Plant Based Pumpkin Pie

 With Thanksgiving around the corner, I've been experimenting with different recipes - seeking a great plant based pumpkin pie alternative. Following is my favorite -using cashew milk, aquafaba and coconut sugar as plant based alternatives.  

 

 

2 cups pureed pumpkin

1 cup coconut sugar

1 t. vanilla

1 Tablespoon fresh finely grated ginger

1/2 t. grated nutmeg

1/2 Tablespoon cinnamon

1/8 t. ground cloves

1 t. pumpkin pie spice

1/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup aquafaba (chickpea bean juice)

13.5 oz cashew milk (blend 1 cup cashews with 2.5 cups water in high powered blender, then measure out 13.5 oz)

Combine all ingredients except milk and aquafaba in a saucepan. Heat over medium while stirring until all ingredients are incorporated and mixture boils. Boil while stirring for 2 minutes. 

Remove from heat. 

Place cashew milk and aquafaba in bowl, mix. Gently pour into pumpkin mixture, whisking to incorporate. When smooth, pour mixture into prepared pie crust. 

Bake at 425* for 10 minutes, then 350* for 45 min.  Cover crust edges as needed with foil to prevent burning. 

Remove from oven and cool before serving. 

Whole Wheat, plant based Pie Crust

2-3 cups whole wheat flour

1 cup coconut cream

Salt (pinch)

1/2 t. baking powder

Mix flour, salt and baking powder then pour onto parchment paper. 

Add coconut cream and cut in with a pastry blender until it resembles coarse pebbles

Gently gather flour mixture into a mound, then cover with parchment paper and smooth out using a rolling pin. 

Turn parchment paper into opposite direction and once again gather mixture into the middle and smooth out again. Add a few teaspoons of water (one at a time as needed). 

Continue to gather, and turn approx 5-7 times until the mixture becomes a homogeneous thin crust. Be gentle and limit over-mixing. It will be crumbly. 

Use parchment paper to transfer crust into pie pan and fill in where needed. 

Pumpkin pie from scratch

After I've processed my pumpkins in the fall, I use them for various recipes. While pureed pumpkin is definitely different from the store bought canned pumpkin, here's a fantastic pie recipe, using your own pumpkin. While this was initially an original experiment, my husband called this 'delightful' (high praise from a man of few words) and was very interested to find out what I'd done differently as the end result was so much smoother and creamier than normal grainy pumpkin pie.


4 c. cooked and blended pumpkin
2 c. sugar
2 T. fresh finely grated ginger
1 t. grated nutmeg
1 T. cinnamon
1/4 t. ground cloves
1/2 t. vanilla
1/2 c. flour
6 eggs
1 can evaporated milk

2 uncooked pie crusts

Heat oven to 425*.
In a medium saucepan heat pumpkin, ginger, spices and flour. Once this reaches a boiling point, lower heat to medium and add vanilla.

In a small bowl, whisk eggs and milk together. Take 1 c. of pumpkin mixture and quickly incorporate into egg mixture, briskly mixing all the time so that the eggs don't cook and curdle. Add egg mixture to pumpkin mixture in pan, whisking briskly to incorporate. Continue to heat and stir until just before mixture comes to a boil. Turn off heat and allow to cool for 15 minutes.

Pour into two uncooked pie crusts and bake at 425* for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350* and continue to cook for an additional 45-50 minutes.