I could not be more excited to bring you all today's recipe: Healthy Vegan Pecan Pie. I think we are all on the same page about the holiday season: we're ready! This probably goes without saying, but one of my favorite things about the holiday is the food. When I was little, I loved baking with my Mom and Grandma. It is really thanks to them that I got into cooking/baking and where I am today! I have so many special recipes that we made together, but you'll have to wait for something very special in the future to see those (any guesses?).
Anyways, this pecan pie recipe has been a long time coming and is marking the beginning of my holiday recipes! I feel like there is a never-ending list of holiday foods and treats to make healthy and vegan, so make sure to subscribe so you never miss when the next one drops! In the meantime, here are some of my favorite vegan holiday desserts:
- Samoa Truffles
- Healthy vegan Snickerdoodle's
- Chocolate Pecan Pretzel Cookies
- Cranberry Orange Bread
- Paleo Sweet Potato Brownies
What makes this pecan pie so healthy?
Pecan pie is a Thanksgiving classic and one of my personal favorite pie flavors. Unfortunately, traditional pecan pie is loaded with highly refined sugar, processed oil, dairy, and corn syrup. These are all big no-nos in my book. Why take something like nuts that are so naturally healthy and turn them into a diabetes bomb? Luckily this Healthy Pecan Pie is free of all those unhealthy ingredients. Not only is this vegan Thanksgiving pie free of all unhealthy ingredients, but it is loaded with health promoting. These healthy ingredients are full of vitamins, minerals, and fiber! Say goodbye to the fear of unhealthy holiday food!
Can I make this Healthy Pecan Pie ahead of time?
Thanksgiving is simply insane, at least with my family it is. We start working around 10:00 am, and we don't sit down to eat until around 4:00. It is exhausting. If there's ever a way to cut even 10 minutes off the cooking time on Thanksgiving, I am down. We always try to prep as much as possible before Thanksgiving day, so we can enjoy family time to the max! This Healthy Pecan pie is perfect for cutting down your cooking time because it can be made the day before, and all you have to do is reheat it (optional). It will come out so delicious that nobody will know it's healthy or made ahead of time!
How to make this refined sugar-free pecan pie:
As I touched on already, this Healthy Pecan Pie is completely refined sugar-free, and yes, that includes coconut sugar! I stopped eating processed sugar at home about two years ago, and it has honestly been so easy and so eye-opening. Why do we add refined sugars to everything when there are so many natural sweeteners available to us? I will never understand. So how do I make all these delicious vegan sweets without refined sugar? It's simple, really. Use plants! My favorite natural sweeteners include Dates, Maple crystals ("VEGAN10" for $10 off), Applesauce, Bananas, Date Syrup, Blackstrap Molasses, and the list goes on! I used dates for this recipe to replace sugar and corn syrup. Not only did I avoid these harmful ingredients, but I slipped in some healthy whole foods plant based ingredients!
Ingredients for this Healthy Pecan Pie:
- Almond flour
- Date syrup
- Cassava flour
- Ground flaxseed
- Raw pecans - "VEGAN10" for $10 off!
- Medjool dates
- Vanilla extract
- Tapioca powder
- Full-fat coconut milk
Substitutions:
There are a handful of easy and delicious substitutions that can be made to this healthy vegan pecan pie. Here or some of the common ones.
- Pie Crust - you can use a pre-made pie crust such as this easy vegan pie crust to save time on prep.
- Nuts - You can use a variety of nuts as a substitute for the pecans. A great substitution is walnuts; however, almonds, cashews, and pistachios can work.
- Flour - A variety of flower Blends can work in place of the almond flour and cassava flour if needed. I recommend using gluten-free flour if you have a gluten allergy or using all-purpose flour if not.
If you have any questions about a particular substitution not listed, make sure to leave a comment, and I'll get back to you as quickly as possible!
Healthy Vegan Pecan Pie
Equipment
Ingredients
For the crust:
- 1 ⅔ cups almond flour
- 1 ½ tablespoon date syrup
- ⅔ cup cassava flour
- ⅓ cup flaxseed
- 8 tablespoon cold water
For the filling:
- 2 cups raw pecans
- 2 cups medjool dates
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoon tapioca powder
- 1 can full fat coconut milk
- pinch salt
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350.
- Begin by making your crust. Simply add all crust ingredients together and knead until you get a ball. In a nonstick, or greased pie dish ( I always use Chosen Foods 100% Avocado oil spray) press the dough into the pan. Poke randomly with a fork, and place in the oven for 10 minutes.
- While the crust is in the oven, add your dates, coconut milk, vanilla, and salt to a saucepan and cook until boiling. When it starts to boil you will see that it becomes thicker and the dates break down. Once the dates are very soft and broken down, add the mixture to a blender and blend until smooth.
- Chop the pecans up into small pieces and add to the mixture. Pour the mixture into the crust, cover with tin foil, and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the tin foil and bake for 5 more minutes. Remove from heat, allow to cool, and enjoy!
Michelle
Can't wait to try this for thanksgiving this fall!
Jacqui
I was looking for some recipe inspiration regarding pecan pie, and I am obsessed! Fantastic ingredients and tasty!
Natalie
Gluten-free, keto, vegan, wow! This pie has everything I need, thanks!
Andrea
this pecan pie is out of this world delicious! loveee that it's on the healthier side compared to most recipes. definitely will make again for thanksgiving!