Pumpkin pie is unlike any other pie—creamy, luscious filling
With a crisp and flaky crust, pumpkin pie is THE KING of pies.
Eddie has been asking me for pumpkin pie since last year. I don’t know what it was—maybe it was my eczema or maybe I was feeling really daunted about making a pumpkin pie that met my expectations—but I put it off for an entire year. We bought maybe 4 or 5 vegan pumpkin pies from Whole Foods because we wanted pie so bad.
Pumpkin pie is both of our favourite pies—it is actually the KING of pies. You get the luscious, almost custardy filling that is mellow and sweet with just a hint of fall pumpkin spices. Crisp, flaky pie crust gives this pie some structure and texture, and a wee dollop of vegan whipped cream on top adds a last light, creamy sweetness that brings this pie all together.
It took me a few tries to get the right pie I wanted, so I ended up making 4 pies total. I wanted something sturdy, creamy, light, not too heavy on the spices with a solid crust that is full of light, flaky layers. The first pie I made had this giant puddle on top, which I learned is a result from trying to speed up the cooling process creating condensation when stored in the fridge. The next couple pies were either too sweet or too spiced, and finally this last pie.
Oh this last pie was the winner.
Anyway, enough about pie. I haven’t been writing since the end of October and I feel terrible about that. Life kind of got the better of me, I had a big event at work that I had to hustle for, and I went on a day trip to Ottawa to speak to some students about finding a job in the digital age. I documented the day as a vlog if you folks want to see. But things have been honestly pretty good—life-wise. Eddie and I are starting to save up for a house, my eczema isn’t being totally god-awful (it’s not amazing but it’s definitely bearable), work is good, blog things are good, friends are good.
It’s not a bad time to be alive.
This time of year sometimes gets really hard for me—I think the lack of sunshine and the dryer temperatures make me sad and a little unmotivated. I went through a lull last week where I just wasn’t being as productive as I wanted. I’ve also gained some weight which might be because of these four pies that I made—but also just the lack of activity since the cooler weather has set in. Living in the city meant that I had to walk everywhere, which I loved doing. Living in suburbia kind of means that you have to drive everywhere in order to get somewhere in under 15 minutes. I miss having my little neighbourhood at Bathurst and St Clair where everything was in this circle around my apartment, the subway was 5 minutes away, and all my friends were a lot closer.
But as I’ve mentioned in many posts before, things change, people spread out, and you have to make the move that’s best for you. Eddie and I are looking around for places that are both close to our workplaces while also being close to friends, and it’s pretty hard when everything is so spread out. In the meantime, we’ll just keep ticking along, working, saving, driving out to see friends and bringing them extra pie.
To see how I made my pie with some extra technical baking tips, I did a video making some pie that I hope you’ll like! I am a little weird in it, I think I was just on a sugar high because I had a slice of pie before I started recording because I was too lazy to make anything else for breakfast hah.
Vegan Pumpkin Pie
Ingredients
- 2 cups pumpkin puree (canned works fine too but fresh tastes better)
- 1/2 cup white sugar (or dry sweetener of your choice)
- 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/4 cup melted coconut oil
- 1/4 cup soy milk (or whatever milk alternative you want)
- 1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 1/4 cup aquafaba (liquid from canned chickpeas—you can sub 1 flax egg instead)
- 1 batch of the BEST vegan pie crust
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk to combine pumpkin puree, white sugar, brown sugar, melted coconut oil, soy milk, pumpkin spice, corn starch, and aquafaba. Set aside.
- Lay your rolled out vegan pie crust onto a glass or dark metal pie pan. Crimp edges and use a fork to poke holes around the crust to prevent air bubbles.
- Transfer mixture to the pie shell and spread evenly.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes or until edges are lightly golden. Let cool completely** at room temperature and let set in the fridge overnight for best results.
Notes
*Ceramic pie pans won't yield best results as it does not distribute heat as quickly as metal or glass pie pans.
**Do not attempt to hasten the cooling process by putting pie in the fridge—this will create moisture puddle on top of your pie because science (condensation). It'll taste fine, but it'll look weird and have a wet top. It's weird. Just let it cool first =P
Thư Trang says
sorry but what is ” a wee dollop”?
Lisa Le says
It’s just a way of saying a spoonful =P
Taylor says
Just found a can of pumpkin puree in my cabinet and was trying to talk myself into making pumpkin pie when I saw this! Now I HAVE to make it–you make it look so easy! Btw love your lipstick in the video! :P what is it??
Lisa Le says
It’s definitely one of the easier pies out there! My lipstick is made by a company that I no longer want to support (some questionable ethical issues), but I’ve seen similar shades and results with the Anastasia Beverly Hills liquid lips :D
Greg Williams says
God this looks awesome, but everyone knows pecan pie is the true king of all pies. :D
Lisa Le says
Hahaha and that’s why I created vegan pecan pie last year!
Sarah says
Have you tried whipping the aquafaba first? Helpful or harmful to the intended texture?
Lisa Le says
I haven’t tried it no, but I imagine it would make the pie a lot lighter and fluffier :)
Amy says
I couldn’t help myself from trying it with whipped aquafaba. It’s pretty amazing. It turns the filling into a happy medium between the traditional custard-like filling, and moose. So a little lighter than custard, a little heavier than moose. Instead of mixing the aquafaba and sugar into the pumpkin mixture, I whipped the aquafaba separately until stiff peaks started to form, then I incorporated the sugar 1 tablespoon at a time until it was all incorporated. Then I folded it into the pumpkin mixture.
Lisa Le says
Oh wow that sounds LOVELY =O
jackie says
So I failed! Miserably followed the filling recipe and the pie would not firm up in the oven causing me to cook longer leading to a thick dark top brown over-cooked edges and still a runny center.
Lisa Le says
Hmm it sounds like the heat was too high. Do you find your oven runs hot? If so, lower the temp about 25-50F and bake for the time I mentioned. Sorry it failed for you! I just moved to a new place with an oven that runs super hot so I get it :(
Gabrielle Sharrard says
I can’t make the crust because I don’t something to weigh the ingredients. Will a store bought crust work fine? This recipe looks gorgeous and rich.
Lisa Le says
I think its around 3 heaping cups of flour if you can’t weigh it, and it’s about two of those buttery sticks from Earth Balance :) It’s a pretty forgiving recipe!
Odi V. says
Hi!! Just took my pie out of the oven. It looks and smells great!!! My only question is if it is supposed to be soft when it comes out and then will set or is it supposed to be way more set and firm when it comes out of the oven??
Lisa Le says
The centre might be a big jiggly when you pull it out, but all of it should be still soft-ish. Pumpkin pie is that way :) It does set a bit once cool though :)
Michael Acfalle says
Happy Vegan Thanksgiving!!! I tried another recipe today…and it FRIGGIN’ BOMBED AAAAGGGHHH! Guests were forgiving but NOT happy…AT ALL! Anyway, a sympathetic guest and fan of yours showed me your version on YouTube from her phone and said, “You’ll love her, she’s funnier than hell!”…and sho’nuf YOU ARE!!! Question, if I’m making 2 pies, which of the ingredients do I double? ~ Thank You!
Lisa Le says
Double everything except the pie crust :) Sorry I didn’t answer sooner.
Edith says
So I tried this recipe with aquafaba and it was delicious but I didn’t like how mushy the filling was. So I subbed it for veganegg and the filling held together like store bought pumpkin pie! Flavor was still amazing! You should try it! Love your recipes! Thank you so much!
Neysha says
How much of the vegan egg did you sub in your recipe ? Just the one? 1/4 cup?
Lisa Le says
Hi Neysha, I’d suggest using 1/4 cup worth of the mixed vegan egg (like water + powder combined).
Neysha says
Thanks!! I’ll bake two if them, just in case. That vegan egg replacer can be quite smelly. Thanks again for this awesome recipe! I hope to prove myself to my family :D
Donna Tecce says
What is veganegg????
JUdy says
Have you watched forks over knives or have you researched how unhealthy oil is?
Lisa Le says
I’m aware, but I don’t care.
Donna Tecce says
Love YOU
Katie @ Produce on Parade says
Is it too early for pie? Nope. Our leaves are falling here in Alaska, woot, woot! I made an apple pie this week already. But it was a gift… now I need one! This looks amazing, Lisa! #pieseason
Genesis says
Can I use a regular oil instead of coconut oil or can I sub with vegan butter?
Thanks xx
Lisa Le says
Hi Genesis, no the coconut oil helps set the filling. Vegan butter might have a similar effect, but regular oil will not set at room temp like coconut oil will.
Katie says
Holy cow, Lisa. This is absolutely perfect. I didn’t believe a vegan version of pumpkin pie could ever come close to the pumpkin pies I remember, but this recipe blew me away. It was decadent and perfectly spiced and everything I remember. Thank you so much for the recipe.
Kiana says
I’ve been making this recipe every year since 2018, even though I’m no longer vegan. It’s so good! My parents totally forget it’s vegan, and we all love it! I use your pie crust recipe to go with it, and it’s great.
Shae says
Hello! I tried your recipe this year and while the flavor was delicious the texture was awful! I’m trying to figure out where I went wrong but I’m still not sure. It never solidified and I baked it for probably 15-20 minutes more than the suggested time and also the coconut oil stayed in little balls throughout the pie that was a bit strange as well. I did notice that the warm melted coconut oil solidified when I added it to the other ingredients (pumpkin puree was straight from the refrigerator and so was my oat milk). I used a blender and was thinking it (the coconut oil) would melt and be fine once baked but when I let it cool and sit in the fridge over night it solidified again and separated or maybe was never fully mixed in the first place. Any ideas? I bought more ingredients to give it another go though because the flavor is spot on! Thank you for any advice you have!
Lisa Le says
Hi Shae! You want your coconut oil to be mixed very well into the mixture so that once it’s cooled, the solidified coconut oil will give your filling structure/firmness. I’d recommend letting your pumpkin puree and oat milk to sit out room temperature so that you give the warmed coconut oil a chance to mix in evenly without solidfying. Also I’ve noticed that folks have struggled with the texture of this pie if their aquafaba is too thin, so make sure that is reduced to a thicker liquid (kind of like raw egg white consistency) by reducing it over the stove for a bit.