Gluten Free Tomato Pie
A crisp creamy tomato tart to celebrate the season!
Hello friends,
Is your house full of tomatoes right now? Is it the moment where you live? I love the seasonality of produce, the excitement of waiting for them to be truly spectacular, and the celebration when they are! This isn’t a dish I make in February when the supermarket tomatoes are merely serviceable, but in the heat of the moment when all that is needed to enjoy tomatoes really, is salt. This makes a beautiful dinner with a salad or a starter for a more substantial meal. If you just can’t think of turning on your oven this time of year, I have been successful in heating my grill outside to the suggested temperature (my grill has a thermometer) and baking this tart on a cast iron pan on the grill - just be sure to check that the bottom isn’t getting too toasty. It works best when the fire is under one side of the grill and the pan is on the other.
This crust is such a dream to work with. Don’t skip on the small amount of psyllium, it doesn’t seem like much but it’s the pixie dust that makes this into a flaky tart! Feel free to substitute thinly sliced zucchini or summer squash for the tomatoes, should you have a lot of that on hand, and to use other vegetables as the season continues, I for one am looking forward to roasted squash and mushroom tarts in the fall!
Happy Baking,
Rachel
Gluten Free Tomato Pie
yield: 1 pie (8 slices)
1 gluten free pie crust (recipe included)
8 oz ricotta, goat or other soft cheese (or nondairy soft cheese – I prefer nondairy boursin or myokos brand)
8 oz ripe tomatoes, sliced
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper
2 Tb fresh thyme (optional)
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Prepare the pie crust, roll it into a 14 inch circle, on a parchment lined baking sheet.
Spread the cheese onto the middle of the pie dough, leaving a 3 inch border all around. Add the sliced tomatoes, salt and pepper on top. Using the parchment paper fold in the edges of the dough over the m filling, leaving an exposed circle of filling in the middle.
Bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes until hot and bubbly and the crust is lightly tan. Top with basil if desired.
Gluten Free Flaky Pie Crust
yield: 1 pie crust (double for a 2 crust pie)
1 ½ cups (210g) gluten free pastry flour (recipe included) or Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 gluten free flour or other good quality gluten free all purpose flour mix
½ tsp (3g) xanthan gum
½ (3g) tsp psyllium husk powder (or the equivalent weight of psyllium husk)
1 tsp(4g) salt
¾ cup(170g) cold butter (or dairy free stick butter)
1 large egg, beaten
1 (16g) Tb apple cider vinegar
¼-1/3 cup (or more) ice water
Mix the flour, xanthan, psyllium, and salt together in a bowl. Grate the cold butter on the large side of a cheese grater. With a fork gently mix the butter shreds into the flour mixture.
Beat the egg with the vinegar, add to the dry mixture. Stir and drizzle in the cold water until the dough comes together and is cohesive. Form into a disk and wrap in plastic wrap for 10 minutes. Roll with a rolling pin and proceed with pie recipe.
This flour is the perfect mix for the cookies, cakes, muffins, and quick-breads in your life. It’s light and feathery and gives you a light melting mouthfeel. Different brands of the ingredient flours have different grinds. Finer flours might pack into the cup – while courser flours won’t fit nearly as much in a cup, so weighing your ingredients will give you MUCH better results! On a simple scale put a medium to large bowl, shake or spoon on the flours and hit that “Zero” or “tare” button after each one. Voila! Cleanup is nearly nonexistent and you’ve got a much more reliable flour! Note- this flour is not meant to be used in yeast based recipes, breads and cinnamon rolls need a bit more strength and not as much tenderness.
Gluten Free Pastry Flour Mix
yield: 8 cups (1,177g)
2 cup (260g) sweet white rice flour (mochi flour or mochiko)
2 cup (256g) fine brown rice flour
2 cup (380g) potato starch
1 cup (118g) sorghum flour
1 cup (160g) tapioca flour
4 tsp (3g) xanthan gum
Scoop all ingredients into a large bowl and whisk well to combine. Store in an airtight container.
Download the PDF (Collect them all!)
Looks delicious!
I tasted tomato pie for the first time just a few weeks ago, in South Carolina, and thought I’d like to make a gluten-free version for my family. This recipe saves from having to figure it out myself, so thank you!