5-Ingredient Grain-free Vegan Pie Crust
5-Ingredient Grain-free Vegan Pie Crust- all you need is one bowl and 10 minutes to make this delicious, buttery pie crust. No one will ever guess it’s vegan and gluten-free!
Say hello to the easiest pie crust you’ll ever make. With just one bowl and 5 simple ingredients, this beauty comes together in a matter of minutes.
The first time I used this crust was for my Apple Crumb Pie that I posted a few years ago. Since then I’ve tweaked it ever so slightly so that it’s even better. However, the main star of the show remains the same.
Bob’s Red Mill Super-fine Almond Flour is one of my all-time favorite baking ingredients. It pairs so well with whole grain flours in gluten-free recipes because it gives a lighter texture and a finer crumb with a delicious buttery flavor. I always make sure to have some on hand.
In this recipe, the almond flour is the main ingredient which makes for a rich crust that almost has the texture of shortbread. It gets mixed with a bit of tapioca starch to help bind and lighten the crust, coconut oil which also binds and provides moisture, and pure maple syrup for a hint of sweetness.
Also, if you’re looking for an incredible vegan pecan pie recipe, be sure to check back soon because I have one that is going to knock your socks off! ;)
5-Ingredient Grain-free Vegan Pie Crust
Yield: 1 pie crust
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 7 minutes
Total Time: 17 minutes
Ingredients:
- 2 cups almond flour (not almond meal)
- 1/2 cup tapioca starch
- 1/2 cup melted unrefined coconut oil (or vegan margarine)
- 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350°F then line the bottom of a pie dish with a circular piece of parchment paper.
In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients and stir together until a dough forms. Transfer to the middle of a lined pie dish then use a spatula (or the palm of your hand) to press it down into the dish. Use your fingers to firmly press the crust outward and upward along the sides of the dish so that the edges are about 1/4 to 1/2-inch thick. The more firmly you press it down into the dish, the better it will hold together.
Prick the bottom of the crust with a fork and bake the crust for 7 minutes in the oven then set aside to cool. Top with desired filling and bake as directed. *If baking for longer than 30 minutes, you may need to wrap the edges of the crust with foil to keep from burning.
Did you try this recipe? Please let me know how it turned out by leaving a comment below or sharing a picture on Instagram with the hashtag #makingthymeforhealth. I love hearing your feedback! 
This post was created in partnership with a brand that I have used and loved for years, Bob’s Red Mill. As always, all opinions and text are entirely my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that help make it possible for me to bring you quality content. For more delicious recipes and a coupon for $1.00 off any product, please visit Bob’sRedMill.com.
Look at you go with all of these awesome Thanksgiving dish ideas lady! Love how easy this pie crust recipe looks.
I’m dying to try this as I’m reducing my wheat. I see this pie crust happening very soon and I’m on the edge of my seat waiting for that pecan pie. :)
Aw you’re too sweet Marcie! <3
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You can read my mind! I have been trying to locate a good pie crust that I can also use for bars! I was wondering what I could use to replace the tapioca as it doesn’t agree with me? Do you think I could use corn or potato, or even oat?
This would definitely work great for bars! I think corn starch or potato starch would work. I haven’t tested it so I can’t guarantee it but it seems like it should work the same. Please let me know how it goes!
I used arrowroot and it worked perfectly!
I’m excited to try this recipe! As I can’t tolerate coconut oil, what would you suggest as a replacement? Avocado oil?
The only thing I can think of that might work the same is vegan shortening. Avocado oil won’t work because it needs to be a fat that is solid at room temperature.
This didn’t work for me! :( I don’t know if our ingredients in Australia work differently but the ratios seemed wrong. My mix appeared too oily but I pushed on anyway. When I baked it, the crust didn’t hold its shape with the edges melting down into the bottom of the pan. I did salvage it by taking it out of the oven and turning the crust into cookies instead… which are beautiful! Was the coconut oil meant to be melted to liquid or just until soft and scoopable? Mine was liquid as it’s hot here in the middle of summer, but perhaps that’s what went wrong. Thanks!
I’m sorry you had trouble but glad to hear you were able to make delicious cookies instead! The coconut oil is supposed to be melted to liquid so that shouldn’t have been the issue. Are measuring cups the same in Australia? Did you spoon and level when measuring out the almond flour? Those are the only things that I can think of that went wrong…
I know this is a year later but I had exactly the same problem! Going to try again with a higher almond flour to margarine ratio – wish me luck!
When I bake in europe (germany) and then use the same recipe in the united states, most of the time it turns out differently or is a complete fail. Not sure why, many things may play a roll- ingredients are different, altitude?! idk
What size of pie dish would you recommend?
It will work for any size between 8-10″ but the thickness will vary. Mine is 10″ though!
This looks lovely, but I’ve never heard of a sweet pie crust before (except cookie crusts like graham cracker crusts for key lime pie or cheesecake). Could you take out the syrup, and if so, should you add extra liquid of some sort to make up for it? Thanks!
It’s very lightly sweet but you could probably get away without it. I can’t say for sure without testing…you might need to add a tablespoon or so of water or milk.
Hello-
Do you think the parchment on the bottom of the dish is a must? Wondering if that will be problematic when you go to slice and serve the pie?
I feel like it would probably be ok without it but I’ve only made it with parchment paper so I’m not 100% sure. If you decide to go that route just make sure the bottom is well greased. :)
Super easy crust! Loved it and will be using it again!
Hi there! Any idea whether cornstarch would work instead of tapioca? Thanks!
Sorry, I don’t think that would work the same!
Arrowroot worked perfectly for me!
A whole day off meant lots of baking, and the journey to gluten free baking has ups and downs. This recipe is a huge up! I made the recipe as written, except I forgot to prick one of the pie crusts before baking. I noticed no huge difference between the pricked and prick-less crusts. I would recommend mixing with a spoon/spatula instead of electric mixers; the ingredients incorporate better. Also, if you use your hands to press into the pie pan, you might put parchment paper down first so that the heat from your hands does not cause the oil to separate. The amount of dough the recipe made covered most of my 9” pie pan; however, the dough did not reach the top. Next time I will use 1.5 times the ingredients to create a crust. Thank you!
This crust is easy to make and pairs beautifully with the Silk Chocolate Pie. I forgot to use the parchment paper but no worries … it came out nicely. I tried a second crust with the parchment paper and it crinkles up with the pie spatula when trying to scoop out a slice, so I would recommend NOT using it.
Also, I froze the second one (after baking it) for later. Not a good idea. It turned out soggy.
Can this crust, used with your pecan pie recipe, be frozen after baking? Thanks.
Comparing your recipe to several similar ones on other recipe blogs, I see two main differences: 1) you include tapioca starch; 2) your recipe can be used for a second baking for the filling while the other recipes seem to be for hot fillings added and then chilled. I’m wondering if these two differences are related. Does the tapioca starch absorb the liquid from the coconut oil during the second baking and so keep the crust from turning into a soggy mess? I have seen additional crust recipes that, instead of tapioca starch, use several tablespoons of coconut flour which does absorb liquid. I need a recipe that both does not include coconut (I plan to use butter instead of coconut oil) and goes through a second baking for the filling. I have to purchase the tapioca starch which I’m fine on doing if its critical for the liquid absorption.
Thank-you, your recipes are great!
Hi Jeanne! The tapioca starch helps with binding and firming of the crust. It doesn’t work the same as coconut flour because coconut flour is more absorbent and will dry out the crust if you’re not using enough liquid. My suspicion is that using coconut flour would require some adjustment to the liquid ratios in my recipe. Since I haven’t tested it I don’t want to misguide you. Unless you are willing to experiment on your own I recommend getting the tapioca starch for best results. :)
At a guess, do you think I can replace the almond flour with spelt flour? :-)
I think it would be too dry because the almond flour is much higher in fat than spelt flour. I have made this recipe using spelt flour before and it worked well: https://minimalistbaker.com/coconut-oil-pie-crust/
I am allergic to almonds. What flour do you suggest to replace it?
Sorry to hear you are allergic! Do you still need the crust to be grain-free?
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