Our super easy keto pie crust is going to be your favourite new recipe. Having a keto shortcrust pastry that you can use in sweet and savoury baking is so handy. Oh, and trust me this is so much like the real thing you will never know.
EASY KETO PIE CRUST INGREDIENTS
All of the ingredients are easy to source from your local supermarket.
90 g almond meal
30 g coconut flour or chia flour
20 g whey protein isolate
½ teaspoon xanthan gum
¼ teaspoon salt
100 g cold unsalted butter, cubed
50 g cold cream cheese, cubed
1 egg, lightly beaten
FOR SWEET PASTRY
1 teaspoon vanilla extra
1 tablespoon powdered sweetener
INGREDIENT SUBSTITUTES
I know that a lot of you will have questions regarding the easy keto pie crust ingredients and can you swap them. I will go through the questionable ingredients, that I think you will ask about.
Let’s say firstly, these ingredients have been including to give your keto shortcrust pastry the BEST consistency. By changing and swapping ingredients the pastry will be different and not as good as the original (in my opinion).
Coconut flour – swap – 1/4 cup almond meal
Whey protein isolate, this is included to give the keto shortcrust pastry a very “short” texture. If you don’t have it just add 2 extra tablespoons of almond meal.
Almond meal – I would like to give you an option here but it will be a completely different recipe. When using other flours like coconut flour, sesame or sun flour extra eggs and fiddling around will be needed. So at this point I will say no substitutes.
Cream Cheese – no substitutes sorry. It helps bind, flavour and give texture to the easy keto pie crust.
Xanthan gun – now I know some of you hate it. The xanthan can be omitted from the keto shortcrust recipe BUT it does add texture in flakiness and gives a better smoothness to the low carb pastry. You need to remember that working with not only gluten-free pastry but also grain-free pastry recipes the texture is a lot different than the original. Xanthan does help in this recipe and there is no sliminess or consistency weirdness with it in there.
TIPS FOR MAKING EASY KETO PASTRY
Rolling and making a keto cream cheese shortcrust pastry is a little fiddlier than the original but don’t worry this recipe will work which ever way you do it.
DO NOT OVER MIX. Just like the original when processing the mix do it until it resembles dry bread crumbs. Then just push into the mixture into a flat disc and wrap in cling film.
CHILL THE PASTRY. This is an essential step. Hot soft keto pie crust pastry is not an easy thing to manipulate that is for sure. So chill 1-2 hours or make ahead of time. It will keep in the fridge for a week anyway.
WORK FAST. When you are ready to roll the pastry work really quickly. Roll between two pieces of non-stick baking paper and move quickly to your pie dish or cut for small pies or tarts. If the pastry is falling apart it is too warm, so just re-roll and place back in the fridge for an hour or so until well chilled.
Flatten into a disc and chill for 1-2 hours Roll out thinly and place into pie shell Prick pastry and freeze before blind baking
CHEATS WAY OF LINING PIE TINS. I have tested the easy keto pie crust recipe all year round. This method works just the same as above and you may prefer it.
So here goes. You now how you would work with a biscuit base for cheesecake? You are going to do the same sort of thing.
I always use where possible the loose bottom pie or tart tins. To be fair though even in a cake tin this pastry does not stick and comes out easily.
Just press the pastry mix (still after chilling) into the base of the pie tins. Make sure it is only a thin layer and make sure to press out the edges and neaten up the top lip of a tart or add some overhang for a pie.
If you are making an enclosed pie then firstly roll out half of the keto shortcrust pastry into a round that will cover the top of the pie. And place into the fridge while still on the paper. When ready to top the pie just invert and place onto the pie then remove the baking paper. Make some small slits in the top of the pastry to allow for air to escape.
BLIND BAKING. Once you have finished lining your pie or tart tins with the keto pastry prick the base with a fork generously and then place into the freezer for half an hour. This will set the pastry and stop it from shrinking and flopping in the oven. I will often prepare a double batch of easy pie crust pastry up to this stage and just store them in the moulds in the freezer for when I am ready to use.
Once they are well chilled you can blind bake the base.
Preheat the oven to 200℃. Bake keto pie shell for 10-15 minutes or until lightly golden. There is no need to line and use baking beads or rice to weigh down but as I mentioned above you MUST chill the pie crusts well before baking.
MAKE AHEAD EASY KETO PIE CRUST
Can I make my pastry ahead of time? Absolutely! Make it up to pre-baking and keep in the freezer for months if you want. What a great way to be ready for parties or busy times like Christmas with all your pastry sorted.
You can also bake the easy keto pie crust pastry and store for 2-3 weeks in the fridge without any filling. Again how good is this for convenience.
SWEET & EASY KETO PIE CRUST
With this keto pastry recipe you can make a sweet keto shortcrust pastry or savoury keto pie crust with just a simple addition of sweetener and vanilla.
Want a chocolate pastry? A citrus one? Look it is as simple as adding a tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa, some lemon or lime zest or just flavour with any extracts you have. How good would a keto pistachio pastry be or maple, coconut etc. So many flavours can be achieved with a few drops of extract for a nice variation.
For sweet keto shortcrust pastry pies I have made Lemon Meringue, Yoghurt Panna Cotta Tarts and Self Saucing Bourbon Pecan Pie Frangipane in my Fresh & Easy Keto cookbook. Also in that same eBook I made the Caramelised Onion Tart using the savoury easy keto shortcrust pastry. Keto Eats also features several recipes using the keto shortcrust pastry
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Easy Keto Pie Crust Recipe
Ingredients
- 90 g (0.8 cups) almond flour
- 30 g (2 tbsp) coconut flour or chia flour
- 20 g (1.5 tbsp) whey protein isolate
- ½ teaspoon (½ teaspoon) xanthan gum
- ¼ teaspoon (¼ teaspoon) salt
- 100 g (3.5 oz) cold unsalted butter cubed
- 50 g (3.5 tbsp) cold cream cheese cubed
- 1 (1) egg lightly beaten
- Coconut flour for dusting
FOR SWEET PASTRY
- 1 teaspoon (1 teaspoon) vanilla extra
- 1 tablespoon (1 tablespoon) powdered sweetener
Instructions
CONVENTIONAL METHOD
- Add almond flour, coconut flour, whey protein isolate, xanthan gum, salt, and butter to a food processor and pulse until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
- Add cream cheese and egg. Pulse until dough starts to form in large clumps. Stop processor before the mixture forms a ball.
- Place pastry onto cling film and pat into a large flat disc. Refrigerate overnight or for a minimum of 1-2 hours.
- Sprinkle top of pastry lightly with coconut flour and cover with another sheet of baking paper and gently roll out into desired shape.
- As a basic guide for blind baking before filling; Preheat oven to 180℃ fan/200°C static/400°F. Lift pastry into 23 cm / 9-inch diameter fluted loose base pie tin. Press pastry to fit the pan. Prick the base with a fork and freeze for 15 minutes. Bake 10-15 minutes or until lightly golden. Fill and bake as per recipe instructions.
THERMOMIX METHOD
- Add almond flour, coconut flour, whey protein isolate, xanthan gum, salt, and butter to mixing bowl and Turbo/2 seconds or until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
- Add cream cheese and egg. Turbo/2 seconds. Follow from Step 3 above.
Notes
Pastry can be used in any shaped tins. Blind baking time may vary due to the size of pie shell or oven.
For a sweet pastry add vanilla and sweetener in Step 2.
This pastry is very soft, don’t be afraid to just press it into the tins like a biscuit base. It still works perfectly every time. Nutritional is based on 10 serves. Of course if you are making small tarts or pies then adjust the nutritional accordingly.
Your Own Notes
Nutrition
71 responses to “Easy Keto Pie Crust Pastry”
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I don’t follow a keto diet but this pastry crust sounds like it would be popular with those who do. I like your suggestions for changing it up too. -
I had no idea making a delicious crust that is perfect for keto diets could be so easy!-
Absolutely Sharon and it tastes so great too, so big bonus!
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Your Pie Crust Pastry is delicious. The ingredients are yummy. These tarts surely look good and amazing recipe options to using these tarts too. Thanks -
This Pie Crust Pastry is made of such delicious Ingredients. These tarts look awesome. Best to serve with any toppings for a party. The crust is delicious by itself.-
Thanks so much Veena I am so glad you enjoy the recipe.
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If this is Aussie cuisine why are you using American ingredients “Whey Protein Isolate”?? which also contains Soy which is known to have glysophate in it especially if its from America.
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Hi Sally, I support all kinds of keto. There are plenty of brands of WPI without soy that is also available from Australia. I use WPI to decrease carbs and to give a light crumb to my baking. The recipe does include a variation within the blog post should you not wish to consume any soy products or choose a different brand of WPI. You can choose to omit it completely as you wish.
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I am definitely saving this recipe for later! Anyone say “Thanksgiving”??? This screams holidays for my gluten-free and keto family members. Thanks for sharing. I can’t wait to try!-
You are most welcome Jess. Have a great Thanksgiving!
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I love the step by step instructions on how to make this come out so good! Love the cream cheese in it!-
Thanks Beth. I like to help where I can.
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I love reading about keto and all the ingredients being used. The pie crusts look so good.-
Thanks Jere. Simple real foods that is what we use.
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I can’t wait to make this and use it for a keto pecan pie for Thanksgiving! I just want to clarify that you used almond meal and not almond flour…correct?
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I do Suzette but feel free to use either. I use blanched almond meal as it is cheaper and more accessible.
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genius! I love the versatility of being able to make it sweet or savory. It’s so nice to have a single go-to crust for whatever you want to make.
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It is isnt it Jessica and it is so good too!
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We don’t follow keto diet, but the flavor of this pie crust is just lovely. The almond and coconut flour make this a really delicious crust. 🙂-
It really is a great recipe isnt Anita. Thanks for leaving a review.
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This is such a great option for a healthier pie crust. I want to use this going forward for all my future pies.-
Thanks Aimee, I hope you enjoy it as much as we do
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This is such a great healthier option for pie crust! I want to use this recipe going forward for all my pies. -
You know I’m a sucker for a homemade crust pastry and am always on the lookout for new ones to try out…this one is DEFINITELY being added to the list! I have never tried to make a gluten free pastry but it is so handy to have a recipe around, plus the addition of cream cheese is simply genius! Great recipe Megan-
You are welcome Sylvie. It is interesting to make this and see how much like a traditional shortcrust it is.
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Loving the simplicity of this and DAMN does that lemon meringue look unreal with these pie crusts-
Haha! Thanks Gavin!
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I like the healthy ingredients. I am not much of a baker so the tips are extremely helpful.-
Yes Whitney, no special skills required just moosh it in there and bake it.
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Seriously you have made my life better right here!! I’m in love!! I do a lot of keto meals so this is right up my alley.-
You are most welcome Jocelyn. Enjoy!
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Love this recipe! It was so easy and tasty! Love that it’s Keto too!-
Me too Kim. Thanks for leaving a review
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What a great keto option. Perfect for Christmas.-
Absolutely Dannii!
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What a great recipe to have on hand – I can think of so many delicious uses for this.-
Totally.. and so good for you too!
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