Paleo Raisin Pie
I’m afraid I’ll be serving you guys leftovers today… and well, once or twice again over the course of the next couple of weeks, for that matter.
Real sorry about that, but the thing is since I decided to take a little bit of time off over the Holidays and spend some quality time with the fam and the new baby, well, I didn’t get to share all the fabulous Christmas recipes that I’d been concocting. Had they turned out not so great, I would’ve simply passed, but both the pies and the salad that I made for the occasion far exceeded my expectations. There’s just no way I can let them fall into oblivion.
This Paleo Raisin Pie has got to be the best darn raisin pie I’ve ever eaten. You see, I’ve never been such a HUGE fan of raisin pie, but my son, who doesn’t have a sweet tooth at all by the way, happens to go absolutely crazy for it. Every year come Christmas, he requests that we make raisin pie together (which basically means mom, you take care of the crust, I take care of the filling. Of course, I get to do the dirty job.)
If you don’t already know that about me, working with pie dough is my biggest pet peeve in the kitchen. If you want to punish me or annoy me to no end, have me make pie crust.
That must be why I will only make pies once a year, around the Holiday Season. Because there’s no way I can pass on making our traditional French Canadian Meat Pie, so while I’m already making crust, might as well make a double batch and whip up a couple of sweet pies as well.
Which brings me back to Raisin Pie. Like I said, it’s never been my favorite. Oh, I’m not saying I don’t like it, only it wouldn’t be my first choice if other options were presented to me.
But this one? Not sure I wouldn’t make it my top pick. The addition of blackstrap molasses, walnuts and a little bit of rum really took it over the top. This is one raisin pie that I would’ve chosen over any other, any time.
From now on, I’ll have to make it every year come Christmas, because I know for a fact that the craving will strike, and strike hard!
Making the filling couldn’t be easier. All you must do is add 3 cups of raisins, an equal amount of water, half a cup of blackstrap molasses, 2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice, a teaspoon of pure vanilla extract and a generous pinch of salt to a large saucepan.
Bring that to the boil, lower the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes.
That part isn’t too complicated, is it?
After 30 minutes, add 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (those are really yum, I think I may add more next time), 1/4 cup rum (if using) and a generous grating of fresh nutmeg, then stir to combine.
Now I know that booze isn’t technically paleo, but if you’re going to have booze, rum would be one of your “approved” options since it’s not made from grains. Plus hey, the way I see it, by the time this pie gets to hit your tongue, pretty much all of the alcohol will have evaporated, so you’re not gonna get a buzz from it. Also, I don’t think that so little alcohol will do your body that much harm. I think you can safely indulge. Because frankly, that rum does SO much for the flavor of the pie.
Still, if you’d rather abstain, feel free to leave it out.
Mix 2 tablespoons of tapioca starch with one tablespoon of water and pour this into the pot while stirring constantly with a wooden spoon.
Continue cooking until the mixture becomes thick and silky and beautifully shiny.
See how plump and delicious looking those raisins are? Oh yum… but wait, we’re not even done yet!
Kill the heat, stir in some ghee and set aside to cool for about an hour.
During that time, try to resist the urge to eat the whole thing by the spoonful…
Get busy working on your pastry, instead! (hmpft… the part that I hate so much! I’d much rather be eating that filling…)
Now that your pastry is dealt with, preheat your oven to 375°F.
Grease a 9″ pie plate with ghee and line with bottom pastry. Why grease the pie dish, you ask? Well, for starters, it’ll help your pie not stick to it and come out of there in one piece, and secondly, it’ll make your pastry all beautiful and nice and golden. For realz. Try it, you’ll see!
Now, spoon in your cooled raisin filling (you haven’t eaten the whole thing, have you?) and cover with top crust. Or, do like I did and cut out a bunch of cute little shapes with a cookie cutter and place them randomly on top of the pie.
Not that this last technique is much easier, you still have to roll that darn dough, but I find it looks so pretty that way.
Now beat an egg with a few tablespoons of coconut milk and brush the top crust with this mixture. Again, this will ensure that your pastry gets really nice and golden brown, and will also give it a little bit of a sheen.
Place your finished pie on the bottom rack of the oven and bake it for 30 to 35 minutes or until the crust is nice and golden brown.
This pie is best served slightly warm (yes, that means you have to be patient and let it cool for a bit…) but is also delicious cold (of course, I’m talking about the leftovers! I wouldn’t dream of asking you to wait until it’s completely chilled before to have a slice…)
Paleo Raisin Pie
Ingredients
- 3 cups organic raisins
- 3 cups water
- 1/2 cup blackstrap molasses
- 2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp Himalayan salt
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- 1/2 cup walnuts
- 1/4 cup rum, optional
- 1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
- 2 tbsp tapioca flour
- 1 tbsp water
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- 1/4 cup ghee
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- 2 paleo pie crust shells
- 1 egg, beaten
- 2 tablespoons full fat coconut milk
Instructions
- Add raisins, water, molasses, lemon juice, vanilla and salt to a large saucepan. Bring to the boil, lower the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes.
- Add walnuts, rum (if using) and nutmeg and stir to combine.
- Mix the tapioca starch and water together and pour this into the pot while stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Continue cooking until the mixture becomes thick.
- Kill the heat, stir in ghee and set aside to cool for about an hour.
- Preheat the oven to 375F. Grease a 9" pie plate with ghee and line with bottom pastry. Spoon in cooled raisin filling and cover with top crust or cut out shapes of your choice with a cookie cutter and place them randomly on top of the pie.
- Beat the egg and coconut milk together and brush the top crust with this mixture.
- Place the pie on the bottom rack of the oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the crust is nice and golden.
- Serve warm or chilled.
Nutrition
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4 Comments on “Paleo Raisin Pie”
I love mincemeat pies! This looks so delicious.. and I love that it is paleo especially.
Wow – this is pretty dang fabulous!
If you want the raisins really plump and delish, bring them to a boil in the water only, turn off the heat and let stand for a half hour. Then add all the other stuff. The raisins’ll stay plump.
One thing though, sugar is not a paleo ingredient. Neither is starch.