“Real riches are the riches possessed inside.”
Eating a grain-free diet is not always the easiest thing to do. After all, for centuries, grain was the staple of the masses. Bread is sometimes called the "staff of life," and to be honest, it was probably a lot healthier up until about half a century ago. These days, however, in a society that breeds depressed immune systems, nutrient-depleted ingredients, and an appalling lack of diversity in our gut biomes due to over-sanitization, grain can be a hindrance to many of the human body's systems. Chronic inflammation, auto-immune diseases, and cascading digestive tract issues can manifest in so many different ways it seems inappropriate to try and list them all here. The point is this: for many people alive today, over-consumption of grains is ultimately an obstacle to overall well-being.
Going gluten-free doesn't solve the problem entirely either: purchasing "gluten-free" food items normally made with glutinous grains is usually just a swap for rice or potato flour, both of which are also irritating to the gut in flour form.
That's why I have worked to create a crust that is not only healthy and delicious, but also versatile. It can be prepared savory or sweet, depending on the requirements of the dish, and it bakes pretty much just like a normal flour-and-egg crust. I call it "The Money Crust," because it's good, and it's mostly made of cashews (puns are nutty).
The Money Crust:
- 3/4C cashew flour (raw, unsalted, pulsed to a coarse consistency in a food processor)
1/4C coconut flour
~1/2C* cold water (*usually only takes 3/8C or so, add slowly!)
1/2 tsp salt
(for a savory crust, add a dash of garlic/onion powder, cumin, black pepper, etc...)
(for a sweet crust, a pinch of cinnamon and nutmeg, a few drops of vanilla...)
Mix dry ingredients together evenly. Add half of the water, then slowly add the rest (a teaspoon at a time), mixing as you go, until the dough clumps into a ball and no dry powder exists, but is not so moist that the crust slumps or is soupy. NOTE: It almost NEVER takes all the water! The reason I haven't given a more precise volume in this recipe is that the freshness/quality of cashews is inevitably pretty variable. The goal is a 1:1 ratio of water to oil, except the oil is all coming from the cashews, so the amount of water will vary from somewhere between a quarter- and half-cup.
You can always add more water, but you can't take it away...
Press evenly into a 9” pie pan (a little less than 1/4” thick) and pre-bake at 375F for 5-8 mins (until the tiniest hint of color change) before adding filling.