Crustless Raspberry Custard Pie

This Crustless Raspberry Custard Pie is not your typical custard pie. It is baked directly in a pie plate without a pastry or graham cracker crust beneath it, yet it still holds together well enough that you can easily slice and serve it, just as you would with a regular pie. The pie is creamy and tender, with more substance than you might expect a custard pie to have thanks, in part, to a generous amount of yogurt in the filling. It also has a nice vanilla-almond flavor and is a wonderful base in which to showcase fresh raspberries.

The secret to this pie is that it is a type of “impossible” pie. This type of pie has a very small amount of flour incorporated into the filling that forms a kind of “crust” beneath the pie as it bakes. This isn’t a crisp crust, but it is a slightly firm layer at the base that helps the pie hold together well. The resulting pie is less delicate than a more traditional custard pie, but it is also lighter (meaning lower in calories) than its traditional counterpart. It is also very easy to mix up and bake, even on very short notice.

Fresh raspberries, or another fresh berry, are the best choice for this dessert. The berries look beautiful in the pie and have a beautifully bright flavor against the custard. The pie can be served slightly warm, while it is fresh from the oven, or refrigerated and served chilled. I usually top mine with a little dusting of powered sugar, but a small dollop of whipped cream and a few extra raspberries can also make a perfect finish.

Crustless Raspberry Custard Pie
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup yogurt (pref. greek-style)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract
12-oz fresh raspberries

Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 9-inch pie plate.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and sugar.
In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, yogurt, vanilla and almond extract until very smooth. Add in flour mixture and whisk to combine. This can also be done in the food processor.
Add raspberries into filling mixture and gently stir to coat. Pour into prepared pie plate, shifting raspberries around with a spoon or spatula to evenly distribute them in the pie.
Bake for 30-40 minutes, until custard is set and a knife inserted into the center of the pie comes out clean.
Allow to cool before slicing and serving.

Serves 8.

Tags: custard lower fat raspberry