Cherry Pie with Quinoa Crumble Topping

Pie season is in high gear and I am rolling out enough Whole GrainSorghum Pie crusts to justify daydreams about this pie press.

But until then, we’ll keep on rolling...

My husband and I drove up to our daughter’s place in Chicago forThanksgiving. Of course, no Thanksgiving meal would be complete without pie - I brought a few frozen crusts with me, so making desserts for the evening meal was a real cinch.

I made the vegan pumpkin pie I shared with you a few weeks ago (find the recipe here). I whipped up the pumpkin filling back in Kansas because our daughter’s food processor isn’t quite big enough. It traveled for a day in a cooler just fine, and when I arrived, I simply blind baked the crust and then poured in the filling – quick and easy!

I also made a cherry pie, following the recipe my mom has alwaysused. It’s on the Kraft Minute Tapioca box and you can use fresh or canned tart cherries. I used canned cherries because they’re available throughout the year. Another great thing about canned cherries: the juice is so deliciously tart and great mixed with a bit ofsparkling water for a zesty spritzer.

Tart cherries are a good source of DietaryFiber and Manganese, and a very good source of Vitamin A and Iron.
At Ancient Grains Bakery, I experimented with making a top crust forour frozen piecrusts, but never discovered a good way to package them. Our piecrust dough is soft andmanageable when freshly made, but once it has been frozen and thawed it tends to crumble. So for pies that traditionally have a top crust, I instead make anice crumble topping, similar to a French Apple Pie topping but made with quinoaflakes from Ancient Harvest

The quinoa flakes I use from Ancient Harvest

Of all the ancient grains, quinoa is one that could most definitely beconsidered a nutrition powerhouse and has become particularly popular in the US becauseof its ease and versatility. In savory dishes, it can be treated much like couscous or rice, but with much higher nutritional content. Nowadays, you'll find quinoa in grocery stores and restaurants ranging from vegetarian to fine dining establishments.

The quinoa plant (Chenopodium quinoa). Photo from the University of Minnesota

This lovely whole grain, indigenous to SouthAmerica, was a fundamental staple for the Inca people. Quinoa is a superbsource of manganese. It is also a good source of magnesium, iron, copper andphosphorus.

Quinoa flakes are made from whole quinoa that is steamed rolled into aquick cooking flake. Although much lighter and smaller than oats, quinoa flakescan be used in similar ways in baking such as cookies, bars and toppings. Italso makes a super fast breakfast cereal.

Here, we've used the quinoa flakes in the topping for the Cherry Pie.

This cherry pie is a perfect alternative to the pumpkin and apple piestraditionally served this time of year. With its tart filling and rich, crumbly topping, this is a pie that willbe a great addition to any holiday meal.

Cherry Pie with Quinoa Crumble Topping

Ingredients:

1 - Ancient Grains Bakery Whole Grain Sorghum Pie Crust

Filling:

2- 15oz cans tart cherries, drained (reserve the juice!)

3 Tbl minute tapioca

½ cup organic cane sugar

½ cup reserved cherry juice

½ tsp almond extract

Quinoa Crumble:

1/3 cup coconut oil, palm shortening, non-dairy spread or butter

¼ cup organic cane sugar

1/3 cup sorghum flour

1/3 cup quinoa flakes

½ tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp salt

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350. Remove the frozen Whole Grain Sorghum Pie Crust from the freezer. Place crust ontop of a baking sheet to defrost. (If the contents of the pie bubble over it is a loteasier to clean the baking sheet than the bottom of your oven. Plus, the bakingsheet makes it easier to move the filled pie in and out of the oven.)

Mix cherries, tapioca, ½ cup organic cane sugar, ½ cup cherry juice,and ½ tsp almond extract together and allow the mixture to set for 15 minutes.

Stir the cherry mixture again just before pouring into the prepared crust.Bake for 30 minutes.

While pie is baking, place the coconut oil, ¼ cup sugar, 1/3 sorghumflour, 1/3 quinoa flakes, ½ tsp cinnamon, and ½ tsp salt in a bowl. Use a forkor your hands to crumble everything together.

After the pie with the filling has baked for 30 minutes, carefullyremove it from the oven. Sprinkle the crumble topping evenly over the pie andplace it back in the oven. Continue baking for at least 30 minutes or until thejuices from the cherries bubble up from the top and hopefully a bit over thesides. I love this perfectly baked look for a pie.

*Special note:

I use organic extra virgin coconut oil because I love the flavor, baked texture and the simplicity of it, but it does cost more than the other choices. I buy a lovely, fine-milled white sorghum flour from AgvantageNaturals in New Cambria, Kansas.