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What would Thanksgiving (or fall!) be without something pumpkin? Whether it is a spiced pumpkin latte or pumpkin pie, the taste and scent of pumpkin are the perfect companions to cool fall weather.
I was never actually a big pumpkin pie fan in the past. But in the past couple of years, I’ve fallen in love with the combination of coconut and pumpkin together. So I decided to create a pumpkin pie recipe that uses those flavors. It turned out great!
A Better Pumpkin Pie
If your family considers pumpkin pie a part of the Thanksgiving feast, consider this healthier option this year! It has all the same flavors as traditional pumpkin pie but can accommodate those who avoid dairy and gluten.
For the Crust
I have an almond flour pie crust recipe that I use for most of my pies. It’s a press-in pie crust rather than a roll-out crust, which actually is a lot easier to use. You’ll need to pre-bake the crust for about 10 minutes before pouring in the filling.
For the Filling
I don’t use a lot of refined sweeteners like white sugar or corn syrup. So in this pumpkin pie, I use honey or maple syrup. Just whisk it together with pureed pumpkin, eggs, and spices, and the filling is done! I make my own pumpkin pie spice, so it’s always on hand.
For the Topping
Some of my kids claim that pumpkin pie simply can’t be eaten without whipped cream. If you agree, then I recommend making your own. That way you avoid all the mystery ingredients in store-bought versions. It’s also super easy and fast to do (provided you have an electric mixer!).
Just add heavy cream to a bowl and whisk with a hand mixer or stand mixer at high speed until fluffy. I like to add a little vanilla extract to mine. You can also add a little honey or maple syrup while it’s whisking to make it sweet.
If you don’t do dairy, you can make whipped coconut cream. In fact, even if you do eat dairy I recommend the coconut whipped cream. That coconut/pumpkin combination is so tasty.
More Thanksgiving Favorites
We have a lot of other Thanksgiving recipes that we’ve modified to fit our lifestyle. In fact, I wrote a whole post about it. It includes everything from appetizers, to sides, to additional dessert ideas. I also wrote out step-by-step instructions for pulling it all together and included a printable to hang on the fridge while you work.
Grain-Free Pumpkin Pie Recipe
Equipment
- Pie pan
Ingredients
For Crust
- 1 batch pie crust
For Filling
- 15 oz canned pumpkin (or 2 cups homemade pureed pumpkin with excess liquid drained)
- 3 eggs
- ¼ cup honey (or maple syrup)
- 1 TBSP pumpkin pie spice (or 2 tsp cinnamon and ¼ tsp each of cloves, ginger, and nutmeg)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- coconut milk (to thin)
Instructions
- Lightly grease a 9-inch pie pan with coconut oil.
- Prepare pie crust according to the pie crust recipe instructions.
- While the pie crust is baking, use the pie crust bowl (no need for extra dishes!) to combine all the filling ingredients except coconut milk.
- Preheat the oven to 325°F.
- Use an immersion blender or food processor and mix the pumpkin filling thoroughly. A hand-mixer will not get it as smooth! The pie filling should be smooth and spreadable.
- Add a small amount of coconut milk if needed to thin slightly.
- Spoon the filling over the baked crust and smooth and bake for about an hour or until center is no longer jiggly. It will set more as it cools.
- Cool completely.
- Top with coconut cream or whipped heavy cream and some chopped pecans.
- Enjoy!
Notes
Feel free to tweak the spice and sweetness levels to your family's liking! You can also substitute stevia, but the honey helps the pie hold together better.
Nutrition
I saw these pumpkin bars the other day and it reminded me of a recipe a friend was telling me about. She says that her husband’s family didn’t like pie crust so they grew up eating a crustless pumpkin pie that was more like a bar. Maybe I’ll do some experimenting…
Like this recipe? Check out my new cookbook, or get all my recipes (over 500!) in a personalized weekly meal planner here!
What is your favorite Thanksgiving dessert? Any other recipes you want healthy versions of? Tell me below!
Do you have suggestions for folks with nut allergies? I’d love to make this at the holidays but my mom is allergic to all nuts. Maybe no crust?
You can skip the crust, or shredded toasted coconut works pretty well too if she can have that…
How would one go about making the crust with coconut? Would i just use the same recipe but sub the nuts for coconut?
Coconut flour would be a good sub.
what can one use instead of nuts for the pie crust?
Pepitas (aka shelled pumpkin seeds) work just wonderfully.
Sorry, what is coconut cream?
Robyn, I made this today and had the same experience with my crust. I also sopped up the extra foam with paper towels. Looking forward to having this tomorrow!
Do you think I could substitute avocado oil for the crust?
I made this yesterday and it came out great! One comment…the coconut oil in the crust was bubbling/foaming a lot while baking, but I just soaked it up a bit with a paper towel after taking it out of the oven. Not sure if this is a normal occurrence since I’ve never baked with it before. Thanks for the recipe!
I had the same experience. but in the end the pie turned out really good.
I used the equal amount in ghee and didn’t have an issue 🙂
THANK YOU for this. For the past few years, I’ve been gluten-free, and I’ve made it through the holidays fine. But this is the first year that my kids are GF, and I’m a little concerned about how large family gatherings are going to go! That’s why I volunteered to bring some desserts 🙂
We’ll be making this for sure. And I’m looking for a GF apple dessert, too (**hint, hint**)
Thanks, Katie!
Wow, my mouth is totally watering now. I’m down with it.
You might want to wander by my blog. The astonishing results of a Wheat-Free life keep adding up like compound interest. New design, fresh content.
I’m having a blast, you know, just being who I’ve always wanted to be. Me!
Just made it! Really a great recipe. I used fresh butternut squash and thawed it for the recipe. Prior to cooking the filling it was really runny and very pourable (didn’t add any coconut milk), however it cooked up great in 1 hour. Put a little less honey this time but will measure next time as it needed more to make the flavors pop. Might add more cinnamon also. The crust was great. Thanks for a great recipe!
Is the pie crust in the picture one that was baked from the recipe in this post?
Nope, its just a stock photo I had. I’m going to update as soon as I bake it again, but this is not one that lasts long at our house so I haven’t been able to get a picture yet 🙂
Oh thank you – I’m “flirting” with gestational diabetes and need to cut out the carbs but was getting really bummed out about Thanksgiving. This recipe makes things look a little better, lol!