A sweet and nutty vegan pecan pie that is simple to make with a caramel-like consistency! Your guests will never know it’s vegan, and made with a gluten-free crust!
When it comes to Thanksgiving there are two pies that are a must; traditional pumpkin pie, and of course a sweet and nutty pecan pie!
A traditional pecan pie recipe is made with a buttery crust and filled with a combination of pecans, eggs, butter, and some form of sugar, often brown sugar or corn syrup. It is known as a Southern dish that is often served at holiday meals such as Thanksgiving and Christmas.
It’s a bit of a challenge to get the best consistency that will be set considering traditional recipes often call for several eggs. Subbing a vegan egg one to one won’t achieve the same result.
I found a different way to achieve the best consistency without creating a gooey filling. As an added bonus this pie does not have any corn syrup! Instead, a combination of maple syrup, butter, brown sugar, and coconut milk combined with cornstarch work together to achieve a caramel texture that sets when cooled. It still has that sweet and nutty flavor of a traditional pie.
I used my favorite gluten-free and vegan pie crust with this recipe but you could also use a vegan pie crust depending on your preference.
This recipe turned out great! Next time, I may create vegan pecan pie bars!
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💗 Why You’ll Love This Vegan Pecan Pie
- No Corn Syrup
- Gluten-Free (when made with gluten-free crust)
- Caramel like filling
- Full of nutty pecans!
- Easy to prepare in advance
🥣 Ingredients and Notes
Gluten-Free Pie Crust: This simple homemade pie crust is made with a combination of almond flour, tapioca flour, and oat flour. You can also make a vegan pie crust with regular flour, or use a store-bought vegan pie crust.
Chopped and Whole Pecans: A combination of one cup of chopped pecans makes up the filling and about ⅓ cup of whole pecans for decoration.
Filling: The filling starts with melted vegan butter, and organic brown sugar that is melted and then combined with coconut milk, and pure maple syrup.
Scroll to the bottom of the post to the recipe card for complete measurements.
👩🏻🍳 Variations and Substitutions
- If you’d prefer not to use vegan butter, or you don’t have any, you can use coconut oil instead.
- Keep this refined sugar-free by using coconut sugar instead of brown sugar.
- I use full-fat coconut milk, however, you could also use coconut cream or another dairy-free milk alternative.
- Alternatively, to using organic brown sugar you could use organic cane sugar, or coconut sugar to keep it refined sugar-free.
📋 Vegan Pecan Pie Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Prepare a gluten-free pie crust or use a regular vegan pie crust.
Step 2: Preheat the oven to 350 F. Over medium heat melt butter. Add the organic brown sugar. Whisk together until the brown sugar is melted and golden brown in color. Add the maple syrup, vanilla extract, salt, and nutmeg. Whisk together until combined.
Step 3: In a small bowl, whisk together the coconut milk and corn starch.
Step 4: Quickly whisk the coconut milk and corn starch in the saucepan with the caramel sauce over medium heat. Then remove the pan from the heat.
Step 5: Spread the chopped pecans evenly on the bottom of the pie crust.
Step 6: Pour the filling over the pecans, and use a spatula to spread evenly. Add the whole pecan around the edge of the pie for decoration (optional).
Step 7: Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbling. After about 15 minutes cover the edges of the pie crust with aluminum foil to avoid the edges from burning.
Step 8: Remove from the oven and allow the pie to cool at room temperature for 1 hour. Then transfer to the refrigerator to chill for 2-3 hours before slicing and serving.
❓ Recipe FAQS
Traditional pecan pie is made with quite a bit of sugar. Often times that sugar comes from corn syrup and brown sugar, which are two refined sugars. This contributes to a high-calorie count. In addition, pie crust is often made with quite a bit of butter which adds more fat and calories.
This vegan version is still sweet, but it is made with maple syrup and organic brown sugar. I’ve also added less sugar than a typical recipe. The pie crust used for this recipe uses almond flour, oat flour, and tapioca flour that is combined with water, so no butter is used at all. This reduces the overall amount of calories and fat for each slice. While pecan nuts are high in fat it is the healthy monounsaturated fat that our bodies need.
While this recipe is not considered a healthy food, it is lower in sugar, calories, and fat than a traditional recipe while also being vegan and gluten-free.
Traditional pecan pie filling is made with eggs, butter, and corn syrup. There are slight variations in which different types of sugars are added such as white sugar, brown sugar, molasses, maple syrup, or honey.
I think pecan pie is sweet enough on its own! However, you can serve it topped with coconut whipped cream or a scoop of vegan vanilla ice cream.
Cover and store in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. This pie can be made a few days in advance of your holiday meal.
💭 Expert Tips
- Whisk together the coconut milk and corn starch before getting started on melting the butter and sugar. That way it is ready to pour into the mixture as soon as the other ingredients have melted and come together.
- You don’t want the butter and sugar to bind together, rather you want it to retain its liquidity.
- Once you’ve whisked in the coconut milk with the corn starch, remove it from the heat. Leaving it over the heat will cause the filling to harden and make it difficult to pour into the pie pan.
- Be sure to allow the pie to chill for a minimum of 2 hours before serving.
- After you remove the pie from the refrigerator, allow it to come to room temperature before cutting and serving.
😋 More vegan pie recipes!
Recipe
Vegan Pecan Pie
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 batch gluten-free pie crust
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- ⅓ cup pecan halves
- 3 tablespoon vegan butter
- ½ cup organic brown sugar
- ⅓ cup pure maple syrup
- ½ cup full fat coconut milk
- 2 tbsp corn starch
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
Instructions
- Prepare gluten-free pie crust.
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Over medium heat melt butter. Add the organic brown sugar. Whisk together until the brown sugar is melted and golden brown in color. Add the maple syrup, vanilla extract, salt, and nutmeg. Whisk together until combined.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the coconut milk and corn starch.
- Quickly whisk in the coconut milk and corn starch into the saucepan over medium heat. Then remove from heat.
- Spread the chopped pecans evenly on the bottom of the pie crust.
- Pour the the filling over the pecans, use a spatula to spread evenly.
- Add the pecan halves around the edge of the pie for decoration (optional).
- Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbling. After about 15 minutes cover the edges of the pie crust with aluminum foil to avoid the edges from burning.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool at room temperature for 1 hour. Then transfer to the refrigerator to chill for 2-3 hours before slicing and serving.
Video
Notes
- Whisk together the coconut milk and corn starch before getting started on melting the butter and sugar. That way it is ready to pour into the mixture as soon as the other ingredients have melted and come together.
- Once you’ve whisked in the coconut milk with the corn startch, remove it from the heat. Leaving in over the heat will cause the filling to harden and make it difficult to pour into the pie pan.
- Be sure to allow the pie to chill for a minimum of 2 hours before serving.
- Allow the pie to come to room temperature before cutting and serving.
- Will keep in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Heather Johnson
kinda shocked me how good this was – i made it cuz a friend was coming over with dairy issues – it was good!
Lily
This pecan pie is delicious! I am a pecan pie fiend, so I was delighted with how great this turnout out.
Kristen Wood
Hands down, the best pecan pie we’ve ever had! You would never know that it’s so allergy-friendly. Thank you for the fabulous recipe. 🙂
Colleen
I can’t eat gluten so I really miss pie. Now I’m excited to make this recipe. It looks so good!