We make this vegan pumpkin pie with real pumpkin every year. As soon as the last rays of summer's sunshine have dwindled away, we start dreaming of all things pumpkin spice, and of course, vegan pumpkin pie is top of the list.
Followed very closely by a pumpkin spiced latte, because nothing says 'Autumn' (or Fall for our American readers!) like a pure pumpkin spiced latte does.
Vegan pumpkin pie with real pumpkin
We're all for convenience food, and canned pumpkin is great for saving time, but we choose to make our own pumpkin puree for three reasons, because it's:
- Fresh
- In season
- Cheaper than canned
In the UK, pumpkins cost around £2 and a can of pumpkin puree is around £1.65. This recipe would need at least three cans of pumpkin puree, should you decide to use canned instead.
How to make pumpkin puree
OK, making your own pumpkin puree is easy! All you need is a baking tray, time and a blender. We don't add any preservatives because we make use of the puree straight away. Just peel and chop the pumpkin into two inch chunks, bake in the oven for around 45 minutes, blend in a high-speed blender and voilà – you've got homemade pumpkin puree!
Even though it would be a lot quicker to use canned pumpkin, we really like the feeling of accomplishment that making your own brings!
Having said that, if you're short of time, there's absolutely nothing wrong with canned pumpkin puree. Using it will knock an hour off the cooking time for this recipe.
It's widely available at the supermarket – especially in America. We've even seen it in Tesco and Waitrose in the UK (true at time of writing), but it may only be in stock for the season, rather than all year round.
What you'll need to make this vegan pumpkin pie recipe:
- A pie dish – 26 x 3.5cm (10 x 1.4')
- Mixing bowl
- Wooden spoon
- High power blender (if you're making your own puree)
Here's a video we made in conjunction with vegan energy company, Ecotricity. Do you like having a video to follow? Let us know in the comments and we might make more!
Ingredients
- 1.5 kg pumpkin or three tins of pumpkin puree
- ⅓ cup maple syrup
- ¾ cup coconut sugar
- 1 tbsp vegan butter
- ¼ cup coconut cream
- 3 tbsp cornflour
- 2 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 3 tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- ½ tsp nutmeg
- A pinch of ground cloves
- 750 g short crust pastry
Instructions
- Get the pastry out of the fridge - it's will be easier to work with at room temperature.750 g short crust pastry
- Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 6/200c.
- Peel the pumpkin and chop into two inch chunks.1.5 kg pumpkin
- Put on a baking tray and roast for 45 minutes (or until soft).
- Blend the baked pumpkin up into a puree.
- Turn the oven down to gas mark 5/190c.
- Roll out the pastry and sit it in the pie dish (26cm diameter dish) - create a crimp around the edges, but leave enough pastry over the edges, to stop it from shrivelling up too much.
- In a big bowl, mix together the pumpkin puree, coconut cream, coconut sugar, vegan butter, vanilla extract and all the spices.¾ cup coconut sugar, 1 tbsp vegan butter, ¼ cup coconut cream, 2 ½ tsp vanilla extract, 3 tsp cinnamon, ½ tsp ground ginger, ½ tsp nutmeg, A pinch of ground cloves
- Mix together the maple syrup and the cornflour until all the cornflour absorbs into the maple and forms a thick creamy paste.⅓ cup maple syrup, 3 tbsp cornflour
- Add the maple cornflour mixture to the pumpkin puree and stir until combined.
- Pour the pumpkin mix into the pastry in the pie dish.
- Bake for 45 minutes - check after 30 minutes, if the edges are browning, cover the edges with tinfoil to stop it burning.
- Let the pumpkin pie cool on a wire rack, then put in the fridge overnight (8-12 hours) for it to set. This is a really important step, otherwise it will be too soft to serve!
- Once you've let the pie set in the fridge serve with oat or coconut cream and enjoy.
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