My Favorite Pumpkin Pie Recipe (grain-free, gluten-free, dairy-free, paleo)

Since it is the season for all things pumpkin, I decided to share with you my favorite pumpkin pie recipe. After all, Thanksgiving would not be complete without having a fabulous pumpkin pie! The paleo pumpkin pie filling and flakey grain-free pie crust both come from my Nourishing Meals cookbook.

Use any variety of baked winter squash in this recipe, such as sugar pie pumpkins, butternut squash, sweet meat squash, hubbard, or kabocha. Use this recipe for making Homemade Pumpkin Puree if you have a lot of squash that you would like to cook and freeze. Otherwise, just cut the squash in half, scoop out the seeds, and place the halves flesh-side down in a large glass baking dish with a little water in the bottom of the pan. Bake at 375 degrees for 45 to 60 minutes, or until squash is very tender. Since you are going to blend the pie filling you can just measure out the cooked squash without first making a puree. So easy!

Pumpkin Hazelnut Teff Muffins (vegan, gluten-free)

After my last post I received many requests to share a pumpkin hazelnut muffin recipe that was also egg-free. As many of you know, replacing eggs in grain-free baked treats can be quite a challenge. I've only had a few successes with it myself. So rather than spend hours in the kitchen trying to create an egg-free, grain-free recipe, I made it simple and worked with teff flour to create a moist, wholesome vegan treat that most everyone can enjoy.

If you have my new cookbook, Nourishing Meals, you'll notice how many recipes contain teff flour. This ancient grain is native to Africa but is now grown in the Snake River Valley of Idaho. I buy it in 25-pound bags from Azure Standard. It is definitely a staple in our house. Teff is rich in minerals, low in phytic acid, and of course gluten-free. It seems to be one of the easiest gluten-free flours to digest. I make my sourdough starter primarily from teff flour so we can enjoy Injera a few times a week. If you are looking for more vegan, gluten-free baking recipes that are nutrient dense (that don't rely on a ton of starches, sugar, or xanthan gum) then please check out my new book. All of the recipes are refined sugar-free, use whole grain gluten-free flours, nut flours, and coconut flour......and none contain potato or cornstarch!

Hazelnut Pumpkin Spice Muffins (gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free)

I know it is a wee bit early to be posting pumpkin recipes. In fact, the winter squash and sugar pie pumpkins are not quite ready for harvesting yet in our garden; but these cool crisp mornings are beginning to remind me of spicy pumpkin treats! Yesterday morning I baked up a batch of these healthy gluten-free muffins to have for the children as an after-school snack. After school we went to the river and played until dinnertime. These muffins kept them satisfied until we finally sat down for a late dinner. Beautiful, sunny September weather calls us to spend a lot of time outside here in the Northwest.

I used organic canned pumpkin in this recipe. If you use puree made from a freshly baked pumpkin or other winter squash you may need to place it into a fine mesh strainer to let the extra moisture drip out. I have found that canned pumpkin has much less moisture than Homemade Pumpkin Puree.

Black Quinoa and Roasted Pumpkin Salad

Ever tried black quinoa? It is delicious, and very nutty-flavored. A bit fibrous. Great for salads. Cooks up quickly like its white counterpart. This quinoa salad embodies the flavors of autumn. Roasted sugar pie pumpkin with a hint of cinnamon combined with dried cranberries, roasted pecans, shallots, and a zesty dressing. Perfect for a simple, nutritious lunch or as part of your Thanksgiving feast.

Black quinoa is colored by a class of compounds called anthocyanins which protect the plant against oxidation and UV damage. Anthocyanins act as powerful antioxidants and anti-inflammatory agents that when ingested, protect our bodies against chronic diseases such as cancer, diabetes, and heart disease. Our modern lifestyle has caused many people to become chronically inflamed. Stress, nutritional deficiencies, elevated toxins in our environment, and lack of sufficient antioxidants causes our bodies to produce higher levels of cytokines which cause inflammation and tissue damage. Cancer cells grow and reproduce under inflammatory conditions. Anthocyanins decrease inflammation and cause cancer cells to die (apoptosis).

Not only is black quinoa a rich source of anthocyanins but also are blueberries, black rice, black beans, blackberries, black raspberries, purple broccoli, purple cauliflower, red cabbage, cherries, and many more. Just think black, purple, dark blue, and dark red.

Grain-Free Pumpkin Cupcakes

After multiple failed attempts to create a grain-free, nut-free, refined sugar-free cupcake recipe I finally got it! We couldn't decide whether or not to call these muffins or cupcakes.....so when frosted they are cupcakes and when plain they are muffins. I sweeten these little treats using pureed medjool dates. Combined with the coconut flour, they taste fairly sweet!

I have found that different brands of coconut flour yield very different results. Most of my coconut flour creations needed to be composted (ok, I have much more experience using grain flours) until I began using a different brand of coconut flour. Has anyone else experienced this? If you bake with coconut flour, what is your favorite brand? Please leave a comment if you have a moment. I have had best results using the Let's Do Organic! brand of coconut flour.



For detailed instructions on making your own pumpkin puree go to the post I did last year on How to Make Homemade Pumpkin Puree. It is important to make it correctly otherwise your puree could end up too moist which would affect how the cupcakes turn out. I use a Dairy-Free Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe I posted over a year ago. I didn't have any opened jars of applesauce so I used 1/4 cup of Tom's freshly made dairy-free coconut yogurt (I normally use 2 tablespoons applesauce). I also increased the coconut oil to 6 tablespoons.

Pumpkin Quinoa Cornbread Recipe

This pumpkin cornbread recipe uses quinoa flour as part of the ingredients, though the overall cornbread flavors are not overpowered by quinoa's strong taste. Adding in a whole cup of pumpkin puree adds a touch of sweetness that creates balanced flavors and a wonderfully moist cornbread.

This cornbread recipe is naturally gluten-free and doesn't require any gums or starches. It only has a few ingredients and can be whipped up in a snap! Serve it with a spicy chili recipe or your favorite warming bean soup. This recipe would also be a fantastic accompaniment to this Black Bean and Yam Stew recipe.

For detailed instructions on making pumpkin puree you can view a recent blog post I did on How to Make Homemade Pumpkin Puree. If you are gluten-sensitive then be sure to purchase a gluten-free cornmeal. Many companies grind their cornmeal on equipment that also grinds wheat flour and other glutenous grains. Bob's Red Mill offers a gluten-free cornmeal but make sure to read the label because they also offer a cornmeal that is not gluten-free. Arrowhead Mills also offers an organic gluten-free cornmeal.

How to Make Homemade Pumpkin Puree

Making your own pumpkin puree is really very simple. But there are a few important steps to ensure a thick puree. The water content of fresh pumpkin puree and canned puree can vary widely. Cooking pumpkin with water creates a thin puree, which will then cause your breads, muffins, cookies, and pies to be overly moist. Roasting pumpkin without any added water creates a thick puree that will most likely match the consistency of canned pumpkin. Plus, freshly made pumpkin puree tastes so much better than canned. It is sweeter, smoother, and just down-right delicious! Once you have made your own pumpkin puree, you can freeze it in containers for later use or store it in the fridge for up to a week.

Spiced Pumpkin Soup

This warming, nourishing pumpkin soup is the perfect thing to warm you up on a chilly day. This soup recipe is an Elimination Diet recipe for Phase 2. It is free of nuts, citrus, tomatoes, dairy, and peppers ~ all ingredients commonly found in creamed soups.

I like to add a swirl of coconut milk to each bowl and maybe a drizzle of maple syrup or dark agave nectar. Each batch of soup will be different and vary in sweetness depending on your pumpkin. I use sugar pie pumpkins which actually are not as sweet as many other winter squashes. We harvested over 100 pounds of winter squash this past fall and have them in boxes in our garage. If you can not find a sugar pie pumpkin at this time of year, try butternut squash.

Gluten-Free Pumpkin Cheesecake Recipe (Vegan)

If you are looking for a great alternative to traditional cheesecake for your Holiday celebrations, I’ve got one for you. A dairy-free, egg-free cheesecake with a gluten-free pastry crust….and the filling? Well, fresh baked sugar pie pumpkin to start, then cashews, and maple syrup….but what else? Hint: it is also soy-free!

I got the idea for this "cheesecake" from the Lemon Teascake recipe in our cookbook, The Whole Life Nutrition Cookbook. Though that original recipe came from the vegan, gourmet Café Ambrosia restaurant in Seattle. It was such a lovely restaurant but is no longer in business. Tom and I dined there only a few times as it was a little pricey for our student budget back then, but their amazing food was worth every penny!

Recently on our Facebook Page, Nichole E. left me a little note on our wall asking for a gluten-free pie crust recipe. Well, today I am going to share one of my pastry crusts. Interestingly, I didn’t realize until last week that our Facebook Page had a wall where people were leaving notes and questions for us. I clicked on something and then they all popped up! I am not technical at all, I haven’t even figured out how to use Twitter yet!

You’ll need a 9-inch spring form pan for this recipe, which can be found at most kitchen stores. Here is one from amazon.com if you are interested. I don’t use non-stick bakeware but this one on Amazon is.

This lovely dessert has more steps than most of my recipes but is really very easy to accomplish. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask. (All of the little indents in the photo below are from my twins poking their fingers into it while it was setting)!

Gluten-Free, Vegan Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies

Since it is squash season, I thought I would begin to share the plethora of winter squash recipes I have floating around my kitchen on scraps of paper. Today's recipe is a cookie, a gluten-free, high fiber oatmeal pumpkin cookie. Paired with a mug of hot mulled cider, it creates a lovely fall snack. Crunchy on the outside and soft in the center.

Last week I wanted to create a true whole foods cookie with no starch or gums and I did it! The only problem was that the cookies disappeared before I had a chance to take a photo. I made them again yesterday with my 4-year old daughter and got a photo before they disappeared again.

Yes, they are that good.

The main flour in this recipe is oat flour made from freshly ground rolled gluten-free oats. I have not found an oat flour, gluten-free or not, that was not rancid. You can easily grind rolled oats in a food processor or Vitamix, I use the latter. Just make sure to grind them until a fine flour forms. My favorite brand of gluten-free oats comes from www.GlutenFreeOats.com. Their oats always taste very fresh and work well in baking. I also like this brand which can be purchased through Azure Standard if you have an account with them. 

The cookies in these photos are made with pureed butternut squash because that is what I had in my fridge. You can also make them using canned pumpkin. Fresh pumpkin or squash puree contains more moisture than canned so you may need to add a few extra tablespoons of oat flour to the batter to compensate. The dough should be the consistency of traditional chocolate chip drop cookies.

Giving Thanks Recipes: Pumpkin Desserts

When it comes time for dessert how about celebrating the day with what's perfectly in season....pumpkins! I have a relatively new recipe to share with you that is super easy to prepare and always a crowd pleaser. A Pumpkin Spice Cake, cooked to perfection in a bundt pan.

Other great recipe ideas from the Whole Life Nutrition Cookbook include, my delicious vegan, gluten-free, soy-free Pumpkin Pie. Also, a simple Pumpkin Pudding made from tapioca pearls, maple syrup, and cashews (and a few spices). Or how about my Gingerbread Cut-Out Cookies, those also have pumpkin in them. Mmm delicious, I just love pumpkin anything!

I normally don't bake things with a lot of sugar, but when creating this recipe my gut feeling was that it needed this amount. Be sure to have all of your ingredients at room temperature. If your shortening is too cold it won't cream with the sugar and pumpkin puree. And last but not least, please use an electric mixer. It will whip air into the batter resulting in a lighter cake.

Gluten-Free Pumpkin Pancakes

I just love fall. The colors, the bountiful harvest, the warm flavors....I could go on and on. This is my favorite season to cook and bake. You will often find, if you stop by our house around 5pm, a pot of vegetable-bean soup simmering on the stove along side a pot of steaming hot whole grains. And maybe, just maybe, a loaf of gluten-free bread in the oven.

Breakfast is another story all-together. When I was a child, either my mom or dad would make a big breakfast nearly every morning. It was either eggs, toast, and fruit, or pancakes and fruit. Sometimes we would have cold cereal but that was only exciting if on that rare occasion we would have a box of Marshmallow Rice Krispies in the cabinet. My brother and I would then eat the *whole* box in one sitting!

Breakfast has come a long way, well maybe not really that far, from what I was raised on. I love making pancakes. I frequently experiment on my girls to see just how much nutrition I can pack into those little hotcakes! Teff? Sorghum? Blueberries? Bananas? Ground nuts? Well, let's just say that they like it simple. Buckwheat pancakes with pure maple syrup, period. I can throw in a green smoothie on the side and call it done.

Since it is autumn, I thought it would be fitting to create a recipe for pumpkin pancakes. I made these lovely little orange-hued pancakes the other morning. And they were a winner! My girls loved them and asked for seconds. Yes! Success!