This is the best vegan pumpkin pie ever and the only recipe you’ll ever need! It’s rich, creamy, deliciously spiced and perfect for the holidays.
This vegan pumpkin pie is seriously delicious. It’s perfectly sweet, loaded with fall spices and flavors and absolutely NO ONE would be able to guess that it’s vegan.
It’s also the easiest pie you’ll ever make, especially if you use a store-bought pie crust. It’s as simple as adding your ingredients to a blender, blending it, pouring it out into your pie crust, baking it, cooling it and voilà!
Of course if you want to make your pie crust from scratch then we’ve got you covered with that too.
This pie is heaps of fun to make, comes out perfectly every time and is the perfect Thanksgiving pie.
And if you love some delicious vegan holiday pies, then check out our vegan sweet potato pie and our vegan apple pie too.
How To Make Vegan Pumpkin Pie
You will find full instructions and measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is a summary of the process to go along with the process photos.
The Crust:
- Add all purpose flour, sugar and salt to the food processor and pulse to combine.
- Now add coconut oil (must be solid, not melted) and pulse until the mixture is crumbly.
- Add ice water and pulse it to combine. It should look like a dough now and if you break off a piece and roll it in your hands it should easily roll into a ball.
- Remove the dough from the food processor, transfer to a floured surface and roll the dough into a big round ball.
- Using a rolling pin roll out the dough from side to side into a large circle that is wider than your 9-inch pie dish.
- Spray your pie dish with non-stick spray and then roll up the crust in your rolling pin (or just pick it up carefully) and carefully unroll it over the top of your pie dish. Carefully tuck the crust in along the edges of your pie dish.
- Take a scissors and trim off any excess dough but make sure that there is a little overhang over the edges of the dish.
- Place your pie crust into the fridge while you prepare your pie filling.
The Filling:
- Add canned pumpkin, coconut milk, brown sugar, maple syrup, cornstarch, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla extract and salt to your blender and blend until smooth. If you don’t have a blender, then just add all ingredients to a mixing bowl and use a hand whisk to whisk it until smooth.
- Pour this out over your pie crust and smooth down with the back of a spoon.
- Place into the oven to bake for 60 minutes at 350°F.
- Allow to cool on the counter until it reaches room temperature and then place into the fridge for at least 4 hours or overnight until set.
- Serve with vegan whipped cream.
Recipe Tips
THE PIE CRUST: The pie crust is made with coconut oil. The recipe is from our vegan pie crust recipe and works wonderfully as an easy, homemade option.
If you prefer a buttery crust: Check out the crust from our vegan apple pie that is made with vegan butter. If you’re using that pie crust then you can halve the recipe as the apple pie crust makes a double crust (top and bottom).
Alternatively, if you want to save time in this recipe, you can use a store-bought unbaked 9-inch pie crust.
TENTING WITH FOIL: We find it useful to tent the pie with foil after 40 minutes of baking and then place it back into the oven to bake for the final 20 minutes. This prevents the pie from over-browning. Sometimes the full 60 minutes baking time can result in some uneven browning on top of the pie and over-browning of the crust. If you have a pie crust shield then you can use that instead which will prevent the crust from over-browning. However, you may still have some uneven browning on top of your pie.
BROWNING: In these photos, we tented the pie with foil at the 40 minute mark. You can see that the browning is nice and even on top. Nonetheless, the pie when it first comes out of the oven is very dark in color, but it lightens as it cools.
In our video we didn’t tent the pie with foil and you’ll notice there is some uneven browning on top of the pie when it comes out of the oven. However, it also lightens up as it cools.
TIP: The best thing is to tent the pie with foil after 40 minutes of baking (or use a pie crust shield), or your pie crust may be over-browned.
How To Tent With Foil
Tenting with foil is to loosely cover the pie with foil in a tent like shape so that it doesn’t press down on the pie from the top. It prevents the pie and the crust from over-browning while allowing it to bake for the full 60 minutes, so that it bakes through and sets perfectly.
Ingredient Tips and Substitutions
Pumpkin Purée: The easiest option is to use canned pumpkin purée. It must be plain pumpkin purée and not pumpkin pie filling.
You can also use fresh homemade pumpkin purée. We have tested it with this recipe and it works perfectly. It’s just important that you make sure your pumpkin purée isn’t too wet. It must be similar in consistency to what you would get in a can. The best way to do this is to place peeled and chopped pumpkin onto a parchment lined baking tray. Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes (no oil or spices) until soft and cooked. Let it cool and then add to the food processor and process into a purée. Let the purée stand in a strainer over a bowl and let any excess water drain off before using.
Coconut Milk: This must be canned, full fat, unsweetened coconut milk. It needs to be thick and creamy so that your pie will be the right consistency. There is no coconut flavor in the end result. If you switch this for a thinner non-dairy milk such as almond milk then your pie may be too thin and won’t set properly.
Brown Sugar: You can also use coconut sugar if you like. The sugar can also be slightly reduced if you prefer.
Maple Syrup: You can switch this with a different kind of syrup if you like. Or you can just replace it with extra brown sugar.
Cornstarch: This helps the pie to set so it is a crucial ingredient. You can possibly also use tapioca starch but you may need to use double the amount. Arrowroot (in the same quantity as cornstarch) will likely also work.
Pumpkin pie spice: I used my super awesome homemade pumpkin pie spice in this pie. You can also make your own or use a store-bought option, it will be the same either way.
Pumpkin Pie Q&A
How long should I let my pumpkin pie cool?
Let it cool on the counter until it reaches room temperature. Then transfer to the fridge for at least 4 hours or overnight.
Can I use fresh pumpkin purée instead of canned?
Yes you can! You just need to make sure that your freshly made pumpkin purée isn’t too wet. It should be the same consistency as what you will find in a can. To achieve this, let your homemade pumpkin purée stand in a strainer so any excess water can drain off.
Can I make it gluten-free?
The filling for this pie is already gluten-free, so to make an entirely gluten-free pie you’ll just need to use a gluten-free pie crust. You can either purchase an already made gluten-free unbaked pie crust, or you can make your own. This recipe from Detoxinista looks awesome.
Make Ahead, Storing and Freezing
Make Ahead: This is a perfect pie to make ahead of time. It needs a few hours to chill and set in the fridge anyway and overnight is even better. So if you make the whole pie the day before, then you can simply store it in the fridge. When you’re ready, add vegan whipped cream and serve.
Storing: Keep your pie stored in the fridge (covered) where it will keep for up to a week.
Freezing: It is also freezer friendly for up to 3 months. Let it cool completely and chill/firm up in the fridge as usual. Then wrap it in several layers of plastic wrap, followed by foil to prevent any freezer burn and freeze. Thaw overnight in the fridge.
More Vegan Pumpkin Recipes
- Vegan Pumpkin Cake
- Vegan Pumpkin Muffins
- Vegan Pumpkin Bread
- Vegan Pumpkin Pancakes
- Vegan Pumpkin Cookies
- Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake
Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below!
Vegan Pumpkin Pie
Ingredients
For the Pie Crust:
- 1 cup + 2 Tablespoons All Purpose Flour (145g)
- 1 Tablespoon White Granulated Sugar
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ¼ cup Coconut Oil (55g) Solid
- 4 Tablespoons Ice Water
For the Filling:
- 15 ounce Can Pumpkin Purée (425g) not pumpkin pie filling*
- ¾ cup Coconut Milk (180ml) Canned, Full Fat, Unsweetened
- ¾ cup Light Brown Sugar (150g)
- ¼ cup Maple Syrup (60ml)
- ¼ cup Cornstarch (32g)
- 3 teaspoons Pumpkin Pie Spice
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- ½ teaspoon Salt
For Serving:
Instructions
- Prepare the crust: Add all purpose flour, sugar and salt to the food processor and pulse to combine.
- Add the coconut oil (must be solid, not melted) and pulse until the mixture is crumbly.
- Add ice water and pulse it to combine. It should look like a dough now and if you break off a piece and roll it in your hands it should easily roll into a ball.
- Remove the dough from the food processor, transfer to a floured surface and roll the dough into a big round ball.
- Using a rolling pin roll out the dough from side to side into a large circle that is wider than your 9-inch pie dish.
- Spray your pie dish with non-stick spray and then roll up the crust in your rolling pin (or just pick it up carefully) and carefully unroll it over the top of your pie dish. Carefully tuck the crust in along the edges of your pie dish.
- Take a scissors and trim off any excess dough but make sure that there is a little overhang over the edges of the dish. Place your pie crust into the fridge while you prepare your pie filling.
- Prepare your filling: Add canned pumpkin, coconut milk, brown sugar, maple syrup, cornstarch, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla extract and salt to your blender and blend until smooth. If you don't have a blender, then just add all ingredients to a mixing bowl and use a hand whisk to whisk it until smooth.
- Pour this out over your pie crust and smooth down with the back of a spoon.
- Place into the oven to bake for 60 minutes at 350°F. To prevent over-browning, bring it out after 40 minutes, tent it with foil and then return to the oven for the remaining 20 minutes (*see notes).
- When you remove the pie from the oven, it will still be quite wobbly in the center, this is completely fine, it will firm up when cooling. Your pie may also be quite dark in color when first removed from the oven, it lightens up a lot when cool.
- Allow to cool on the counter and then place into the refrigerator to set completely, around 4 hours at least or overnight if possible until completely chilled and set. Serve with vegan whipped cream.
Video
Notes
- Pie Crust: You can use a store-bought 9-inch unbaked pie crust instead of making a crust from scratch if you want to save time on this recipe. It must be an unbaked crust though to work well in this recipe.
- Pumpkin Purée: The easiest option is to use canned pumpkin purée. It must be plain pumpkin purée and not pumpkin pie filling. You can also use fresh homemade pumpkin purée. We have tested it with this recipe and it works perfectly. It’s just important that you make sure your pumpkin purée isn’t too wet. It must be similar in consistency to what you would get in a can. The best way to do this is to place peeled and chopped pumpkin onto a parchment lined baking tray and bake at 350°F for 30 minutes (no oil or spices) until soft and cooked. Let it cool and then add to the food processor and process into a purée. Let the purée stand in a strainer over a bowl and let any excess water drain off before using. You will need 1 and ¾ cups homemade pumpkin purée.
- Coconut Milk: This must be canned, full fat, unsweetened coconut milk. It needs to be rich and creamy so that your pie will be the right consistency. There is no coconut flavor in the end result. If you switch this for a thinner non-dairy milk such as almond milk then your pie may be too thin and won’t set properly.
- Brown Sugar: You can also use coconut sugar if you like. The sugar can also be slightly reduced if you prefer.
- Maple Syrup: You can switch this with a different kind of syrup if you like, or replace it with a ¼ cup extra brown sugar, or omit it altogether for a less sweet version.
- Cornstarch: This helps the pie to set so it is a crucial ingredient. You can possibly also use tapioca starch but you may need to use double the amount. Arrowroot (in the same quantity as cornstarch) will likely also work.
- Pumpkin pie spice: You can make your own homemade pumpkin pie spice or use a store-bought option, it will be the same either way.
- Tent with foil: Tent the pie with foil after 40 minutes of baking and then place it back into the oven to bake for the final 20 minutes. This prevents the pie from over-browning. Sometimes the full 60 minutes baking time can result in some uneven browning on top of the pie and over-browning of the crust. If you have a pie crust shield then you can use that instead which will prevent the crust from over-browning. However, you may still have some uneven browning on top of your pie.
- Make Ahead: This is a perfect pie to make ahead of time as it needs a few hours to chill and set in the fridge anyway and overnight is even better. So if you make the whole pie the day before, then you can simply store it in the fridge and when you’re ready, add vegan whipped cream and serve.
- Storing and Freezing: Keep your pie stored in the fridge (covered) where it will keep for up to a week. It is also freezer friendly for up to 3 months. Let it cool completely and chill/firm up in the fridge as usual. Then wrap it in several layers of plastic wrap, followed by foil to prevent any freezer burn and freeze. Thaw overnight in the fridge.
- This recipe was first published in November 2016. We have given it a makeover with some new photos and lots of extra tips and tricks. The recipe itself is unchanged.
Laura says
We made this for thanksgiving this year and loved it! My husband doesn’t eat sweets much but he ate this pie in 2 days!
Alison Andrews says
So happy to hear that Laura! I love that this pie isn’t too sweet so it can please most palates! Thanks for the awesome review. 🙂
Natalie says
I never leave reviews but I feel like I have to because of how good AND easy this pie was! Seriously, it was such a hit with everyone – vegans and non-vegans. THANK YOU!
Alison Andrews says
Yay! Thanks so much for the fantastic review! 🙂
Tish Cassells says
This recipe is a keeper! I made it for Thanksgiving and everyone loved it. I especially like the spice blend. Bland pumpkin pe is just sad. It firmed up fantastically. We topped it with Redi Whip’s dairy free topping and it was amazing.
Alison Andrews says
Wonderful! So glad it was a success. Thanks for the awesome review Tish! 🙂
Valerie says
I made this for my mom who is allergic to eggs and in a gluten- free crust and it was amazing! I accidentally used an entire can of coconut milk but it was still amazing. I don’t like pumpkin pie but this recipe has changed my mind. My mom says thanks for the recipe!
Alison Andrews says
So happy to hear that Valerie! Thanks for the amazing review! 🙂
Sofia says
Do you think it will work with condensed coconut milk? I have some in the cupboard which needs using 🙂
Alison Andrews says
Hi Sofia, I think it would be really crazy sweet because condensed coconut milk is extremely sweet whereas regular canned coconut milk is unsweetened. So it will definitely be better with regular canned coconut milk. 🙂
carla lily says
I was going to be lazy and buy my pumpkin pie this year but the vegan pies were $15!! Dang.. No thanks! Found this recipe and it’s Fantastic, perfectly spiced, I’ll definitely be making this again. I used arrowroot instead of cornstarch (slightly less, like 2/3 of the 1/4 cup) and the consistency was perfect. Thank you!
Alison Andrews says
Wonderful! Thanks so much for sharing and the awesome review Carla! 🙂
Sarah Axling says
I’m trying this today, but plan on using ginger snaps to make the crust.
Alison Andrews says
That sounds delicious! Hope it turns out great! 🙂
Lisa says
I was going to use gingersnaps too! It’s my favorite crust to make for a pumpkin pie!
Deneen Grove says
This is the second year making this delicious vegan pumpkin pie. I made 2 this year. On 1 I mixed pecans, brown sugar and honey then half way through cooking I put it on and pressed it gently into the pie. Then finished baking. Yummy. With or without.
Alison Andrews says
That sounds totally divine! Thanks for sharing and the awesome review Deneen! 🙂
Savannah says
Can I use Tapioca flour instead of cornstarch?
Alison Andrews says
Hi Savannah, I have not tried it with tapioca flour but from what I can find out you would need to use double the amount. Let us know how it goes if you try it! 🙂
Becky says
Hi! Can I use a graham cracker crust? Or crush graham crackers to make the crust? Do you know how that might bake? I’m assuming I’ll have to grease the pan for the graham crackers to stick on it. Can I use a tin foil pie pan instead of glass/ceramic? I’ve never tried to make a pie before. Thank you!
Alison Andrews says
Hi Becky, yes, you should be able to do that. If you’re crushing graham crackers then mix them with some vegan butter, check out our dairy-free cheesecake which uses crushed cookies and melted vegan butter for the crust. That also bakes for an hour, and the crust holds up great. To be honest I have never used a disposable pie pan but I don’t see any reason why it wouldn’t work out just fine.
Stacy Stevens says
Hello! I have made these two times now and love the flavor! The problem I have though is it does not seem to set properly. Can you please tell me why that might be and what I can do to fix it? Thank you! Stacy
Alison Andrews says
Hi Stacy, are you chilling it in the fridge? It does take a while to set properly and if you can leave it in the fridge overnight that is usually best for it to set wonderfully. 🙂
Cendie says
Could I use coconut cream instead of coconut milk. How about coconut sugar to replace the brown sugar? Sounds delicious!
Alison Andrews says
Hi Cendie, yes to both! That should work great. 🙂
Hannah Weikert says
Hey I can’t wait to try this out! I don’t have much experience with pie baking so I was wondering the reason why you say not to pre-bake the crust? Would pre-baking mess anything up, potentially? I want to use a thick homemade crust 🙂
Alison Andrews says
Hi Hannah, if you pre-bake the crust for this pie then it would over-bake when you’re baking the filling. So it needs to be unbaked. All the best! 🙂
Beth says
Wow, this was DELICIOUS. This was the first from scratch pie I’d ever made, so I was looking for some pretty foolproof recipes. I’m vegetarian, not vegan, but I was out of heavy cream, didn’t want to mess with egg custard, and had a can of full fat coconut milk lying around, so I went searching for vegan recipes and found this.
I made this up in a stoneware muffin tin as mini pies with minimalist baker’s coconut oil pie crust and your pumpkin spice mix recipe, and it is literally the best pumpkin pie I’ve ever had. Both this and the pie crust go down in the list of vegan foods which are actually tastier AND easier to make than their non-vegan counterparts.
My alterations:
* I handmixed with a fork instead of using a blender, because I was already using enough dishes that day’s baking. Haven’t encountered any unpleasant lumps so far! I might make a cornstarch slurry with some of the coconut milk first next time to be safe, though.
* I mixed molasses in with turbinado sugar instead of using brown sugar
* Because I was making these as mini pies, I slightly altered the cooking instructions and followed a recipe I’d found for mini pumpkin pies: I baked them for 425° for 15 minutes, then turned down my heat to 350° and baked them for 25-30 minutes. No prebaking of the crust.
I filled my mini crusts to the very top and was afraid I’d overfilled them at first because they all puffed out of the crusts, but after cooling they fell back down slightly and were level with the crust.
The resulting custard was darker in color than I’m used to from the store bought pies, which made me worry I’d overcooked it, but it came out just perfect. It looked a bit dry as well, but I had no issues, and after resting overnight it looks like I have come to expect pumpkin pie to look. Strong, pleasant flavor and great texture and consistency.
I’d call this recipe forgiving and nearly foolproof… I’ll be using this again come Thanksgiving for sure. Thanks so much!
Alison Andrews says
This is so awesome Beth! Thank you so much for the wonderful comment and review! 🙂
Alyce McCain says
This recipe says to pour over an uncooked pie crust but the vegan crust recipe that’s linked says to pre-bake it. I’m a little confused as to what to do. Did I misread? Thanks in advance!
Alison Andrews says
Hi Alyce, the crust must be unbaked. Our separate pie crust recipe only says that you CAN bake it if you are using it for a recipe that requires a pre-baked crust, but for this recipe it should definitely be unbaked.