Since I'm currently 5 1/2 months pregnant and bored out of my mind at the house, I decided to go overboard and surprise my husband with a Gluten-free Dairy-free Strawberry Pie. And I'm SOOO glad I did! It was super yummy and even my Dad gobbled it up after I told him it was a healthy version. :) And don't worry, you don't have to have a gluten-free crust. See ingredients below. And I figured since it was a healthier version, I added a scoop of Breyer's Slow Churned 1/2 the fat Vanilla ice-cream (TIP # 1: BUY THIS BRAND OF ICE-CREAM- IT'S THE MOST NATURAL OUT OF ALL THE ICE-CREAM BRANDS excluding organic brands/versions. If you have the money for that and don't need to be a frugal foodie or have a coupon...by all means buy the organic).
I think its great that my first blog about dessert because it shows that I really believe that all things are good in moderation. If you can make a few substitutions for all of your recipes, your previous unhealthy recipes can become pretty darn healthy! You still have to keep in mind the rule of moderation. It probably wouldn't be "healthy" to eat this Strawberry Pie everyday. It's amazing what delicious things can happen with substitutions. It's my one secret...
So back to the Strawberry Pie....
BEFORE PIC....
I found a recipe online that had main ingredients like white flour, white sugar, butter, store-bought pie crust. So....
INSTEAD OF:
White Flour
* I used OAT FLOUR (Red Mill is a great brand and can be found at Whole Foods. It's a splurge, but you can make your own oat flour by grinding oats until they are as fine as flour). Its a super tasty, healthier, flour and is gluten-free.
* If it's too far a stretch you could use WHOLE WHEAT FLOUR as well and its cheaper (can be found at Walmart)
White sugar
* I used ORGANIC TURBINADO RAW CANE SUGAR (found at Publix and had a coupon. Can find at Walmart, Kroger, Trader Joes).
* If you are needing a sugar-free pie please DO NOT USE SPLENDA OR ANY OTHER ARTIFICIAL SWEETENER. THEY ARE HORRIBLE FOR YOUR BODY!
* Instead, try using Stevia (also called Truvia), which is a natural, plant based sweetener that is calorie free and is not, nor does it contain sugar (like Splenda and other artificial sweeteners that lie to you and call themselves sugar free)
note: I have not used Stevia in this pie and do not what it will taste like but plan on making another with Stevia. It is VERY sweet so you might have to reduce the amount
Butter
* I used EARTH BALANCE ORGANIC BUTTERY SPREAD which is dairy and soy free. Best bought at Trader Joe's as its less expensive there. It contains an expeller-pressed natural oil blend and I love it.
Store bought Pie Crust
* I still used a store bought Pie Crust but I bought a gluten-free pie crust for Ben and it was pretty nice.
* You can buy ALL-NATURAL PIE CRUST from Trader Joes and I suggest that you do because often the pie crusts from other stores contain things that are NOT good for you (like partially hydrogenated oils and other ingredients you can't announce).
FINALLY....
HERE"S THE.....RECIPE!
ORGANIC STRAWBERRY PIE
Ingredients
Directions
