This vegan pumpkin pie recipe is easy to make with 8 ingredients! With a rich, creamy filling and flaky crust, it's a delicious Thanksgiving dessert.
I’m making this vegan pumpkin pie recipe for Thanksgiving this year, and I already can’t wait. I’ll never turn down a slice of pumpkin pie—it’s been my favorite Thanksgiving dessert since I was a kid. But this vegan pumpkin pie recipe takes the classic dessert to another level. The pumpkin filling has an amazing creamy texture and rich, spiced flavor. It contrasts perfectly with the crisp, flaky crust. Tasting it, you’d never guess that it’s made without dairy or eggs.
This vegan pumpkin pie recipe is easy to make with 8 simple ingredients. It needs to chill after baking, so it’s a great dish to make ahead for your holiday meal. Serve slices plain or with a dollop of vegan whipped cream on top. This vegan pumpkin pie is delicious either way!
How to Make Vegan Pumpkin Pie
This vegan pumpkin pie is easy to make! You can find the complete recipe with measurements at the bottom of this post, but for now, here’s an overview of how it goes:
Ingredients
The recipe starts with 8 basic ingredients:
- Canned pumpkin puree – Make sure to get pure pumpkin puree for this pie, NOT pumpkin pie filling that already contains sugar and spices. I call for 3 cups here. If you buy two cans, you’ll have about 1/2 cup leftover. Stir it into overnight oats or use it in these pumpkin pancakes!
- Coconut cream – This canned coconut product has a higher fat content than light or full-fat coconut milk. Don’t worry—it doesn’t make the pie taste like coconut. Instead, it makes the filling rich and creamy.
- Brown sugar – For sweetness. Light and dark both work well here! Dark brown sugar will give the pie a darker color and deeper molasses flavor.
- Cornstarch – It helps the pie set up so that it’s firm and sliceable.
- Pumpkin pie spice and vanilla extract – For warm depth of flavor. If you don’t have pumpkin pie spice handy, replace it with 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1 teaspoon ground ginger, and a heaping 1/4 teaspoon each of nutmeg, allspice, and cloves.
- Sea salt – To make all the flavors pop!
- And a vegan pie crust – My 4-ingredient vegan pie crust is fantastic here! If you want to streamline this recipe, feel free to use your favorite store-bought pie crust.
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
Preparation
If you’re making your own pie crust, that will be your first step. My vegan pie dough needs to chill for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator before you roll it out, so make sure to plan ahead.
Once the dough has chilled, roll it out on a lightly floured surface and transfer it to a 9- or 9.5-inch pie pan. Crimp the edges, tent it with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap, and chill for 30 minutes while you prepare the filling.
- Tip:Â Find my best pie crust tips in the vegan pie crust blog post!
One of the reasons that this vegan pumpkin pie is SO delicious is that the filling comes together in the blender. Blending gives it an amazing smooth and creamy texture!
To make the filling, place the pumpkin puree, coconut cream, brown sugar, cornstarch, pumpkin spice, vanilla, and salt in a blender. Blend until smooth.
Next, assemble the pie. Pour the filling into the chilled pie crust, and use a spatula to smooth the top.
Then, bake. Place the pie on a baking sheet. Bake on a low oven rack in a 350°F oven for about an hour, until the crust is golden brown and cracks form in the filling. The middle of the filling will still look jiggly. That’s ok!
Finally, let the pie set up. Allow it to cool to room temperature before covering it with foil or a kitchen towel and transferring it to the fridge. Chill for at least 4 hours or overnight before slicing and serving. Enjoy!
Vegan Pumpkin Pie Recipe Tips
- The size of your pie plate matters. When I was developing this recipe, I wanted the slices to be nice and thick, with plenty of creamy pumpkin filling. It will fill a 9-inch pie dish right up to the top, and it fits nicely in a 9.5-inch pan too. If you’re using a smaller 8.75-inch pan, you may want to reserve about 1/2 cup of the filling. Bake it in a glass ramekin next to the pie for 20 to 25 minutes for a single-serving treat!
- Pumpkin puree varies. I’ve tested this recipe with 4 brands of pumpkin puree: Libby’s, 365 Pumpkin Puree, Kroger, and Farmer’s Market Foods. The pie turned out well with all of them! However, the filling’s consistency varied before baking. When I made this recipe with Libby’s, 365, and Kroger pumpkin, it was very thick. With the Farmer’s Market Foods pumpkin (pictured here), it was far more liquidy. Don’t be alarmed if your filling doesn’t look exactly like the one in the picture after you blend it up!
- Check your coconut cream. This recipe calls for a 13.5-fluid-ounce can. Some brands (i.e., Thai Kitchen) come in 13.66-fluid-ounce cans. If your can is 13.66 fluid ounces, discard 3 tablespoons of the watery liquid at the bottom of the can before adding the coconut cream to the blender.
- Bake the pie on a low oven rack. The hottest zone of most ovens is near the bottom. Baking the pie on a low oven rack helps the bottom crust cook through without a blind bake.
- Don’t skip the chill. It’s ESSENTIAL for helping this vegan pumpkin pie set up. Allow the pie to cool to room temperature. Then, cover and chill it for at least 4 hours or overnight before slicing and serving.
How to Store
This vegan pumpkin pie recipe is great for making ahead! Cover and store the baked pie in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
More Vegan Thanksgiving Recipes
If you love this vegan pumpkin pie, try one of these vegan Thanksgiving recipes next:
- Mushroom Gravy
- Cranberry Sauce
- Sweet Potato Casserole
- Roasted Vegetables
- Balsamic Brussels Sprouts
- Green Beans Almondine
- Homemade Dinner Rolls
- Or any of these 40 Vegan Thanksgiving Recipes!
Vegan Pumpkin Pie
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 Vegan Pie Crust*
- 3 cups canned pumpkin puree
- 1 (13.5-fluid-ounce) can coconut cream, solids and liquid
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- Vegan whipped cream, or Coconut Whipped Cream, for serving
Instructions
- Up to 2 days and at least 2 hours ahead, prepare the vegan pie crust according to this recipe.* Follow the instructions in the recipe to roll out the dough for one crust, then transfer it to a 9- or 9.5-inch pie plate and crimp the edges. Tent the crust with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Position a rack in the lower third of the oven.
- In a blender, place the pumpkin puree, coconut cream, brown sugar, cornstarch, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla, and salt. Blend until smooth, working in batches as necessary.
- Pour the filling into the chilled pie crust and use a spatula to smooth the top. Place on a baking sheet, then transfer to the low oven rack. Bake for 55 to 70 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and cracks form in the filling. It will still be jiggly in the center.
- Allow to cool completely, then cover and chill for 4 hours or overnight.
- Slice and serve with vegan whipped cream.
I made this for Thanksgiving this year and it was wonderful. The crust was perfect even though I worried that without blind baking it might be soggy but it was not at all. I made a couple of slight changes to the filling–1) I only had 1 can of pumpkin puree (my mistake for not reading the recipe before I shopped) but I quickly microwaved a sweet potato and that made up the rest of the 3 cup measure. 2) I don’t like very sweet desserts so I used 1/2 brown sugar and that amount was perfect for us.
I also was not able to chill the pie for the recommended 4 hours. By the time it cooled (which took a long time), we chilled it for maybe 2 hours, but the consistency was great. I don’t know if it was the sweet potato that made it firmer or the fact that I baked it at least 75 or 80 mins, but is was absolutely perfect. I will definitely make this again.
What type of pan do you recommend baking it in? Ceramic or metal?
Hi Lara, we like glass pyrex best because you can see the sides and bottom of the crust to make sure it’s cooked through.
Would arrowroot work as a substitute for cornstarch?
Hi Ellen, I think it would but we haven’t tried it.