Making Gluten-free Pastry

There’s no denying the overall quality, flavour and texture of many gluten-free products has improved immensely over the last few years, with many of them being indistinguishable from the ‘real thing’. But despite this my heart sank a little when I found out I’d been allocated the Free From category to judge at this year’s annual British Pie Awards (http://www.britishpieawards.co.uk) held in Melton Mowbray this week.

As fellow judges tucked into Steak and Ale pies, Chicken pies and of course Pork pies, I braced myself, with three other judges, to tackle the 34 pies in our category. The first one got us off to a good start, a good homely chicken and vegetable pie that would have gone down well at any family meal. And from then on, apart from a few soggy bottoms and strange fillings, the standard overall was very high. The winning pie in this category was a delicious Free From Steak and Ale Pie from The Biddestone Arms in Wiltshire who offer a separate gluten-free menu to their diners.

Gluten-free pastry is not easy to work with as the lack of gluten can cause the dough to be crumbly and difficult to roll out, but by adding a little xanthan gum (made by Dove’s Farm, available from health food shops) and using an egg instead of water to bind the dough, you can achieve good results. You may not think a pie plays any part in a healthy diet but if the filling is packed with vegetables and you just have a pastry top (not top and bottom as required in the British Pie Awards) there’s no reason not to enjoy a comforting pie now and again.

These gluten-free spicy vegetable pot pies were inspired by another excellent Free From pie (Clive’s Organic Gluten-Free Aloo Gobi Pie from Buckfast Organic Bakery) at the awards.

Gluten-free Spicy Vegetable Pot Pies

Prep: 40 min + chilling

Cook: 35 min

Makes: 4

For the pastry

200g gluten-free flour (such as Dove’s farm plain white flour blend)

Pinch of salt

1/4tsp xanthan gum

100g dairy-free spread

1 medium egg, beaten

For the filling

1 onion, peeled and quartered

2 tomatoes, quartered

2cm piece fresh ginger, peeled

1 red chilli, deseeded

2 garlic cloves, peeled

Low-cal spray oil

1/2tsp ground turmeric

1tsp ground coriander

1/2tsp garam masala

½ tsp cumin seeds

300ml water

150g small cauliflower florets

150g butternut squash cut into small cubes

1 medium courgette cut into cubes

100g frozen peas

2tbsp chopped fresh coriander

1tbsp nigella seeds

1 For the pastry, sift the flour, salt and xanthan gum into a bowl. Rub in the dairy-free spread until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add most of the beaten egg (leaving a little in the bowl to glaze the pastry before baking) and bring together to form a dough. Wrap in cling film and chill in the fridge for 30 min.

2 While the pastry is chilling, blend the onion, tomatoes, ginger, chilli and garlic in a food processor to make a paste. Heat a pan, spray with a little spray oil, add the paste and cook for 2-3min, stirring. Add the turmeric, ground coriander, garam masala and cumin seeds and cook for a further 2min.

3 Pour in 300ml water and add the vegetables, except the peas. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 5 min, then add the peas and cook for a further 5 min until the vegetables are just tender. Stir in the fresh coriander.

4 Heat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Divide the filling between four 200ml ovenproof dishes. Divide the pastry into four equal pieces and roll out, one at a time, to just larger than the top of your dishes (it will crack slightly but keep pushing it together with your fingers). Brush the rim of the dish with water, place the pastry over the top and roughly the crimp the edge. Brush with the remaining beaten egg and sprinkle over a few nigella seeds. Bake for 20 min until the pastry is pale golden and the filling is hot.

This post first appeared on http://www.healthyfood.co.uk/blog/
For more healthy recipes visit www.healthyfood.co.uk