This easy gluten free graham cracker pie crust recipe will be perfect, whether you’re baking a summer-y key lime pie or an autumnal pumpkin cheesecake or pumpkin pie.
I always keep my gfJules Gluten Free Graham Cracker Mix on hand so I can make them for snacking and for crust-making. It’s just too darned handy. The mix easily makes 100 gluten free graham crackers which stay fresh for days or are delicious when frozen.
But if you know you’re going to be making several gluten free graham cracker pie crust recipes, you can simply roll the dough into sheets and bake them without taking time to make them into pretty little graham crackers.
From there you can either process them in a food processor or place them in a large zip-top bag and crush by rolling with a rolling pin.
It’s important that the crumbs are small and uniform so your gluten free graham cracker pie crust will slice nicely and be picture perfect.
If you’d prefer to make the gluten free graham cracker recipe from scratch instead, go for it! You’ll just need a few more ingredients since my gfJules Gluten Free All Purpose Flour is so fine and light, and graham crackers are supposed to be rather gritty and coarse.
Either way, the process for rolling, baking, crushing and making the gluten free graham cracker pie crust is the same.
I highly recommend making extra gluten free graham cracker crumbs and freezing them so you can make a delicious gluten free pie crust any time you like. It’s so much less expensive than buying the pre-made ones (if you can even find them) and they taste leagues better.
Trust me. (Or read the icky reviews of pre-made gluten free graham cracker crusts on Amazon for yourself.)
See how easy that was? What are you waiting for? Delicious gluten free pies await!
Gluten Free Graham Cracker Pie Crust Recipe
A homemade gluten free graham cracker crust is hard to beat, both in terms of how easy and quick it is to make, and how delicious it is to eat ... with nearly any filling!
Ingredients
- 2 cups gluten-free graham crackers or gingersnaps, chopped until finely crumbled*
- or use 1 1/3 cups chopped grahams + 2/3 cup finely chopped almonds)
- 1/4 cup granulated cane sugar
- 4-5 tablespoons butter or nondairy alternative (Earth Balance® Buttery Sticks, melted
Instructions
* Bake a recipe of gfJules™ Graham Cracker/Gingersnap Mix or use this great homemade recipe for plenty of delicious graham crackers or gingersnaps to make this crust and have lots left over for munching!
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Chop the graham crackers or gingersnaps and almonds, if using, in a food processor until fine. Once uniformly crushed, measure out to be sure you have 1 2/3 cups of crumbs-repeat if you need more crumbs.
Pour the sugar into the food processor with the crumbs and pulse until integrated. Add in the melted butter, pulsing until the crumbs begin to stick together (alternatively, stir together in a bowl with a fork). If you find you need slightly more butter to get the crumbs to hold together, melt an additional tablespoon and add it in the same way.
(Note: this process can be done with a fork in a large bowl after smashing the crumbs well, but be sure to break the crackers or snaps into very fine bits or the crust won’t hold together properly).
Pour the crumb-butter mixture into a pie pan and press with your fingers to create an even thickness along the bottom and sides of the pan.
Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes-do not allow the edges to burn, though. Remove and set aside until the pie filling is prepared.
Notes
Double this recipe for 9x13 pie crust.
Pin for later!
I would like to make a pumpkin roll. Can your gluten free all-purpose flour be used for a pumpkin roll?
Hi Debra, I have had several readers tell me they’ve used my gfJules Flour in their pumpkin roll recipes and it works great! One day I’m going to get around to trying it myself. I’d love to have a pumpkin roll again!!! Let me know how it goes if you try before I get to!
~jules
Question – not about the crust but about that pie in the picture! The meringue-looking one. Is that pumpkin on the bottom? Where can I find a recipe for that??
Thanks so much!
Hi Maria, that pie is my gluten-free and dairy-free Key Lime Pie! It would be a yummy recipe to make one with pumpkin instead – I love that idea! Now you’ve got me thinking how to do it!!! Stay tuned!
~jules
Is this crust difficult to cut? Other gluten free graham cracker crust I’ve made are very hard to cut through
Hi Nanci, not this crust! It’s a wonderful recipe that’s not hard at all – more like melt-in-your mouth! I’m wondering what would cause another such crust to be hard; that’s unfortunate, for sure! Once you make the grahams and crumble them, the crust is quite easy to cut. I suppose if you were to just make a graham cracker crust by rolling out the dough into a large graham cracker, it could create “fault lines” of a sort when you tried to cut them, but it still wouldn’t be too hard unless it was overbaked. I hope that helps answer your question and that you enjoy this recipe!
~jules
I was using Pamela’s Gluten free graham crackers and every time or my friend make it…you need a saw to cut through the crust. Otherwise it tastes great. I will try yours. Thanks.
Not exactly a question regarding the recipe, but where did you get the yellow pie pan pictured with the recipe?
Hi Susan, I’ve had that dish for a long time and can’t remember where I got it! I’ve since enjoyed using Emile Henry pie dishes like this one linked here. I highly recommend those. I hope that helps! Happy pie baking!
~jules
Can I use solid coconut oil in place of butter in the graham cracker crust?
Hi Sabrina, you can, but be sure to work with the dough at room temperature, not cold because the coconut oil makes the dough crumbly and tough to work with when cold. You’ll also find that the crackers are crispier and harder when made with coconut oil — that’s not necessarily a bad thing in a graham cracker, but I wanted to make you aware.
~jules
If I use the gfJules™ Graham Cracker/Gingersnap Mix, will it make only enough crackers for one pie crust? I need to make two crusts and I’m not sure how many graham crackers to make to come up with 3 1/3 cups (I can’t use almonds due to an allergy).
Hi Jess, you should have plenty for 2 pie crusts if you use my Graham Cracker Mix. 🙂
Hope that helps!
~jules
Can I use coconut sugar instead of regular sugar?
Hi Laura, you can absolutely use coconut sugar instead. Happy baking!
~jules
Jules – I loved your graham cracker crust but something went wrong when I added the pumpkin filling and put it back in the oven to bake. Although the crust looked beautiful when I took it out of the oven after 10 minutes, it burned terribly when I filled it with pumpkin and put it back in the oven to bake. The directions I used (from the can of pumpkin) says to bake at 450 degrees for 15 minutes and then reduce the temperature to 350 degrees and continue to bake for 45-50 minutes.
So, should I omit the first step in the can’s recipe or should I not bake the crust prior to adding the pumpkin?
What part did not burn (the part closest to the center) was absolutely scrumptious so I want to give it another try.
Thanks Jules and Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!
Donna
Hmmmm. Sounds like skipping the baking of the crust part first would help. That’s what I did for the crust in this recipe (click for recipe) and it worked great. Also make sure that it’s not too close to a top or bottom burner. Did the edges burn? If so, I’d cover gently with crust covers or foil.
Hope that helps – glad the graham crackers were yummy!
~jules
Could I use Almond Flour instead of chopped almonds? Just wondering, since I have about 5 pounds of the stuff just dying to be used. Thank you
Hi Stephanie – an embarrassment of almond flour! Lucky you! 🙂 Yes, you can definitely stir some in instead of chopped almonds. Just remember if it’s not holding together to add more melted butter/vegan butter. You really can’t get it wrong, just add enough to get the texture right and help it hold together. Enjoy!
~jules
Can I refrigerate overnight and still have the Gluten free crust in tact(not too hard or not mushy)??This would include the filling in it also.
Hi Pat – are you talking about baking a pie and then refrigerating it overnight? The pies I’ve baked with this crust all are still yummy the next day, but I suppose with a super wet pie, there might be some mushiness — refrigerating would help protect against that.
~jules
Hi quick question, i have your graham cracker and gingerbread mix. Do I just follow directions for recipe and put in pie dish and bake? how long?
Thanks! Happy holidays and thank you for making gluten free baking so yummy!
Hi Carrie, having my mix will make it so easy to make a great gluten free graham cracker crust! But instead of putting the dough into the pie pan and baking, you need to roll the dough out onto a baking sheet (it doesn’t have to be pretty!) and after it bakes and cools, you break it into crumbs and mix with melted butter or vegan butter, following this recipe. Once the crumbs are mixed and pressed into the pie plate and baked, you have your perfect graham cracker crust, just like you remember! If you bake the raw dough into the pan, it will make a graham cracker crust, but not like the kind you are used to, and when you go to cut the pie pieces, it will crack and not cut into pretty pieces. If you read the recipe and still need more details or have questions, just email me at [email protected]. I’m here to help!
~jules
How can I make this recipe chocolate if I can’t find gf chocolate graham crackers?
Hi Debbie, to make this recipe as chocolate graham crackers, replace 1/2 cup buckwheat /or/brown rice flour with 1/4 cup cocoa and 1/4 cup buckwheat/brown rice flour.
Have fun baking!
~jules
If I’m baking the graham cracker pie crust how long do I cook it by itself to be fully cooked? I’m making a chocolate pudding pie which will require no baking. Is the 10 mins you have noted above enough to cook it fully? Thanks!
Hi Karen,
If you’re not baking it at all with the pie, 10 minutes should still be enough since the grahams are baked before baking into a crust. Your Chocolate Pudding Pie sounds delish!
~jules
Can I use any type of pumpkin pie recipe in this crust once it’s prepared? I’m worried the edges might burn with a pie that bakes for 45-60 min. Or would you cover the edges with foil?
Hi Rene, great questions! You can absolutely use another pumpkin pie recipe with this crust, but I also always recommend covering the crust edges with foil or pie saver, at least for the first 30 minutes or so. Either way, you should have a yummy crust and a yummy pie! Enjoy!!
~jules
I tried the ginger snap crust recipe for the crust for a cheesecake, and it ws soooooo delicious. Thank you so much
Wonderful to hear, Nancy! So glad you loved the gingersnap crust!!!