottomed tart tin with vegetable oil.
- Halve the pumpkin, scoop out and discard the seeds, then roughly chop into large wedges (there’s no need to peel it). Spread out on a baking tray, cover with tin foil, then pop in the oven for around 1 hour or until tender. Remove the foil for the final 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, make the pastry. Sieve the flour and xanthan gum into a large bowl, then stir in the sugar and cinnamon.
- Slice the butter into cubes, then use your fingertips to rub it into the flour mixture until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.
- In a separate bowl, combine the flaxseed and water and add it to the mixture. Use your hands to bring it together into a rough dough, adding a good splash of oat milk (if needed), but don’t overwork it too much at this stage.
- Pat the dough into a flat round, roughly 2.5cm thick, wrap in clingfilm and place in the fridge to rest for at least 30 minutes.
- Once the pumpkin is soft, remove it from the oven and leave to cool.
- Once the pastry is cool, remove from the fridge. Roll out the pastry to roughly the thickness of a pound coin (if you find it crumbles too much, roll it out between two large pieces of clingfilm). Carefully place the dough into the prepared tart tin, gently pressing it into the sides. Trim away any overhanging pastry, prick the base with a fork, then place in the fridge to chill for another 10 minutes.
- Remove the tart case from the fridge and lay a sheet of of baking paper over the pastry, before filling it with the baking beans. Place in the oven to blind bake for 10-12 minutes. Remove the baking paper and baking beans, then cook for a further 5 minutes, or until golden. Remove from the oven and let it cool completely.
- Meanwhile, scoop the cooled pumpkin into a blender, discard the skin, and blitz until smooth.
- Melt the butter in a small pan over a low heat for 1-2 minutes, or until dark and frothy. Add the brown butter to the blitzed pumpkin with the sugar, flour, nutmeg, cinnamon and the vanilla extract. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flax seed and water. Add to the blender, then blitz again until well combined. Transfer the mixture to the cooled pastry case, using a fork or spoon to spread it out evenly.
- Roll out the leftover pastry to roughly the thickness of a pound coin, then cut it into long strips, roughly 1cm wide. Place on top of the pie, crisscrossing them as you go to create a design, then trim away any rough edges.
- Brush some vegan butter over the pastry. Place the pie in the hot oven for 45 to 50 minutes, or until golden. Dust with icing sugar and cinnamon, then serve.