Chocolate Pudding Pie

Chocolate Pudding Pie

1 Graham cracker crust (recipe follows)

3/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 1/2 cups rice milk

1 tablespoon egg replacer

   OR  1 egg

2 ounces unsweetened baking chocolate, cut into small pieces

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

  Whisk together the sugar, cornstarch and salt in a heavy saucepan. Add the rice milk, whisking until fully combined. Add the egg replacer, whisking until light and frothy.
  Set the saucepan over medium heat. Warm slightly, add the chocolate pieces, and cook, whisking, until it comes to a slow simmer and has thickened, about 5 minutes. If it lumps at all, whisk more vigorously.
  Once it has thickened to a pudding consistency, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, just below a simmer, stirring with a  wooden spoon, for 20 minutes. The pudding should be soft and chocolaty, and should slowly drip off of a wooden spoon. The pudding must reach this thick rich stage or it will not set, so it's better to err on the side of cooking a little longer than not cooking long enough. Once really thick, remove from the heat, whisk in the vanilla, and cover with wax paper. Let cool while preparing the crust.

Graham Cracker Crust

1 1/4 cups basic gluten-free flour mix

1/4 cup sorghum flour

1/4 cup golden flax seed meal

1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup dairy-free, soy-free vegetable shortening

 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar

1 tablespoon agave nectar or honey

  Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
  Whisk together the flours, flaxseed meal, xanthan gum, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
  In a large bowl, combine the shortening, brown sugar and agave nectar; mix on medium speed for about 2 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
  Add the flour mixture and beat on low speed until just combined about 30 seconds.
  Pat into greased 9" pie plate. This makes a fairly thick crust, so if you like it thinner, you could make graham crackers out of some of the remaining crust. Prick with a fork across the bottom, and bake for 18 minutes.
  Cool; fill with chocolate pudding. Refrigerate for several hours until set, and serve as is, or with Vegan Whipped Topping.

Vegan Whipped Topping

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1/2 cup rice milk

1/2 cup dairy-free, soy-free vegetable shortening

1/2 cup caster sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

  Whisk together the cornstarch and rice milk in a small heavy saucepan until smooth, being sure to whisk out any lumps.
  Bring to just below a simmer over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until it thickens. (This happens very quickly, in about 1 minute or less.) Remove from the heat and stir vigorously until smooth. Set aside to cool.
  In a large bowl, cream the shortening and sugar on medium speed for 3 minutes, then add the vanilla. Continue to beat while adding the cooled rice milk mixture, until fully incorporated, about 1 minute, stopping to scrape down the sides as necessary. Beat for 2-3 more minutes, or until light and fluffy, making sure you've whipped out any lumps. Serve at room temperature (it solidifies when chilled).

Dairy Free

  There are many alternatives to cow's milk for those that are allergic or lactose intolerant. I have tried soy milk, almond milk, coconut milk and rice milk. Since Rice Dream Rice Drink is my favorite, that is what my recipes will call for. You can substitute 1:1 with any of these other drinks that I listed. These are quite a bit more expensive than cow's milk, so I have come up with a recipe to make my own rice milk. I use homemade rice milk in all my baking and mix it about half and half with Rice Dream for drinking or on cereal. You can use brown rice, (it's more healthy) but I don't care for the taste other than in baking. 
  Here is my recipe:

Rice Milk

1 cup cooked white rice

6 cups water

about 2 tablespoons honey, sugar, or other sweetener 

Mix the rice and 2 cups water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Boil, watching carefully, (mine always either tries to boil over or stop boiling altogether) for 20 minutes. Stir in honey until dissolved; cool. 

 Blend in blender on "liquify" setting for about a minute and a half or until blended.  Add 2 cups water and blend again. At this point, if there is any grainy sludge, strain through a fine sieve. (Brown rice will have a lot of this, but white rice shouldn't.) Add 2 more cups water, stir and pour into glass quart jars. Store in refrigerator.   

Makes 2 quarts and keeps for about 2 weeks.