Gingersnap Pie Crust - how to sub butter as binder
I made a delicious pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving using Trader Joe's triple-ginger gingersnaps. The ginger flavor really complements the pumpkin. Following a basic recipe, I added a fair amount of butter to the ground gingersnaps. Although it was delicious, I'd like to find a way to do this without it being so rich and calorie-laden. So my question is:
Does anyone have experience making a gingersnap pie crust using something other than butter or other fat to bind the crumbs, given that there is already fat in the gingersnaps -- perhaps egg? egg white? water? (Perhaps similar experience with a graham cracker crust could apply.)
Best Answer
I have seen some recipes that use milk instead of butter. They would be slightly healthier, but I find that the crust burns easier and feels drier and more brittle. Keep in mind that a lot of the calories come from the ginger snaps that themselves contain sugar and butter. I haven't done the math, but I think the calories from the butter are negligible compared to the calories in the pie filling and the gingersnaps.
For a healthier crust, I would use a base of some unsweetened cracker and mix in the same spices that are in gingersnap cookies when I mix the crumbs with butter. That would cut some calories, while retaining the feel of a butter crust.
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Answer 2
When I've made biscuit bases (as we call them in the UK - we usually use them only on the bottom) the recipe calls for sugar as well as butter.
As this recipe includes some sugar, I'd keep some in, and offset the sweetness with a pinch of ginger. Sugar is quite effective at binding when cooked, especially with butter. I'd reduce the butter and sugar in roughly equal proportions, adding them gradually until the crumbs come together. You may need to press firmly into the tins. A little flour may help too.
You could probably make up about 2/3 of the gingersnap crumbs into a thinner layer, with less than 2/3 of the butter and sugar, and after pressing that into the pie dish sprinkle the rest of the crumbs on top and press again.
I can't see egg working if you want a crisp crust. I've tried to use egg to bind savoury flapjacks (UK term, I guess you'd call them oat bars) and found that too much made them rubbery. In that case cheese got me from rubbery to chewy, but that's no help here.
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