Nourish the Budding Lotus

Berries and Oat Pie

I first became inspired to have a “food blog” after finding some amazing examples online.  One of the top examples that I have enjoyed subscribing to is the Fat Free Vegan Kitchen.  Her recipes are beautiful and so are her photos.  A perfect combination for me.  Every so often I would bookmark her recipes for future adventures, and one day I tested out her Blueberry Oat Bars.  They look amazing and I was excited by the ease of the recipe and the results were great.  I did have a little trouble spreading the top layer of oats, and found the bottom layer a little too soft, so I decided the next time that I would try a different technique to see how it would come out.  I have to say that I am pretty happy with the results, and want to thank Susan V. for the beautiful recipe and creative inspiration.

I decided to let the bottom layer of oats cook in the oven for a little while on its own in order to crisp up a little and rolled out the top layer more like a pie crust.  Since I didn’t have a square pan, I also ended up making this in a pie plate…and surprisingly turned out quite like a pie.  I definitely suggest trying out the recipe yourself, it is quite easy, whether you follow her recipe or my variation, and you could even just make the fruit filling and have it with ice cream, dairy-free ice cream or even fresh cut bananas.

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Berries and Oat Pie

1 pint blueberries
10 strawberries sliced
1/4 c agave
1/2 c apple juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 T arrowroot mixed with  juice to form a smooth paste

3 cups oatmeal
3 T ground flax seed
1/2 t cinnamon
1 1/2 t baking powder
1/4 t salt
6 oz. unsweetened applesauce
1/4 c agave
1/2 c apple juice
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 375F. Oil a 9 in round pie plate.

In a small sauce pan mix the blueberries, strawberries, apple juice and agave and warm over medium heat.  Meanwhile, mix the arrowroot with a small amount of juice to form into a paste.  Once the berry mixture comes to a boil, add the vanilla, and the arrowroot paste, stirring constantly.  The mixture will thicken while stirring.  Remove from heat and set aside.

In a food processor or blender, chop 1 1/2 c of the oats until a fine flour-like consistency is acheived.  Transfer to a bowl and combine the chopped oats with the rest of the whole oats, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and flax seed.

In a separate bowl combine the apple sauce, agave, apple juice and vanilla.  Once mixed, add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients.  Mix well.

Using half of the batter, spread it on the bottom of the pie plate.  You can use a spatula or the back of a spoon to flatten. Bake the bottom crust in the oven for 20 minutes or until the crust becomes firm and lightly browned.  Remove from the oven.

Form the other half of the crust mixture into a ball, and using a rolling pin, roll into a 1/4 in thick crust.  Pour the berry mixture onto the bottom crust and gently place the rolled crust ontop.  You might want to let some of the top crust hang over as it did shrink a little in the oven.

Cook for another 25 – 30 minutes.  When the top crust is golden, remove from the oven and let cool before serving.

I hope you have fun with it!

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