Gluten Free Karjalanpiirakka
These traditional pasties, originally from the region of Karelia, are one of the most common everyday Finnish foods. They can be found across Finland in every cafe and grocery store. Usually they are made from rye flour and rice porridge and served with egg butter.
What I love the most in these savoury pastries is the combination of textures, crispy thin crust and soft rice filling. I like to serve them with poached eggs, sliced avocado and broccoli sprouts.
My recipe for Karjalanpiirakka is easy to make, gluten free, lactose free and it can be vegan if you replace ghee butter with coconut oil. Another great thing about them is their versatility as they can be stuffed in many different ways. With potatoes, carrots, spinach, whatever comes to your mind. Doors for your creativity are open!!
Try my recipe and let me know if you love them as much as I do 🙂
Gluten Free Karjalanpiirakka
Ingredients
Dough (18 pieces):
- 140g red quinoa flour (or any other quinoa flour)
- 60g buckwheat flour
- 50g tapioca starch
- 7g psyllium husk
- pinch of salt
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 190-200 ml warm water
Sweet Potato Filling:
- 1 medium sweet potato
- 1 tsp ghee butter
- pinch of salt
- pinch of paper
- pinch of nutmeg (optional)
Rice Filling:
- 50g rice porridge
- 250 ml vegetable milk
- 50 ml water
- 1 tsp ghee butter
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Make the sweet potato filling: Clean and peel sweet potato, then cut into four pieces and steam until soft. ( To steam potato use a steamer basket or steamer pot) When the potato is cooked mash it and mix with butter, salt, paper and nutmeg.
- Make the rice filling: Boil the water in a medium saucepan, then add rice porridge and cook it for a few minutes just to reduce all water. Pour vegetable milk and cook for 45 minutes stirring from time to time. When it’s ready add butter and salt and let it cool. (Texture of the porridge should be thick and soft)
- Make the dough: In a medium bowl mix together all dried ingredients with 190 ml of warm water and olive oil. Knead the dough until firm and manageable texture. If necessary add more water.
- Preheat the oven to 230°C and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Shape the pieces: Shape the dough into a log around 5 cm in diameter and cut it into rounds 1 cm - 1,2 cm thick. Start shaping the pies one at a time. Sprinkle a surface with buckwheat flour and using rolling pin roll first round until it reaches very thin thickness. (Roll the dough as thin as possible) Stuff with rice filling, about 2 tablespoon of mixture. Then spread evenly, leaving 1 - 1,5 cm from the edge. Fold the edges of the dough upward and start crinkling from the middle to the ends, helping with your fingers. Place on a tray lined with baking paper. Repeat with all rounds, stuffing the first half of them with rice filling and second half with sweet potato filling.
- Bake for 12 - 15 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let it cool a bit.
- Serve traditionally with egg butter or as you desire. To make egg butter, mix 2 hard boiled finely chopped eggs with 2 tablespoon lactose free butter. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Notes:
- For the vegan option, skip or replace butter in the recipe.
- Grain quinoa to make quinoa flour.
- The amount of water added to the dough depends on the absorption capacity of your flours. The dough should be easy to work with.
- For the softened crust brush each backed pies with melted butter.
- Store baked Karjalan pasties in a glass box in the fridge. Serve them heated for 10 minutes in 190°C in the oven.
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