Cherry-Berry Pie With Agave Nectar All-Butter Crust

Category: Desserts & Sweets | Blog URL: http://alteredplates.blogspot.com/2008/03/its-all-about-crust-baby.html

This recipe was entered in The Foodista Best of Food Blogs Cookbook contest, a compilation of the world’s best food blogs which was published in Fall 2010.

Photo: Deb Schiff

Ingredients

For the crust:

1/4 cup coconut flour, sifted

3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1/2 cup almond flour/meal/finely processed almonds

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 sticks of very cold butter (I freeze mine), cut into cubes

3 1/2 tablespoons of agave

1/2 teaspoon fiore di Sicilia flavoring

For the filling:

16 ounces frozen packages of cherries, thawed

8 ounces frozen package of mixed berries, thawed

3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1/4 cup agave nectar (again, not needed if your fruit is sweet)

3 tablespoons tapioca flour (or corn starch or arrowroot)

Preparation

Make the crust:

Pulse the dry ingredients 5-6 times.

Add 2 sticks of very cold butter (I freeze mine), cut into cubes. Pulse until the ingredients resemble very coarse meal.

Adding the agave nectar and flavoring one tablespoon at a time.

Watch to see the dough just comes together.

Divide the dough into two parts, one larger than the other.

Form each into a flat, round shape.

Wrap each disk in plastic and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

While the dough is chilling, make the filling.

In a large bowl, combine all the filling ingredients.

Mix until well incorporated (it will be very soupy).

Take the dough out of the fridge.

Let it warm enough to be able to roll it out.

Roll out the crust to fit it to your pie dish.

You may need to patch some, but none will show to your eaters.

Wrap the pie dish in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.

Pour the filling into the crust.

Again, wrap the pie in plastic and chill.

Roll out the other dough disk.

Use your favorite cookie cutters to cut pieces for the top crust.

Take the pie out of the fridge and decorate the top.

Just remember to leave spots for steam to escape.

Cover the edges with foil and bake at 325 degrees F for 40 minutes.

Remove foil and bake until golden brown top and the filling is bubbling.

Let cool and enjoy!

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About

Kitchen Parade is celebrating Pi day (14 March) with a great, big event linking together pie makers from across the globe. You still have a few days in which to include your favorite pie entry, but just so you know, you'll need to focus heavily on the crust.

My favorite pie crust is a slightly different take on Elise's All-Butter Crust (a true work of art). My version omits the brown sugar and the water, and uses agave nectar instead. Additionally, I use coconut flour for a portion of the all-purpose flour. It's still super-buttery, and very much like a shortbread crust. It's a huge hit with everyone who tries it. My friend Ken even said that he could just eat the crust alone. I often do, since there is usually enough to make a few cut out cookies as extras for "tasting" purposes.

The great thing about this recipe is that it can be made in the food processor. Since I recently acquired an awesome Cuisinart 14-cup food process, I felt that it was time to put it through its paces.