Martha Stewart's Star Ingredient For Gluten-Free Pie Crust

A slice of pie is a delight at any time of year, but it can be particularly special in the holiday season, when we tend towards traditional dishes and family favorites. However, this can make it difficult for anyone who's not eating gluten, as pie crusts for classics like pumpkin pie and pecan pie usually rely on wheat flour. Luckily, entertaining guru Martha Stewart turns to crisp rice cereal to ensure everyone can enjoy a piece of pie. In a YouTube video of her favorite pumpkin desserts, Stewart makes a gluten-free crust for a spiced pumpkin pie.

By crushing the rice cereal and mixing it up with a few nuts, it can then be used in place of graham crackers in a crumb crust, which can be baked as usual or used for a chilled pie. Stewart doesn't mention a particular brand of cereal in the video, but the published recipe suggests using Rice Chex.

This cereal hack is not only gluten-free, but it's also versatile and simple to make. Other types of pie crusts like short crust or flaky pastry require gluten for binding and structure, so making a gluten-free version can be complicated. Crumb crusts on the other hand are held together by melted butter. This means you can swap in any crisp gluten-free cereal without needing to adapt the recipe or add other ingredients.

Martha Stewart simply pulses the crisp rice cereal in a food processor along with sliced raw almonds, brown sugar, and a pinch of salt. Once it's the texture of fine breadcrumbs, melted butter is poured in. After combining well, the mix is ready to be pressed into a pie dish, which Stewart does with the base of a measuring cup.

If you want a nut-free version of the recipe, omit the almonds and replace them with extra cereal. You might also want to add flavorings to complement your pie filling, such as cinnamon or cocoa powder.

Stewart uses this crust with a baked spiced pumpkin filling, but it's also the perfect base for a gluten-free lemon pie or peanut butter pie. The only time you won't want to use this crust is for any pie with a runny filling such as berries or peaches as it's not as leak-proof as traditional pastry.