Yes, here’s my cherry pie, grab a cool drink of water as it’s a sweet surprise – tastes so good makes this grown man cry, sweet cherry pie!

Now you all have the earworm, which was pretty unavoidable considering the topic of this particular post, but I figured this time it’s forgivable? 😋

Now, I kid you not, this has been one of my most successful gluten and dairy free pastries ever, and so that’s why I’m dragging it out of my Facebook Notes archive (yes, you can still access these Notes, but there are catches).

Having said that, I have made a few tweaks to the recipe to cut out the refined sugar, get a closer resemblance to wheat pastry, and give a vegan option.

I will say that it’s worth swapping in and out spices that better suit your tastes for the pastry, but make sure it goes well with whatever filling you are including. These could easily be made as blueberry pies, strawberry pies – just adjust according to the different elements of flavour each fruit imparts on the whole dish.

This pie can be made as one 22cm pie, or as four tartlet-sized pies. The shortcrust is a breakthrough for me as I have finally found a blend and flavouring that works really well and comes up crunchy, yet crumbly like a good shortcrust should be. Adapted from a recipe appearing in ‘The Best Gluten Free, Wheat Free & Dairy Free Recipes’ (by Grace Cheetham). The filling is also delicious and I found a way to keep the shape and texture of the cherries thanks to a recipe on the internet (Taste of Home).

Filling:

• 1/2 cup sugar OR 1/4 cup maple syrup
• ⅓ cup cornflour (gluten free of course)
• 1 cup cherry juice (use the juice from the cherries you pipped and make up to a cup by adding boiled water)
• 500g cherries, pitted (weighed before pitting)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon (freshly) ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon red food colouring (optional)
• 1 vanilla bean

1. In a saucepan, combine sugar/maple syrup and cornflour; gradually stir in cherry juice mixture until smooth.
2. Add the vanilla bean and bring to a boil; cook and stir for about 2 minutes or until thickened.
3. Remove from the heat and remove the vanilla bean (you can reuse it for another recipe later, such as glace cherries).
4. Add the cherries, cinnamon, nutmeg and, if using, the red food colouring. Set it aside while you make the pastry.

Sweet Rich Shortcrust Pastry

• 150g rice flour/gf plain flour
• 100g buckwheat flour
• 50g besan/chickpea flour
• 2 teaspoons Xantham Gum or Guar Gum (depending on preference)
• 100g almond meal
• ALTERNATIVELY use 150g glutinous rice flour, 150g white spelt flour (not gluten free) and 100g almond meal
• 70g sugar (replace with 30g maple syrup or leave out entirely)
• 160g dairy free butter (such as Nuttelex)
• 2 beaten eggs or 140g lightly beaten aguafaba
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons ground allspice
• roughly 1 – 2 teaspoons ground cardamom seeds
• cold filtered water (if needed)

1. Sift the first three flours and xanthan gum together into a large bowl. Stir in the ground almonds and the sugar, as well as the spices. If using maple syrup, add after the Nuttelex. Cut chilled margarine into small cubes and, using cold fingertips (I had to put my hands in the freezer for a while as it was HOT today), rub it into the dry ingredients until it resembles fine bread crumbs.
2. Make a well in the centre and add the eggs or aguafaba, mixing lightly with a round-bladed knife. You’ll eventually have to give up and use your hands, no matter what happens at this point. The mixture will start to hold together. If too dry, add some of the cold filtered water a little at a time and incorporate well. If too sticky, add more rice flour.
3. Shape the dough into a ball and wrap in greaseproof paper and refrigerate it for 30 minutes.
4. When ready, heat oven to 220 degrees Celcius and grease tin(s). Roll out dough on a surface dusted with rice flour until thin, but still thick enough to pick up and not have it break too much.
5. Line your tin(s) with some pastry and let it overhang. Fill with the cherry mixture. Then cut strips from leftover pastry and create lattice pattern on top of pie(s).
6. The cherries will still be whole and may even poke out from the lattice at intervals, which makes it look rustic and appetising.
7. Cook in the hot oven for 10 minutes at 220 and then lower the heat to 180 for the remaining 40 minutes. If cooking 4 minis, cook on 220 for 5 minutes, then reduce to 180 and cook for a further 35 minutes. Check before removing from oven that pastry has browned and filling has started bubbling.
8. Remove from oven and let cool in tin(s) at least 10 minutes before removing. Dust finished pie with icing sugar and serve.