Red Currant Pie

Red currants -- one of the berries I get most excited about at the shops in the year (they're just so gorgeous!), and one of the rarest to find where I live. Perhaps that's their appeal though, the "hard to get" aspect makes me grab every bunch available within the short time period they're around and make lots of tasty things :P. This delicious vegan and gluten-free red currant pie was one of the many creations from this past summer.

As always, you wouldn't see this recipe here if it wasn't super easy and fuss-free, because I'm shamelessly a rather "lazy" baker. A pie bursting with delicious berry filling is one of the few things that'll get me pumped to turn my oven on -- ok, maybe chocolate cake too ...and cookies ...and a maple or pecan pie... ok actually maybe I turn my oven on more than I think... :)

My point is that I LOVE just about everything about baking a good berry pie -- the smell, the taste, the look of that jammy filling, the baking therapy... This red currant pie gave me an excuse to enjoy all those things, and was a lovely follow up to the delicious cherry pie I made just prior to it.

Making an Easy Vegan & Gluten-Free Pie Lattice

If you're looking at that lattice thinking it's above your skill level, note that it's super easy to make. Didn't I mention that if it's not easy / fuss-free, I'm not making it? ;)

You can watch the video below of a very similar pie (strawberry rhubarb) to see how the lattice is made:

The only difference is that I used a pastry cutter with fluted edges to get a slightly different pattern. See notes at the bottom of the recipe for a link to the cutter if you're interested.

Making this Red Currant Pie Grain-Free

I also experimented with making this pie (which is already vegan, gluten-free, oil-free, and refined sugar-free, so quite "alternative diet"-friendly) with cassava flour as a grain-free alternative. The version pictured here is made from cassava. It works quite well. Frankly, I do prefer the flavor better with just plain white rice flour or a good gluten-free baking mix (Pamela's artisan gf flour mix works great here), but I think cassava makes a great grain-free alternatives -- as you can see :)

Serving Suggestion

Do be sure to serve this pie with some vegan vanilla ice cream -- it's the bomb! So don't skip.

If you're interested in a homemade dairy-free recipe, this pie goes amazing with this  vegan vanilla caramel swirl ice cream.

Last but not least, keep in mind that this recipe is for a tiny pie -- I used a 6" plate. You can get 4-5 small servings out of it. If you prefer a large pie (like a standard 9" plate), you'll need to triple the recipe, and possibly extend the baking time.

Red Currant Pie

Print Recipe

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 1 review

A berrylicious pie, filled with seasonal red currant berries and a crumbly sweet crust. This recipe is vegan, gluten-free, oil-free, and refined sugar-free.

• Author: Audrey @ Unconventional Baker
• Prep Time: 30 minutes
• Cook Time: 45 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
• Yield: 6" pie
• Category: Pie
• Method: Baked
• Cuisine: Dessert

Ingredients

Pie Crust:

• ¾ cup white rice flour
• ¼ cup cashew butter
• ¼ cup dark maple syrup
• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Red Currant Filling:

• ¾ cup red currant berries (de-stemmed)
• 3 tbsp dark maple syrup
• 1 tbsp tapioca starch
• juice of half a lemon
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

1. Pre-heat oven to 350F. Oil a 6" pie plate (or baking dish of a similar size) and set aside.
2. Process all pie crust ingredients in a food processor until combined into a dough. Gather the dough and form into a ball, kneading it lightly. Divide this dough in half, and roll each half into a ball. Take one of the balls and flatten it into a disk with your hands. Place into the prepared pie plate and press and shape it down into a pie shell with your hands, covering the base and sides of the dish with the dough. Set aside.
3. Prepare the pie filling by mixing all ingredients together with a fork in a small bowl. Transfer this mixture into the prepared pie crust, and smooth it out into an even layer.
4. Place the remaining half of the crust dough in between two sheets of parchment paper and roll it out roughly into an ⅛" thickness. Cut this dough into ½" strips lengthwise*. Place several of these strips vertically on the pie. Then place several horizontally, interlacing them with the vertical strips. If you need to create more strips, gather up the remaining dough and roll it out again to create more strips. Once finished creating the lattice, fill in any gaps along the edges of the pie with some of the remaining dough. Then seal the edge all around with a fork.**
5. Bake in a pre-heated oven for approximately 45 minutes (until the edges are nice and golden and the filling bubbles and sets. Cool off on a wire rack, and enjoy!***

Notes

*I used this kind of pastry cutter to get the fluted edges. But a pizza cutter or a regular knife will do for straight cuts if you prefer.

**Note: you'll likely have a tiny bit of dough remaining at this stage. I usually roll it out into 2-3 small cookies (roll into a ball, then flatten with a fork) and bake them for 7-9 mins along with the pie.

***Note: a hot pie will always be a little runny when sliced. The pie filling will firm up as it cools off completely.

P.S. Does anyone know what kind of berry this is in the photo below? Before it blossomed I was sure it was going to be a currant bush because of the leaves, but it grew berries that are a bit different in appearance (smaller, and more clustered together), and taste sweeter than currants. I've got 2 bushes of these by my house and would love to know what this berry is -- any gardening enthusiasts lurking here who could help me out?