Vegan Pumpkin Pie
Vegan pumpkin pie - this vegan version of the classic American dessert is easy to make and indistinguishable from the original. It consists of a creamy, custardy spiced pumpkin filling with crisp pastry; you would never be able to guess that it is eggless and dairy free!
Servings 10 people
Ingredients
Pastry:
- 250 g (2 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour
- 50 g (⅓ cup + 1 Tbsp) icing (powdered) sugar
- ¼ tsp salt
- 150 g (5.3 oz/ ½ cup + 2 Tbsp) vegan block butter/margarine (OR 125g (4.5 oz) refined coconut oil) cold and diced
- 1 Tbsp cold vodka optional
- a little cold water as needed
Pumpkin Filling:
- 425 g (one 15oz can) pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
- 260 g (9 oz) firm silken tofu (drain off the excess liquid)
- 150 g (¾ cup) caster/granulated sugar
- 80 ml (⅓ cup) maple syrup
- 40 g (4 Tbsp) cornflour (cornstarch)
- 1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp salt
Maple Roasted Pecans (optional):
- 200 g (2 cups) pecans
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 Tbsp demarera sugar
- 3 Tbsp maple syrup
Instructions
Pumpkin Pie:
- Start by making the pastry. Place the plain flour, icing sugar and salt in a food processor and pulse until combined.
- Add the cold diced vegan block butter or coconut oil (or a mixture of both) and blend until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs and no lumps of fat remain.
- Add the tablespoon of cold vodka (or water) and pulse again; drizzle in a little cold water as needed to bring the pastry together into a ball.
- Cover the pastry and pop it in the fridge for half an hour until it has firmed up. If you are using coconut oil the pastry will firm up very quickly and it will be unworkable if it gets too cold so keep a close eye on it.
- Once the pastry has chilled, roll it out on a floured surface until it is large enough to line a 23cm/9 inch round pie dish or a 25cm/10 inch round tart tin.
- Gently transfer the pastry to the dish and press it right into the corners. Crimp the edges or trim off the excess pastry as you prefer and prick the base all over with a fork. The coconut oil version is quite delicate but if it cracks then you can just press it back together with your fingers.
- Place the pastry base in the freezer for twenty minutes while you preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/gas mark 6.
- When the pastry is nice and cold, line it with tin foil, making sure that you press it right into the corners, then fill it with baking beans or dried rice. Make sure you spread them right into the corners.
- Bake for 20 minutes then remove the tin foil and rice/beans and return the tart shell to the oven for 15 minutes or so, until it is golden and crisp. Place the baked shell on a wire rack and turn the oven down to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4.
- Place the pumpkin puree, silken tofu, cornflour (cornstarch), sugar, maple syrup, spices, vanilla and salt in a blender and blitz until totally smooth.
- Pour the filling into the case and spread it level. Bake for 35-45 minutes until the filling is set but still has a slight wobble in the middle. If you use a 9 inch pie dish it will take nearer the 45 minute mark to cook through, and if you use a wider, shallower 10 inch tart tin it will take less time to cook.
- Once the pie is baked, leave it to cool completely on a wire rack at room temperature then refrigerate it overnight before serving.
Maple Pecans:
- Heat the oven to 160°C/320°F/gas mark 3. Line a baking tray with baking parchment.
- In a bowl, toss together the pecans, cinnamon, salt, sugar and maple syrup. Make sure that the pecans are well coated.
- Spread the pecans out in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes then remove from the oven, give them a good stir and return to the oven for 5-10 minutes, until they feel dry to the touch
- Leave to cool on the tray then transfer to an airtight container.
Notes
- For the best results make sure that you follow the recipe closely. As always, I highly recommend using the gram measurements (with a digital scale), rather than the cup conversions. Cup measurements are simply not accurate enough for baking and I cannot guarantee the best results if you use them.
- Make this vegan pumpkin pie the day before you want to serve it as it needs to chill in the fridge overnight.
- The pastry can be made with either a vegan block butter/margarine (NOT the spreadable kind in a tub which has too high a water content for baking), or with refined coconut oil; or you can even use half and half if you like. The coconut oil version is a bit more delicate and difficult to work with but both kinds are delicious.
- For the best, crispy pastry, make sure that you don’t overwork it or let it get too warm. Freezing the tart shell prior to blind baking it helps to make the pastry crisp and stops it from shrinking too much.
- Using a bit of vodka instead of water to bind the pastry also helps to keep it crisp, as vodka has a lower water percentage. You can use water if you don’t want to use vodka though (you can’t taste it and the alcohol burns off during baking).
- I used individual spices in my pie but you can swap them for 2 ½ tsp pumpkin spice blend instead.
- For the filling you need to use firm silken tofu, which is the shelf-stable kind, not the fridge kind. In the UK it can usually be found either in the ‘Asian’ section of the supermarket (by the soy sauce), or next to the tinned beans.
- Let the pie cool completely at room temperature before transferring it to the refrigerator to chill. This prevents the pie from cracking.
- Any uneaten pie can be frozen for up to two months.
- The maple pecans are optional but delicious; they also make a great snack!