Gluten & dairy & egg free, though if I wasn’t sensitive to eggs, I would recommend using them. 101 Cookbooks has a good recipe.
Crust:
2½ cups walnuts
1½ cups dates
Remove pits from dates and chop. Combine walnuts and dates in food processor. Process until well mixed and ground, but not smooth, about 40 seconds. It should be a coarse texture when done. Press evenly into a 9” tart pan. Set in refrigerator while making the filling. This is a good all purpose gluten free crust I use for any pie or tart.
Filling:
1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree. You can make it yourself by baking a pumpkin (sugar pies are the best; don’t use the skin) and then pureeing it, or use canned organic pumpkin.
2/3 cup xylitol, or a little less depending upon how sweet you like (find at natural food stores. It’s amazing! Swap it out 1:1 for sugar in recipes–it doesn’t feed intestinal yeast, doesn’t spike blood sugar, so it’s safe for diabetics, AND it’s good for your teeth & gums.)
3 Tablespoons molasses
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger, or 1 teaspoon ginger powder
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground allspice
4 teaspoons arrowroot or kudzu root
1/2 cup coconut milk
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a food processor or blender, combine the pumpkin puree, xylitol, molasses, vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, arrowroot, and coconut milk, in batches if necessary. Process until the mixture is well combined and smooth. Pour into the piecrust and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until the filling has firmed up. Sometimes you will see the filling start to form cracks in it, which tells you it is getting firmer. Let cool. Serve with raw cashew cream!
Cashew Cream:
Soak 2 cups RAW cashews in a bowl overnight, ideally. Otherwise, about 5 hours does the trick. Use just enough filtered water to cover them. The next day, drain the cashews and rinse under cold water. Place in a blender with enough filtered cold water to cover them. Blend on high for several minutes until very smooth. Strain if needed. YUM.
Mary Vance is a Certified Nutrition Consultant and author specializing in digestive health. She combines a science-based approach with natural therapies to rebalance the body. In addition to her 1:1 coaching, she offers courses to help you heal your gut and improve your health. Mary lives in San Francisco and Lake Tahoe in Northern California. Read more about her coaching practice here and her background here.