Spiced Pear Pie with Hazelnut Crust

I have to say I find it funny when people say things like, “oh, I’m not a good cook”, not because I don’t believe them, but because I used to say the exact same thing. When Alex and I were first married I could follow a recipe with a relatively successful outcome, but I was by no means a “good cook”. I forgot and left on the plastic wrap I’d covered the rolls with and baked it. Food was always stuck and burned to the pan, and some meals tasted almost as bad as they looked – almost. Lucky for me, if Alex didn’t have anything nice to say he shoveled it in his mouth anyway, smiled and said nothing at all.

I still have a long, long, long way to go before I would consider myself a “good cook”, but with practice I’ve managed to come up with some advanced-looking dishes, that secretly are pretty simple. Shh, don’t tell anyone. This comes in handy when fancy feasts and big get together s happen – like Thanksgiving.

This French inspired dessert will go perfect with your Thanksgiving meal – or whenever you’re in the mood for pie. This simple Paleo, gluten free dessert uses fresh pears sweetened with coconut sugar, dusted with spices, and just a hint of orange. All nestled into a pie crust made of ground hazelnuts. And no one will ever know you’re not a really “good cook” 😉

Crust:

1 cup hazelnut flour

1/4 cup coconut flour

1/4 – 1/3 cup almond milk

2 tbsp. coconut oil

1/4 tsp. sea salt

1 tsp. pure maple syrup, honey or coconut sugar

1 egg

Filling:

4-5 large pears, peeled, cored, and sliced

1/3 cup water

2 tbsp. GF cornstarch or arrowroot starch

1 tbsp. Organic butter or Ghee

½ tbsp. orange juice

¼ cup coconut sugar

½ tbsp. Ground cinnamon

½ tsp. Ground nutmeg

¼ tsp. Ground clove

1-2 tsp. Orange zest 

Preheat oven to 400. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl except milk and stir to combine. Stir in the milk a little at a time until you reach the right consistency. The “dough” should be wet, but not too runny and should hold together when you press it into a ball. Lightly grease your 9.5″ pie pan with coconut oil or butter then begin evenly pressing the hazelnut dough into the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Bake in your preheated oven for 10-15 minutes. Set aside to cool while you make the filling. 

Peel, core, and slice pears. Add the orange juice, coconut sugar, and spices. Heat the butter in a skillet on medium heat. Dump pears in and allow them to simmer for about 5-8 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

While the pears are busy, mix the starch with the water until it’s completely dissolved. Pour into the pears, stirring as it begins to bubble and thicken. This should take several more minutes. Remove from heat and pour into the prepared crust. Zest the orange on top for some nice color and flavor. The pear filling will thicken as it cools. Cover and store in the fridge.

Enjoy!