Dairy-Free Gluten-Free Coconut Cream Pie

Yield: One 9-inch pie.

Ingredients

Crust

• 1 box gluten-free ginger snap cookies
• Approximately 1/3 cup melted dairy-free margarine

Coconut Filling

• 2/3 cup sugar
• 2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 1/4 cups coconut milk
• 2 whole large eggs
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons dairy-free margarine
• 1 cup unsweetened coconut, lightly toasted

Directions

1. For crust, grind cookies finely and mix in melted margarine. Press into a high-sided 9-inch pie pan and chill until ready to fill.
2. For filling, stir sugar, cornstarch and salt together in a heavy-bottomed saucepot. Whisk in coconut milk, whole eggs and egg yolks. Heat custard on low heat, whisking constantly for 5 minutes. Increase heat to medium and continue whisking until custard thickens and becomes glossy, about 5 more minutes. Remove from heat and strain. Stir in vanilla, margarine and 1/2 the coconut and stir until margarine has melted. Pour immediately into chilled pie shell, let cool on the counter for 15 minutes, then chill completely.
3. Sprinkle remaining toasted coconut on top as garnish.

Spring Fiddlehead Pasta & GF Vegan Brownies

Calvin worked late tonight so Mom and I found time, in between planting of course, to make a wonderful dinner.

Spring Fiddlehead Pasta

1. Prepare 4 cups of brown rice penne pasta.
2. Toss with 3 T butter, 1 T lemon juice and a sprinkling of sea salt.
3. Lightly boil (3 minutes or so) 2 cups of fiddleheads. These are currently in season! Check your grocer, market or backyard forest!
4. Toss the fiddleheads in the pasta along with 1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese. Top with grated parmesan and fresh basil.

GF Vegan Brownies

Preheat oven to 350.
1. Sift together 3/4 cup gf featherlight flour mix*, 1/4 cup cocoa powder, 1/2 tsp baking powder and 1/2 tsp salt.
2. Whisk together 1/2 cup coconut cream (the thick white part of a can of coconut milk), 1/4 cup oil, 3/4 cup sugar and 1 tsp vanilla.
3. Fold dry ingredients into wet and stir until just mixed.
4. Bake in a greased 8" pan for 15 minutes (gooey brownies) to 20 minutes (firm brownies).
5. Let cool? Maybe not.

* Look for my previous entry on how to make this mix, or in a pinch for this recipe use 1/2 cup white rice flour, 3 T tapioca flour, 1 T potato starch and 1/8 tsp guar gum.