Pumpkin Cream Pie With Coconut-Pecan Crust

I am having a hard time with the fact that Thanksgiving is upon us.  Having spent last weekend at what has become an annual Friendsgiving dinner celebration, as well as at a Thanksgiving brunch with some of my great coworkers (there were Thanksgiving carols involved. Yes, that’s right.), I’m a little more mentally prepared. I brought this pumpkin cream pie with coconut-pecan crust over to our Friendsgiving dinner, and let’s just say I hadn’t gotten all the kinks out yet.

It was my first go-round with this crust and the no-bake filling, and the end result was essentially pie soup with some type of nut underneath.  Of course on a day where we were supposed to be celebrating and giving thanks for the friends and relationships that make our day-to-days and month-to-months so worth it, I presented my friends with something that resembled dessert.  “Here, you guys mean so much to me, I’ve brought you what is supposed to be a pie but really looks and tastes nothing like one.”  I won’t even go into the abomination that were the vegan pumpkin cookies I attempted and brought over that night also.  Friendship, right?

What is amazing about these particular friends of mine is that they ate it right up anyway.  As with most of my baking trials and tribulations, I can count of them for honest and helpful feedback.  That is friendship.  Because who knows, without them, you too could be making pie soup thanks to me.

Rest assured, the kinks are now all out.  The coconut-pecan crust is a snap to assemble and it smells like those tantalizing nut carts you find on the streets of NYC.  The pie filling takes most of its prep time in the fridge and can be made the night before for a quicker holiday meal assembly.  Happy day of thanks, friends!

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Pumpkin Cream Pie With Coconut-Pecan Crust (gluten-free + vegan + refined sugar-free)

This Pumpkin Cream Pie with Coconut-Pecan Crust is gluten-free, vegan, and easy to prepare. Make the filling the night before for quicker assembly.

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour

Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes

Servings 8 -10 slices

Author Tessa Fisher

Ingredients

Coconut-Pecan Crust

• 2 cups whole pecans
• 1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• pinch of sea salt
• 1/4 cup coconut oil melted and cooled
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup (I prefer grade B)
• 1 tablespoon warm water
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Filling

• 2/3 cup organic coconut sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• pinch of ground cloves
• pinch of sea salt
• 2 tablespoons arrowroot starch cornstarch works here too
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 1 1/2 cup dairy-free milk of choice I used unsweetened almond milk
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Coconut Whipped Cream

• 1 can organic coconut milk full fat, refrigerated overnight.
• 1-2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a food processor, blend pecans and shredded coconut until you get a coarse meal.
• Transfer to a medium bowl, add cinnamon, baking soda, and salt, whisking to combine. Add coconut oil, maple syrup, water, and vanilla extract. Mix with a fork until evenly incorporated. With your hands, continue mixing a bit more, then transfer to a 9-inch pie pan. Press crust mixture into pan and up sides, evening edges.
• Bake for 12-14 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on wire rack.
• While the crust is baking and cooling, combine all the dry ingredients for the filling in a medium saucepan. Whisk to combine. Add pumpkin puree and whisk again. Slowly add dairy-free milk, stirring to combine.
• Heat saucepan over medium heat, stirring frequently to ensure coconut sugar dissolves. Keep at a low boil for 5 minutes, scraping sides with rubber spatula often. At about 5 minutes the filling mixture should have thickened, keep on heat an extra minute or two if it has not. Remove from heat and let cool for 10 minutes.
• Transfer filling to a glass bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, making sure wrap does touch surface to avoid a film forming. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
• To make coconut whipped cream, scoop the solid waxy part out of coconut milk can into a medium bowl. Add other two ingredients and whip with an electric mixer until you get soft peaks.
• Before assembling pie, carefully run a knife around the edges of the crust to loosen it. To assemble pie, pour filling into cooled crust. Spread coconut whipped cream on top of filling, leaving at least an inch of pumpkin filling visible around the perimeter.

Notes

Adapted and inspired by the Lemon Cream Pie from Nicole Spiridakis's Flourless.

Cook time include refrigeration time for pie filling.

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