This is the BEST vegan pumpkin pie recipe made with simple ingredients and easy homemade pie crust! It’s rich, creamy, flavorful and perfect to make ahead for a delicious no-fuss fall dessert that is even healthy!
Best Vegan Pumpkin Pie Recipe
Pumpkin Pie is a very popular American dessert, and even though we do not serve it traditionally here in Germany, I am a very big fan of this cake too! Since traditional Pumpkin Pie is made with sweetened condensed milk and eggs, I made my vegan version healthier using coconut milk and just cornstarch instead of regular eggs! It’s not super sweet but perfectly sweet, made with a simple crisp sugar-free pie crust and a wonderfully creamy pumpkin filling that reminds of creamy pudding or cheesecake but it’s even healthy!
Since it’s Thanksgiving coming up I received many requests for vegan pumpkin pie recipe because it’s perfect for any Christmas celebrations in fall and winter! Anyway, I find this is not only the perfect treat for occasions but also for any other day!
Healthy Vegan Pumpkin Pie
What is super amazing about pumpkin pie is that it contains less sugar and “healthier” ingredients than most pies like chocolate or banana cream pie. The filling is basically just made of coconut milk, pumpkin pie spice, much pumpkin purée (yay veggies!), and cornstarch as an egg substitute and thickener. I’ve also added a bit of vegan cream cheese to make the pumpkin pie creamier and more cheesecake-like but that’s just an optional ingredient. To sweeten the pie, I used a combination of maple syrup and sugar but you could also use brown sugar or coconut sugar instead.
How to make Vegan Pumpkin Pie from scratch
Step 1: Homemade Pie Crust
You can either use a store-bought pie crust but I suggest making your own with this super easy vegan recipe! To make a homemade pie crust you need only 3 ingredients – It’s flour, cold vegan butter or coconut oil, a pinch of salt and water. Just mix everything with your hands to form a smooth dough or use a food processor. Then form the dough into a disc, wrap in foil and refrigerate for 30 minutes to firm it up. I suggest not skipping the chilling time or the dough will be too sticky and difficult to roll out.
Once the dough has chilled roll it out on a lightly floured sheet of parchment, then transfer to your pie or tart pan. Fold the overhanging dough under itself, and crimp the edges as desired. Then prick the bottom of the crust a few times with a fork.
Blind bake the crust (optional step)
To keep it simpler you can just fill up the unbaked pie crust and bake it, but for a crispier (less soggy) result I suggest to pre-bake (blind bake) it. Line the prepared pie crust with parchment paper, then fill it with pie weights, such as dried rice, chickpeas or beans. Bake until the edges are lightly golden, about 15 minutes.
Step 2: Homemade Vegan Pumpkin Pie filling
While your crust bakes, mix together the pumpkin pie filling. All you need to do is beat the ingredients with an electric mixer until smooth. Then pour it into your pre-baked crust and bake your pie. Once done baking, make sure to let the pie cool completely because it will firm up as it cools like vegan cheesecake.
Perfect make-ahead recipe
Pumpkin pie is one of those recipes you can easily make a day or two ahead. You can prepare the crust and the filling in advance, refrigerate them separately, and then bake it the next day. Once baked let come to room temperature. Then refrigerate overnight so the pie has time to set before adding desired toppings.
Toppings for Pumpkin Pie
I love to serve Pumpkin Pie with fluffy whipped non-dairy or coconut cream! And since the pumpkin pie is not super sweet I also like to add some sugared cranberries as “healthier candy’s” on top. Anyway, you can really get creative with the toppings. Fresh fruit like pomegranate, a scoop of vegan vanilla ice cream or caramel sauce makes a delicious topping as well!
This Best Easy Vegan Pumpkin Pie is
- Egg-free
- Dairy-free
- Can be made gluten-free
- Creamy
- Moist
- Rich in pumpkin spice flavor
- Tastes like traditional pumpkin pie
- Perfect for holidays
- So delicious!
Canned pumpkin purée or homemade?
Canned pumpkin purée is quick and easy to use and has the perfect consistency to make this pie filling recipe! But if you’re anything like me and want to use homemade pumpkin puree, make sure it is pretty thick and not too watery. I get always perfect results when roasting a Hokkaido pumpkin “Red Kuri squash” because the flesh is pretty thick when cooked in the oven as you can see in this recipe. But also sugar pie pumpkin is a good choice.
Can I substitute the coconut milk?
The secret ingredient to making the vegan filling incredibly creamy and silky smooth is using full-fat coconut milk. It’s rich, thick, creamy, and makes the best texture for vegan pumpkin pie! But if you can’t eat coconut you can substitute another non-dairy milk. However, I suggest using a non-dairy milk that is high in fat or the pie won’t be as rich.
How to store and freeze pumpkin pie
This pie will keep for 3 to 4 days when stored covered in the fridge. You can also wrap it in several layers of foil to ensure it is tightly sealed, then freeze it for up to 1 month. To thaw, remove the pumpkin pie from the freezer and keep it in the fridge 10-12 hours. Please do not thaw it at room temperature or the filling may weep, resulting in a soggy crust.
For more easy vegan pie recipes, make sure to check out the following:
If you try this Best Vegan Pumpkin Pie Recipe be sure to leave a comment and rating letting me know how it turns out! Your feedback is always super helpful for me and other readers who are planning to try the recipe. And if you take a photo of your pie or tart, please make sure to tag me on Instagram @biancazapatka #biancazapatka because I love seeing your remakes! Happy baking!
Best Vegan Pumpkin Pie
Author:You do not have a fitting cake pan at hand right now? Try my Cake Pan Conversion Calculator!
Ingredients
Homemade Pie Crust
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 190g, or sub gluten-free flour blend
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2/3 cup vegan butter 80g, chilled & cut into small pieces
- 4 tbsp cold water
- 2 tbsp non-dairy cream optional to brush the edges for shiny golden color
Vegan Pumpkin Pie Filling
- 1 15 oz can pumpkin purée or 2 1/2 cups homemade pumpkin puree* (425g)
- 1/4 cup maple syrup or sub more sugar
- 1/3 cup sugar of your choice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup full-fat canned coconut milk *see recipe notes
- 1/2 cup vegan cream cheese 125g, optional
- 3 tsp pumpkin spice *see recipe notes
- 1/4 cup cornstarch 30g
Instructions
Homemade Pie Crust
- To a mixing bowl, add the flour, salt, cold cubed vegan butter, and water. Knead everything together with your hands until a smooth dough forms (or use a food processor). Then form the dough into a disc, wrap in foil and refrigerate for 30 minutes to firm it up. (See step-by-step photos in this blog post).
- Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C).
- Once the dough has chilled roll it out on a lightly floured sheet of parchment, then transfer to a 8- or 9-Inch pie pan and gently press to fit. Fold the overhanging dough under itself, and crimp the edges as shown in the step-by-step photos above. Brush the edges with a little non-dairy cream for shiny color (optional).
- Prick the bottom of the crust a few times with a fork. Line the inside with a sheet of parchment paper, then fill it with pie weights, such as rice, dried beans, or chickpeas. Bake until the edges are lightly golden, about 15 minutes.
Vegan Pumpkin Pie Filling
- Add the pumpkin purée, maple syrup, sugar, coconut milk, vegan cream cheese (if using), vanilla, salt, pumpkin pie spice, and cornstarch to a large mixing bowl and blend with an electric hand mixer until smooth and creamy.
- Pour the pumpkin mixture into the warm pre-baked crust, smoothing out evenly.
- Return the pie into the oven and lower the temperature to 355°F (180°C). Bake until the center is almost set, about 50-60 minutes.
- Once done, let come to room temperature, then chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours (or overnight until completely set). Serve with whipped non-dairy cream or coconut cream and decorate with sugared cranberries, pomegranate or other toppings you like. Enjoy!
Notes
- Pumpkin pie spice mix: 2 tsp cinnamon + 1/2 tsp ground ginger + 1/4 tsp nutmeg + 1/4 tsp cloves.
- Pie Crust: You can use store-bought pie crust instead of homemade crust.
- Blind baking: For a crispier result I suggest pre-baking the crust as instructed but you could also skip it. Just add the pumpkin filling into the unbaked pie crust and bake it at 400°F for 15 minutes, then lower the temperature to 355°F and bake until the center is almost set, about 45 minutes.
- Pumpkin purée: If using homemade pumpkin puree, make sure it has a similar consistency to canned purée (see blog post for details).
- Coconut milk: You can substitute another non-dairy milk. Just make sure it is thick and high in fat or the pie won’t be as creamy.
- Cream Cheese: It's just an optional ingredient to make the filling creamier but the pie will be also delicious if you skip it.
- The preparation time does not include the chill time for the pie crust.
- Please read my blog post for make-ahead & freezing instructions or further information about this recipe.
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After making this pie for the 4th time, I just had to let you know how much we love it! Super easy to make and always turns out great. Even my non-vegan and pumpkin hating (I know, how?) husband likes this pie :D, as well as my non-vegan friends. I’ve made it both with and without the vegan cream cheese and both versions are good. Your toppings make it look so pretty though, will try that next time.
That’s awesome! 🙂
I am glad everyone loves it! ♡
Many thanks, Bianca!
Such a perfect recipe! Easy ingredients. I didn’t have a mixer and it worked out perfectly.
So glad it tunred out perfectly! Thanks 🙂
Thank you so much for this recipe!!!! I baked it this morning and can attest to the other comments; I’ve never had pumpkin pie this delicious. The vegan pumpkin pie from Whole Foods really let me down a few years ago so I just assumed I’d never have good pumpkin pie again. You’ve opened up a new world of possibilities for me:) I made your chocolate banana bread just last week and that was spectacular, as well.
I am so happy that you loved this vegan pumpkin pie and my banana bread as well!
Thanks for your great feedback! 🙂
Much love, Bianca <3
Pumpkin Pie is a staple in my house at Halloween. Once Jack has lit the way for the children, he comes inside to be cooked, puréed and baked into something delicious.. and this recipe definitely fit. It’s rich, creamy and perfectly spiced. I was worried the amount of coconut milk would leave a coconut taste but it didn’t. I also highly suggest blind baking the pastry. I didn’t with mine and it was a little tough – though still bliss 👌🏻🥰✨
So glad you loved this recipe! Thank you! 🙂
Prebaking the crust makes it a lot crispier! 😉
I made this recipe yesterday. I ended up using a larger can of purée which lead to baking two pies instead of one! WOW this was the best pie recipe ever!! Absolutely loved it. Cooking time was 60 minutes in Oven for each pie. I was a little eager to try it after 2 hours of chilling the first pie… so I cut into it. Would definitely recommend waiting the full 4 hours as per Bianca’s instructions because it did run a little bit. After cutting into it after leaving in the fridge over night, it was absolutely perfect!
I will continue using this recipe for thanksgiving and Christmas as my whole family’s favourite pie is Pumpkin!
Thank you Bianca for the amazing recipe!! Can’t wait to try more of your recipes 🥰❤️🥰
Thank you so much for your amazing feedback, Brittany!
So glad you’ll make this pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving and Christmas, too! 🙂
Much love,
Bianca ♡
First time making pumpkin pie and was pleased with how it came out 🙂 Not too sweet (yay!); It came out brown, probably bc I used coconut sugar, but tastes better than any store bought pie I’ve ever had. Love that I can eat this during the holidays guilt free!! Foolproof recipe, I’d definitely make this again.
Yes, coconut sugar creates a darker color! 😀
But so glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Thank you!
Much love,
Bianca ♡
First time I’ve tried to bake a pumpkin pie. And I loved how easy to make and delicious it was. I will for sure do it again. I froze some slices and even defrosted, it still was yummy. The longer you leave the pie in the fridge before you eat it, the better. 😋
So glad you love this vegan pumpkin pie so much! Thank you for your amazing feedback! 🙂
Best vegan Pumpkin Pie ! So easy to make, so creamy, so delicious .. it was the first time I made a pumpkin pie but definitely not the last ! Thank you for this lovely easy recipe It is perfect for the end of the year 😊
Hi Charlyne, so glad you enjoyed this pumpkin pie! Thank you for your amazing feedback! Lots of love, Bianca 🙂
USA
I would like to know if I could substitute sweet potato for the pumpkin in this recipe. Also if arrow root can be used in place of cornstarch.
This pie looks wonderful.
Hi Tina, yes, you can substitute sweet potato for pumpkin! Also, arrowroot is fine! 🙂 I suggest adding some pecans on top + drizzle of maple syrup if you turn this recipe into a sweet potato pie. I totally love that combination with sweet potato and pecans! Have fun trying! <3
This pie was awesome. I swapped pumpkin for sweet potatoes and followed the recipe as written. It was amazing. I topped with toasted maple and bourbon pecans. This is on my Thanksgiving menu.
Now if you could do a recipe for Pecan Pie I’ll be in pie heaven!
Yay, that’s amazing! So glad you tried a sweet potato version! 😛
Pumpkin pie sounds amazing, too. Will definitely make one soon! 🙂
Thank you so much! 🙂
Hi Bianca! Quick question, my family isn’t vegan and I kind of want to “trick” them with this recipe! I think it will work it looks delicious! But, what kind of non-dairy cream do you use? Thank you!
Hi there, I buy vegan cream cheese here in Germany so I think this one I use is not available where you live. Where are you based exactly?
This is the prettiest pumpkin pie I’ve seen! Love all the colourful toppings you’ve used Bianca!
Awwww, thank you so much, Anna! So glad you like my pumpkin pie! I hope you’ll try the recipe! Lots of love, Bianca 🙂
Your pumpkin pie looks beautiful! I love the various toppings and the homemade pie crust. Such a great idea to add vegan cream cheese in addition! 🙂
Thank you so much, Ela! I hope you’ll try the recipe soon! 🙂
I love your pumpkin pie photos! The step by step of the crust is super helpful, and you’ve created such a pretty and perfect design for the crust. Love using coconut milk in my pie and tart fillings – so rich and creamy!
Hi Nisha, so glad you like these photos with the step-by-step instruction! Thank you so much for your comment! I really appreciate it! Lots of love, Bianca 🙂