LPLD Pie Crust

The holiday season is rough without pie.  But as a fruit-based dessert, I was sure we could find a way to make it possible.

I grew up with my grandma's oil-based pie crust, nice and crisp.  I tried it with coconut oil and it worked great!  If you make a single crust (depending on the pie, you can put the one crust on the top or one on the bottom - who says you have to have two crusts?!?), put no fat into the interior of the pie, and eat an eighth of a pie, it will have approximately 7 grams of fat.  3.5 grams if you and your doctor have agreed your health allows you to consider coconut oil half the amount of fat due to its having a lot of medium chain triglycerides!  Certainly not an everyday food, but no longer on the 'never' list, either!

Grandma's Recipe:

Place 1 cup all-purpose, unbleached flour in a small bowl, add 1/2 teaspoon salt and stir.  In a 1/2 cup measuring cup, place 1/4 cup coconut oil (microwave it if it's solid), then add 2 1/2 tablespoons of cold water to the same measuring cup.  Add the whole measuring cup all at once to the flour/salt mixture, and stir with a fork until just combined.  Roll out dough between 2 pieces of wax paper that are roughly 12"x12" (square) until it makes a rough circle that fills to the edges on each side.  Peel off the top wax layer piece carefully and use the bottom waxed paper to place the crust into place on the pie.  Peel off the last piece of waxed paper carefully.  If you need to prebake the crust before filling it, bake it at 450 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned.

Cherry pie with a top crust cut into overlapping stars.  So pretty!

Pie filling recommendations

• 6 cups thinly sliced granny smith apples, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 3/4 cup sugar, 2 tablespoons tapioca, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg (definitely a top crust)
• 5 cups blueberries with 1/2 cup sugar, a sprinkle of cinnamon,  and 1/4 cup tapioca (bottom crust)
• 5 cups strawberries with 1/2 cup sugar and 1/4 cup tapioca (bottom crust)
• Two cans of tart cherries cooked with sugar and cornstarch per the can directions (with a top or bottom crust)
• 3 cups chopped rhubarb, 1 cup strawberries, 1 cup sugar, 2 Tablespoons tapioca (with a top lattice crust)

What other pies do you wish you could make, or have you made successfully?