This year marks my very first Friendsgiving. I feel as if I have finally become a member of a certain social club. I swear I have friends, we have just never organized the event. The barre studio where I teach is hosting one for all of the instructors, and having been knee-deep in diapers with my newborn, I am really looking forward to a night out.
My contribution to the potluck is (naturally) dessert, and I immediately thought about my grain-free pumpkin pie. I have a grain-free and vegan version in my cookbook, but much prefer to make my pies with eggs these days. I have made countless pumpkin pies for the past ten years, but this recipe is completely new, and I am so excited about it.
Upgraded ingredients in this healthier pumpkin pie
When I was perusing my past recipes, I realized full-fat coconut milk was a core ingredient. When I was baking gluten-free and vegan baked goods, full-fat coconut milk made an appearance in a lot of recipes. This is due to the fact that when it is chilled, it firms, and offers a natural binder to baked goods when eggs are absent. When I went to go make this pie, I didn’t have any coconut milk on hand, so I substituted it with unsweetened almond milk instead. Blame it on the mom brain, but note to self: this substitution failed miserably. I shared on my Instagram that the pie filling was so watery it leaked out of the pie plate upon pouring and created a huge mess. Back to the drawing board. With still no coconut milk, I had to improvise, and am even more pleased with the ingredients profile of this pie.
The crust is my go-to grain-free vegan recipe, comprised of almond flour, tapioca flour, coconut sugar, melted coconut oil, and maple syrup. It is super easy to make, but you could always use a pre-made, store-bought crust instead (gluten-free if needed). Then the pie filling is made up of less than ten ingredients:
- Pumpkin puree
- Eggs
- Coconut sugar
- Cottage cheese or yogurt
- Tapioca flour or arrowroot starch
- Pumpkin pie spice
- Cinnamon
- Vanilla extract
- Sea salt
I chose to use cottage cheese for a number of reasons. When I was reading recipes for traditional pumpkin pie, heavy cream was most likely listed. Cottage cheese, greek yogurt, or coconut yogurt are all healthier alternatives to cream. Cottage cheese has also become a staple in my refrigerator due to its protein content and versatility. In baking, it almost offers a “cheesecake” type flavor which I love. If you don’t like cottage cheese on its own (as many people do not), it isn’t the same when you throw it into a baked good, so I encourage you to try it. Otherwise, you could use greek yogurt, coconut yogurt, or coconut cream. Note that I didn’t test this pie with those alternatives, but any of those options should work.
Is this pumpkin pie lower in sugar?
There was a time in my recipe creating days when I would try to use the least amount of sugar possible. Then I had an epiphany that such desserts are supposed to still be sweet. I always use more blood sugar balancing sweeteners so they are more metabolically supportive, but the flavor is still there. Desserts are meant to be enjoyed and satisfy your sweet tooth, not leave you lacking and wanting more. This recipe calls for coconut sugar, and even though there is that adage out there that it is still “sugar,” I stand by my belief that it is better for you. Not only is it lower on the glycemic scale, but it contains some vitamins and minerals that give it some nutritional worth. I will die on that hill.
Planning and prep
This pie is best made the day before you plan to enjoy it. Chilling it in the fridge overnight allows the flavors to meld and the consistency to solidify. For example, my Friendsgiving dinner is on a Tuesday evening so I made it on Monday morning. Plenty of time to bring it to perfection.
There could also be further time to allot if you choose to chill your crust dough in the fridge before rolling it out. Just about 15 minutes will do. See the recipe note below. This has normally been the course I take, but when I was making this pie, I made the executive decision that the dough didn’t need to be chilled. I placed and pressed it in the pie plate right away and it worked just fine.
Healthier Friendsgiving Pumpkin Pie
Equipment
- Pie plate
- Blender
- Mixing bowls
Ingredients
For the crust
- 1½ cups almond flour
- ¼ cup tapioca flour
- 2 tablespoons coconut sugar or granulated sugar of choice
- ⅓ cup melted coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
For the pie filling
- 1 15-ounce can of pumpkin puree
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup coconut sugar or granulated sugar of choice
- ½ cup cottage cheese, yogurt, or coconut cream
- ¼ cup tapioca flour or arrowroot starch
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9-inch pie plate with cooking spray.
- Make the crust. In a large bowl or stand mixer, combine the almond flour, tapioca flour, and coconut sugar. Stir. In a separate small bowl, mix the coconut oil and maple syrup. Whisk until creamy. Pour the wet ingredients into the flour mixture and stir or beat until a crumbly dough is formed.
- Use your hands to gather dough into a ball. Place the ball of dough into the bottom of the pie plate and use your hands to evenly press the dough until a thin crust is formed in the bottom and up the sides. Alternatively, if the dough is too crumbly, you can wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 15 minutes. Once chilled, place the ball of dough between two sheets of parchment paper. Using a rolling pin, roll it out to ⅛- to ¼-inch thick. Flip the flattened dough across the pie plate, using your fingers to press onto the bottom, fix any cracks and seal around the edges*.
- Pre-bake the crust for 10 minutes, then set aside until ready to use.
- While the crust is baking, make the filling. Add all ingredients to a high-speed blender until creamy, using a spatula to scrape down the sides of the blender if needed and processing again for a few seconds. Pour the filling mixture into the pie plate with the pre-baked crust. Place the pie back in the oven (be careful, the pie plate will be hot), and bake for 55 minutes to 1 hour until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean. The edges of the pie will have cracks, and the center may look darker in color and still jiggle (it will firm as it cools). Allow the pie to cool completely at room temperature (about 2 hours), before transferring to the refrigerator to further set, at least 4 to 6 hours or ideally overnight.
