Best Ever Vegan Pumpkin Pie (Secretly Healthy + Easy!)
Unbelievably vegan pumpkin pie for all eaters
Why this is the best healthy pumpkin pie
What is a substitute for eggs in pumpkin pie?
How to make a vegan pumpkin pie (overview)
For the full written instructions and ingredient measurements, see the bottom of this post in the recipe card. You can also hit the “jump to recipe” button at the top of this post! Here, we’ll go over a brief overview of the steps, along with providing visuals for a better understanding of the recipe.
Easy vegan pie crust:
I also give the option for making a gluten-free pie crust as well. All of the details on how to customize this pie crust all are in my Perfect Pie Crust Guide. We also have a new oat flour pie dough that makes a wonderful gluten free pie crust!
Best ever vegan pumpkin pie filling
How to keep pumpkin pie from cracking
This healthy vegan pumpkin pie recipe is foolproof to ensuring that your pumpkin pie won’t have any cracks in it.
Really, whether or not a pumpkin pie cracks is highly dependent on the recipe, and I’ve tested this one dozens of times, in a variety of ways to determine what’s the best way to avoid cracks.
However, there are a few tips that I want to go over to ensure that your pumpkin pie doesn’t crack.
- Bake at the correct temperature: do not stick your pie into the oven until it is fully preheated. I would actually recommend waiting an extra 5 minutes after the initial “ding” that it’s preheated to ensure that it’s at the right temperature.
- Bake the pumpkin pie on the middle or low rack. I personally have had great success baking on the middle rack, so that I can put a baking sheet below in case of any accidents of pie crust. However, if you know that your oven is more powerful than most, I would stick the pumpkin pie on the lower rack to be safe.
- Look for the middle being “set”: what this means is that the pumpkin pie won’t be as glossy as it was when it first went in. The edges to the very middle should be mostly baked in place, but it will wiggle a bit when you remove it. It will also look darker at first. You didn’t burn it! This pumpkin pie recipe will need at least 4 hours (preferably overnight) to chill in the fridge after it has baked.
How to carefully transfer your pie dough to your pie dish
This was definitely the most intimidating part of making pumpkin pie when I first started. The trick is to work with really cold dough, though, and you’ll be absolutely fine!
Make sure that you’ve chilled your vegan pie dough for at least 30 minutes. Then when you’re rolling, make sure to pick up the edges every once in a while to ensure that your dough is easily moveable and not sticking.
When it comes time to transferring the dough to the pie pan, you should be able to easily just pick up the dough and place it over your pie dish!
FAQ’s
You can also use either dried beans or even flour! Yes, you can use flour to par-bake your curst! Just make sure that the crust is lined with parchment paper and either the beans or the flour reach the top of the crust to prevent any sinking.
Guess what? You can easily use a blender, whisk, or a food processor!
Use a combination of soy milk and maple syrup. You can use any dairy free milk, even coconut cream or full fat coconut milk in a can, but I’ve found the best results to be with soy milk!
You are just going to absolutely love this super easy vegan pumpkin pie!! It honestly tastes just like traditional pumpkin pie- no one will know it’s vegan, eggless, and dairy free!
If you make this pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving, let me know in the comments below! As always, I absolutely love to see your beautiful creations, so be sure to tag me on Instagram and Pinterest 🙂
Happy Pumpkin Pie Eating!
More Vegan Thanksgiving Desserts:
Paleo Vegan Chocolate Cream Pie
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Watch how to make the best vegan pumpkin pie:
If you make this recipe, please be sure to leave a comment and a rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ below. This helps others to find the recipes! As always, I absolutely love to see your beautiful creations on Instagram and Pinterest, so be sure to tag me there as well!
PrintBest Ever Vegan Pumpkin Pie (Secretly Healthy + Easy!)
- Prep Time: 30
- Cook Time: 60
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Yield: 10 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This secretly vegan healthy pumpkin pie recipe is truly my favorite. With a flaky vegan crust and creamy and rich filling, this healthy twist on a traditional pumpkin pie is full of pumpkin spice and the perfect pie vegan recipe for your Thanksgiving table!
Ingredients
Pumpkin Pie Crust (see pie crust guide for a customizable pie crust or an oat flour crust)
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, or gluten free 1-to-1 baking flour
- 3/4 cup + 2 tbsp vegan butter or coconut oil, cubed and frozen
- 3 tbsp arrowroot powder
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 5–7 tbsp chilled water
Pumpkin Pie Filling:
- 1 1/2 (15 oz) cans pumpkin puree (22.5 oz total- not pumpkin pie filling)
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1/3 cup coconut sugar
- 1/2 cup coconut milk
- 1/4 cup arrowroot powder
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp pumpkin pie spice
Instructions
- Please read through all instructions before beginning.
- Prep: Measure out all ingredients for the pie crust and the pumpkin pie.
- Make the pie crust first: In a food processor, pulse together the flour and arrowroot powder. Add the coconut oil/vegan butter into the food processor and pulse until it becomes a grainy sand texture. Add in the maple syrup and chilled water, and continue processing until it’s a thick and smooth dough.
- Chill the pie dough: Form the dough into a large disc, wrap it in plastic wrap, and chill it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
- Roll out the pie dough: When it’s ready to be rolled into a 9-10″ pie dish, let the dough sit on the table for 15 minutes to come to room temperature, then dust a clean surface with extra flour and roll the dough out to be 14″ in diameter. Carefully transfer the dough into the pie dish and lightly press the dough to meet the bottom edges of the dish. Use your fingers to gently crimp the edges of the pie crust. Any leftover dough can be used to make pie cut-outs. Place the pie dish back into the fridge to chill for 15 minutes while the oven preheats to 425F. Place the pie cut-outs onto a piece of parchment paper and into the fridge to chill. You’ll bake the pie cut-outs with the pumpkin pie (but towards the end).
- Bake the pie crust: Once the oven is preheated, remove the pie crust from the fridge and place a piece of parchment paper into the middle of the crust, along with pie weights or dried beans or flour. Bake the crust for 12 minutes then remove from the oven and lower the temperature to 350F. Let the crust cool while you prepare the filling.
- Make the pumpkin pie filling In a large bowl, use a hand mixer to mix together pumpkin puree, maple syrup, coconut sugar, coconut milk, arrowroot powder, vanilla, and pumpkin pie spice until smooth and there are no clumps of arrowroot.
- Pour the filling into the pie crust: Pour filling into the pie crust and cover the edges of the pie crust with either a pie crust saver or tin foil. If you have cut outs, place the parchment paper with the cut outs on a baking sheet and not onto the pie to decorate it just yet. Bake the cutouts only for 7-8 minutes then remove from the oven. I recommend baking them towards the end of the pumpkin pie baking time.
- Bake the pumpkin pie: Place the pie into the oven and bake for 40 minutes. Remove the tinfoil, and continue to bake for another 20 more minutes.
- Allow the pie to cool: Remove from the oven and allow the pie to cool for 15 minutes at room temperature. Then transfer the pie set overnight or for a minimum of 4 hours.
- Serve and enjoy: When ready to serve, decorate with the pumpkin pie cut outs and serve. Enjoy!
Notes
Gluten free: Use gluten-free 1:1 baking flour in the pie crust for an all gluten free vegan pumpkin pie. You can also use this amazing oat flour pie crust.
Homemade pumpkin puree: I recently tried this, and it totally works! This recipe will work great with homemade fresh pumpkin puree. Just make sure you’re weighing out how much pumpkin you’ve made (aiming for 22.5 ounces total).
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/10th of pie
- Calories: 308
- Sugar: 27.2 g
- Sodium: 146.7 mg
- Fat: 11.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 48.9 g
- Protein: 2.4 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
Keywords: vegan pumpkin pie, healthy pumpkin pie, healthy pumpkin pie recipe, vegan pie crust, vegan pumpkin pie recipe
The filling looks yummy but i have to admit I am not a big fan of the typical regular pie crust. Do you think I could you a gingersnap crust instead? Or it be too moist for that?
Thanks.
Aw thank you so much!! And absolutely, that sounds like it would be LOVELY!
This is the BEST pumpkin pie I’ve ever had! HANDS DOWN! I could seriously eat this all year round 🙂
★★★★★
Aw this makes me so happy to hear it!! Enjoy!!
This pumpkin pie looks to die for! Pumpkin pie is one of my favorites and I will make one next week for sure. 🙂
★★★★★
Aw thank you, sweet Ela!! You’re always so kind!! Enjoy!
The recipe looks great!
is the coconut milk the milk from a can or is it regular milk that can be subbed for any type of milk?
Hi Chloe!
Aw thank you so much!! And you can use regular coconut milk (or any type of milk!), but I will say slightly higher in fat tastes best! Enjoy!
This pie looks divine 🙂 and your pie crust cutouts are adorable! For the pumpkin puree, the recipe says 1 1/2 cans. What size/amount are the cans you use?
Aw I’m so happy to hear it, thank you!! For the cans, you’ll need two 15-ounce cans! But you’ll only use 1.5 of the cans! You can save extra pumpkin puree for another treat 🙂
Yum! Would the filling still work nicely if I wanted to use an egg instead of the arrowroot? do you think 1 egg would suffice?
Hi Lauren! So I actually haven’t tried this with an egg- I know it might make the filling bake a bit differently (i.e. I’m not sure if it will crack!). I would try using just 1 but again I can’t promise results!
Hi Britt –
This pie sounds wonderful. I’m excited to try it. One question: I am actually wanting to make a crustless pumpkin pie. Do you think this pie filling will set up without the crust part?
Thanks,
Kim
Hi Kim! So excited for you to try this!! I’ve actually never tried this as a crustless pumpkin pie- I would imagine it would work, as many pumpkin pies can actually be made as crustless pumpkin pies, but I can’t guarantee the results, as I have not tried this myself!
Can you substitute almond milk for the coconut milk?
Hi Christine! Yes you can use almond milk!
Hi, can I substitute the arrowroot flour for cornstarch or something else.
Hi Anthony! You can substitute cornstarch no problem here.
Thanks very much for your response
Is the ratio the same when using cornstarch instead of arrowroot? Thank you!
Hi Caitlin! Yes it is 🙂
I don’t like coconut sugar, would you suggest real sugar? Would the ratio be different?
Hi there! You can use regular granulated sugar, no problem here! Ratio is the same!
Hi, so excited to make this! The recipe says to cool for 15 minutes then to “transfer pie set overnight” not sure what that means?! Transfer to refrigerator? Sorry to ask, I’ve never made one ☺️ Thanks!
Hi Celeste!! Oh so sorry, not a problem!! Yes, it means transfer to the fridge 🙂 I’ll make that more clear! Enjoy!!
When making the crust, what would you recommend to use if you don’t have a food processor? I have a ninja blender, but didn’t know if that would work or not.
Hi Rachel!
You’ll first whisk together the dry ingredients in a bowl. Then you can “cut” the coconut oil/vegan butter into the flour, much like Spruce Eats describes here: https://www.thespruceeats.com/how-to-cut-butter-into-flour-995216
You’ll want to look for a grain-y sandy texture. Then add in 1 tbsp water at a time as you’re mixing it until it forms a thick dough!
Could I use tapioca starch instead of arrowroot?
Hi Nikki! Yes, tapioca will work!
Hi! Could I use Almond flour or coconut flour instead of cassava flour?! Thank you 🤍
Hi Wendy!
For this recipe, I haven’t tested it with coconut flour nor almond flour- I know that many people combine the two, but I just haven’t tested this! I would recommend cassava, GF 1:1 flour, regular flour, or you can use an oat crust from this vegan cheesecake (just double the recipe!): https://thebananadiaries.com/the-best-cannoli-cheesecake-vegan-gluten-free/
I hope that helps!
I made this for Thanksgiving as a replacement to the classic Libby’s recipe and it was amazing! The color is obviously different than Libby’s but in a more rustic way and the flavor is identical. My family loved it! I bought too little of arrowroot so ended up using cornstarch in the filling with no issues. Recipe otherwise was followed to a T. Love!!
★★★★★
Aw my goodness! So wonderful to hear! Thank you so much for giving it a go, and happy Thanksgiving!
Amazing!!! I’m allergic to eggs and I’ve tried a few pumpkin pie recipes over the years and have always been disappointed. But this was amazing!!! I used tapioca starch because it’s what I had, and I used a different crust but the filling (which is the important part) was absolutely delicious!!! My kids all said it was better than their traditional pumpkin pie. Thanks for a great recipe!!
★★★★★
Oh my goodness!! So so wonderful to hear!! Truly thank you so much, and so elated that your kids loved it as well!! Enjoy!
It calls for 2 cans of pumpkin but what size cans? I have 2 different sizes. Thanks.
Hi Shannon! Apologies for that! it’s a 15 ounce can, so 22.5 ounce total!
This pie was PERFECTION. as someone else said, the crust is amazing!! It was like a cookie crust. Anyways, the spices in the pie were just enough and not too overwhelming. Definitely making again!!
★★★★★
Aw you are just so sweet! So happy to hear it 🙂 Enjoy and thank you!
My rating is for the pie crust. I used your recipe for a pumpkin pie at “Friendsgiving”. The crust was incredibly simple — a key for me, someone who had never made her own pie crust before — and the perfect companion with the pumpkin filling. I used cornstarch instead of arrowroot powder. This is the pie crust recipe I will be making again!!
★★★★★
Oh my goodness!! Just the sweetest!! So happy to hear that and so glad it went so well with your friends!! Happy holidays!
I made this for thanksgiving and everyone loved it. I used eggs instead of arrowroot, however. Great recipe 🙂
★★★★★
Aw I’m SO happy to hear it!! Thank you so much for letting us know the swaps too- so helpful for other readers! Enjoy!!
hi! could you tell us how many eggs you used? I would like to try the same. Thanks!
I made this pie with a different crust & it was really good, although I neglected to read that it needs to set in the fridge for 4 hours or overnight so our first piece was more like pumpkin pudding! But very tasty!
I do have a question about cooking time. My pie plates are extra big & deep, taking about 1.75 x the filling recipe. What would you recommend for cooking time? I did 60 min with a pie crust saver on & then another 20min, but I wasn’t sure how to tell if it was done. I would say it was still a little soft after setting overnight.
★★★★★
This is wonderful!! Thank you so much for this review!! For being able to tell if it’s done, I’m guessing it was a bit trickier because of how deep your pie dish is- more filling means longer in the oven! You’ll look for when most of the pie is set, a little bit of the middle of the pie can still be a bit wobbly. Then transfer to the fridge after cooling at room temperature for 10-15 minutes. If it’s still too soft overnight, I’m wondering how fresh your arrowroot starch was? I’ve had that happen to me when the arrowroot is a bit past it’s prime, and I notice my cheesecakes, pies, custards etc. aren’t thickening as well!
I dont have the pumkin pie spice, can you tell me the recipe for pumkin pie spice? Thank you!
Hi Bonnie! Of course! Here’s the blend I make if I’m doing DIY 🙂 https://cookieandkate.com/pumpkin-spice-blend-recipe/