Most of the time the way I eat makes me very happy. I like feeling healthy and light. I never feel deprived or like I am sacrificing until the Holidays come. It gets dark early, it’s cold and temptations abound! It is only human to want a little comfort! It doesn’t take long for me to start telling myself that I have been so good for so long that just “a little sugar/gluten/dairy/etc won’t hurt”. That is kinda true (or so I hear). My problem is once I start eating a little sugar, I want more. And a little sugar has a way of creeping up to a whole lot!

But it is important to reward myself for being “good” so last weekend as a reward for resisting cookies, pumpkin pie, chocolate and cake, we decided to make a healthy dessert and go ahead and indulge.

I hesitate to post the recipe because it is not exactly healthy. Sure, the filling is absolutely healthy; the crust – not so much! Unfortunately, there is no way we could think of to make an edible fat-free or even low-fat crust. On the bright side this crust is light and flaky and tastes great! Just be advised that too much of it will give your poor gall bladder a real workout, so eat sparingly.*

We elected to use a gluten-free flour and baking mix since getting a precise mix is a challenge and we were looking for quick gratification. I know it is a cheat, but very worth it! The pie was a joint venture. David is the baker and pastry chef. I am the filling creator. Here is how it worked.

David’s Pie Crust

1. Place 3 1/2 cup Gluten-free Pamela’s Bread and Baking Mix in the food processor. (You can use others or make your own flour mix)
2. Add 1 cup coconut oil and pulse 6-8 times
3. Slowly add ice water one Tablespoon at a time — up to 1/2 cup water (use a little as possible). When you can pinch some of the crumbly dough and it holds together you have mixed enough
4. Remove the dough from the food processor by turning it out on to a piece of parchment paper
5. Scrunch the dough with your fingers to finish mixing the oil and flour
6. Gently shape the dough into 2 mounds (you may need to use a little extra flour on your hands to keep it from sticking)
7. Wrap each mound in plastic wrap and put in the refrigerator overnight
8. One hour before you want to use the dough, take it out of the refrigerator to warm up
9. Once the dough is slightly cooled roll it out using a rolling pin. Put each mound between 2 pieces of parchment paper. Roll  it out to make as close to a circle as you can.  Each mound should create about a 12 inches circle that is about 1/8 of an inch thick
10. Carefully transfer one circle into a 9 inch pie pan to use as the bottom crust
11. The remaining crust should be rolled out the same way and used as the top crust either domed over the top or cut into strips to create a lattice

Genene’s Apple Pie Filling

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. Core 8 Granny Smith apples (or other “sour” apples) do not peel
3. Slice the apples thinly – I used the food processor; cut each apple in quarters and ran them through using the slicing blade
4. Add lemon juice and toss the slices to prevent them from getting brown; you will have to use about 1/4 cup but this is very inexact!
5. Chop 1/2 of the apples into small pieces – I used the food processor and pulsed the slices 6-8 times to get a well chopped mix
6. Put 1/4 teaspoon (or less) coconut oil into a frying pan
7. Add 1 Tablespoon Honey or Agave Syrup and when the honey/syrup and oil are liquid add the sliced apples
8. Lightly sauté the apples and add your spices:
   • 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
   • 1 teaspoon  ginger
   • 1/2 teaspoon cloves
   • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
   • 1/2 teaspoon salt
9. Stir well and add 1 cup white grape juice and bring to a hard boil
10. Cook for 5-10 minutes until the apples are soft;  if there is still a lot of grape juice add 1 Tablespoon coconut flour and stir constantly to thicken
11. Place cooked apples into bottom crust
12. Place the remaining raw apples over the cooked apples – you want the raw apples to stick up over the pan by about an inch
13. Place top crust over the apples
14. Bake at 375 for 15 minutes and then turn the heat to 325 and bake 1 hour until crust is brown

Delicious all by itself or add some cashew sour cream for an extra treat. I took one to a potluck and it got great reviews! Go ahead and indulge once in awhile, I mean, after all it is the holidays. . .

*If you want a really healthy alternative forget the crust. You can make the filling and bake it in a ramkin; eat it warm out of the oven drizzled with a little hazelnut or almond milk.