Paleo Apple Pie

My mom makes the very best apple pie.  It is such a shame that so many of our family members have food allergy issues now and can't have it anymore. This past Thanksgiving my brother wanted an apple pie but the only sweetener he can tolerate is stevia.  I decided to take on the challenge and he was so happy to enjoy dessert with everyone else.  I decided to just make one crust and do a crisscross pattern since it was easier and I was on a time crunch. This crust is so good though that it would be amazing to double it and add a top to the pie. 



Ingredients:

Crust-

• 3/4 cup packed almond flour
• 1 1/4 cup tapioca or arrowroot flour
• 4 Tbs salted butter
• 4 Tbs palm shortening
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp guar gum or xanthan gum
• 4 Tbs applesauce with no added sugar
• 1/4 cup extra tapioca or arrowroot starch for later

Filling-

• 6 medium apples (peeled, cored and thinly sliced)
• 3 Tbs tapioca starch
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1 Tbs lemon juice
• 8 packets of sweet leaf stevia
• 3 Tbs butter

Directions:

Crust-

1. In a large food processor add the almond flour, starch, butter, shortening, salt and xanthan or guar gum.  Process until the dough begins to come together.  Add the applesauce and process until a smooth dough forms.
2. Place the dough into a sealed Tupperware and put in the fridge for 2 hours.
3. After the dough has chilled, mix in the last 1/4 cup of starch and roll out between two sheets of parchment paper.
4. Quickly place the rolled out crust into the pie pan using the parchment as your guide.  It should hold its shape without breaking.
5. At this point you can fill the crust with the filling of choice.

Filling-

1. In a large bowl toss the apple slices with the starch, spices, lemon juice and stevia. Mix until combined and all of the apples are coated with the mixture.
2. Place the apples in the prepared curst.  Add the 3 tbs of butter on top of the apples.
3. Add the crust on top of the apples in whatever fashion you prefer.  Sometimes I make an additional crust and top it completely or you can add criss cross pattern.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes until the apples are soft and bubbling in the center. I usually cover the crust edges with foil to prevent burning.