This vegan pecan pie is 100% plant-based and full of sweet flavors and gooey textures. 
Besides the fact that pies are delicious and make a great dessert there are also many pies that are needed and always used for tradition over the holidays.
One of them is pecan pie.
It is so sweet and delicious and just different from any other pie out there. A great thing about this recipe is that it is just as delicious and it is vegan!
You may be thinking how can you say it's vegan when there are eggs, cream and butter in pecan pies?
It's easy and just take a look.
The crust can be homemade too and I've included the recipe down in this post. It is a classic tender crust but you certainly use a premade pie crust too.
Table of Contents
INGREDIENTS
- Whole Wheat Flour- Adds lots of flavors that complement pecans.
- Tapioca Flour- A great way to thicken the pecan pie filling.
- Pure Maple Syrup- Adds the most wonderful sweetness that seems to have been invented to go along with pecans.
- Coconut Sugar- A dark brown sugar that gives the extra sweetness that is needed for rich pecan pies.
- Pecans- Pecan halves are the star of this pie!
- Unsweetened Dairy-Free Creamer- For the liquid that is necessary.
- Vanilla Extract- That little extra something.
- Salt- Balances out all of the flavors.
HOW TO MAKE VEGAN PECAN PIE
- In one pie dish!
- Melt the vegan butter.
- Add in the tapioca flour and stir for a nice thick base.
- Add the sweet maple syrup and creamy dairy-free milk.
- Next, come more sweeteners and seasonings.
- Now add the pecan halves and stir and cook for a few minutes. See how simple?
- Pour the pecan pie filling into the crust and decorate the top before baking.
HOW TO MAKE VEGAN PIE CRUST
This is a pie crust recipe for the bottom layer of an 8" or 9" pie.
If you have a deep pie plate, then the crust will go up about three-quarters of the way.
That works fine, and you can see I didn't go over the top edge of my pie pan, either. You don't have to go out and buy a new pie plate.
The exact measurements and complete directions with tips are in the recipe card below.
- Measure the flour and salt into a bowl.
- Cut in the shortening and vegan butter. You can do this by hand, too, with a pastry cutter.
- Sprinkle in the water one tablespoon at a tip.
- Pulse a few times in the food processor until it is just combined into little clumps. You can do this by hand, too, with a pastry cutter.
- Dump out onto a piece of cling wrap and form into a ball.
- Roll out the dough about an inch wider than your pie plate top, place it in the pie plate, and crimp the edges in a decorative design.
- Prick the bottom of the crust. Cover with parchment paper and fill with pie weights or dried beans or rice to hold the crust in place. You can't eat these beans or rice after you've used them for blind baking, but you can save them as pie weights.
- Pre-bake the pie crust for 8 minutes at 350°.
- This is also called blind baking, and it's done so that you have a fully baked pie crust on the bottom that isn't soggy from the filling.
- Remove the pie weights and parchment paper and fill the crust with the pecan pie filling to bake.
Can I Freeze Homemade Pecan Pie?
Yes, you can freeze the pie before baking or after baking. To freeze before baking, wrap the crust and filling in plastic wrap and foil. Then place it into an airtight container and store it in the freezer for up to 3 months. To freeze after baking, allow it to cool completely then cover with foil or plastic wrap. Place into an airtight container and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. When ready to enjoy, allow it to thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Reheat before serving.
How do I store leftover pecan pie?
Leftover pecan pie can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. To reheat, place it on a baking sheet in the oven at 350°F for 10-15 minutes. It can also be frozen for up to 3 months. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and foil before storing in an airtight container. Allow to thaw in the refrigerator before reheating and serving.
📋 Recipe
Vegan Pecan Pie
Ingredients
For the Pie Crust - or you can buy a premade crust
- 1 ½ cups whole wheat flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons dairy free butter
- 4 tablespoons vegan shortening
- 3-4 tablespoons water
For the Pie Filling
- ¼ cup dairy-free butter
- ¼ cup tapioca flour
- ½ cup maple syrup
- ½ cup unsweetened dairy-free creamer - Silk has an Original Soy Creamer without vanilla or you can use coconut cream from a can
- ¾ cup coconut sugar
- 1 ¾ cups pecans - chopped small
- ¼ cup pecans - whole for decorative top
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
For the Pie Crust - or you can buy a premade 8" or 9" crust
- Measure the flour and salt into a food processor bowl. Add shortening and dairy-free butter.
- Pulse a few times in the food processor until it is just combined into little clumps. You can do this by hand too with a pastry cutter. (see the photo above)
- Sprinkle in the water one tablespoon at a time. Pulse a few times in between each until all of the flour is just moistened. It will be clumpy. 3 tablespoons worked for me. (see the photo above)
- Dump out onto a piece of cling wrap and form into a ball.
- Roll out the dough about an inch wider than your pie plate top. Fold into fourths and place in the pie plate. Unfold in the pie plate so that it is centered.
- Crimp edges in a decorative design and poke fork tines a few times in the bottom of the pie dough.
- Cover with parchment paper and fill with pie weights or dried beans or rice to hold the crust in place. You can't eat these beans or rice after you've used them for blind baking but you can save them as pie weights.
- Pre-bake the pie crust 8 minutes at 350°. This is also called blind baking and it's done so that you have a fully baked pie crust on the bottom that isn't soggy from the filling.
- Remove the pie weights and parchment paper and fill the crust with the pecan pie filling to bake.
For The Pie Filling
- Preheat the oven to 350°.
- In a medium-sized saucepan melt the dairy-free butter.
- Stir in the tapioca flour and stir until well combined.
- Add the maple syrup, unsweetened dairy-free creamer, coconut sugar, chopped pecans, vanilla and salt.
- Mix well while still cooking and cook for about 3 minutes.
- Pour the filling into the pie crust and bake for 30 minutes. Watch that the crust edges don't become too dark.
- If you think the edges are becoming too dark then remove it from the over and lightly crimp a long foil strip over the edges to protect the crust from darkening any more.
- Replace in the oven and finish baking.
Bintu | Recipes From A Pantry
Pecan pie is one of my favourite desserts! This looks so good and I love that it is healthy and vegan too!
Denay DeGuzman
This beautiful pecan pie looks amazing! Our family loves making these during the holiday season. I can hardly wait to try your vegan recipe! Yum. Yum.
Sapana
I've always been intimidated with pie but your step-by-step directions made it so easy for me to make! Delicious and perfect.
Heidy L. McCallum
Wow, this is wonderful looking and the taste is amazing. I made it the other day and everyone loved it! You can't go wrong with a great vegan recipe for Pecan pie!
Joshua Howard
I love pecan pie. Thanks for the healthier alternative. Made it today and it turned out perfect! Thank you for the recipe!
Ginny McMeans
That's wonderful Joshua and thank you for letting us know! You are very welcome.
Alicia
This recipe looks amazing! Just one question: All of the coconut sugars I have tried have tasted bitter to me. Could I use turbinado or unrefined sugar in place of it? Cant wait to taste this creation, it is the last of the pies I dont have a vegan recipe for!
Alicia
Ginny McMeans
Yes, you sure can Alicia. Add a little bit less sugar first and taste it (be careful) because coconut sugar is not as sweet as the others. Like 1/2 cup instead of 3/4's cup. So glad you found this recipe and glad to have you here!
Suee33
Hey thank you for this AMAZING Healthy Pecan Pie recipe!! I have not had a really good pecan pie since going vegan years ago!! This one fits the bill and it is healthier and it is crazy good and I am not not missing anything from the traditional recipe. It is easy and a KEEPER!!!
Ginny McMeans
That is fantastic Suee33 and thank you so much for letting us know!
Megan
Hi Ginny! Thanks so much for the recipe! Just FYI, I went straight to the instructions without reading the body of your article, and in the instructions, I didn’t see when the coconut sugar is meant to be added. I went back today and read through the article and saw where you instruct to add the sugar in with everything else, so there ya go. I wondered if maybe the ingredients list was wrong, and I’d rather have something be less sweet than too sweet. So lo and behold, I added NO sugar, and the darn pie STILL turned out awesome! Thanks 🙏
Ginny McMeans
That is fantastic Megan. Thanks for letting me know about the instructions too. I'll fix that right away. Yes, the maple syrup is a great sweetener too. I'm glad to hear it's good without coconut sugar too. Traditional pecan pie so so sweet but I love the 'calmed down' sweetness with this recipe. 🙂
Zakiya A. Tate
Can the shortening be replaced with more butter or something else?
Ginny McMeans
Yes, you can substitute more butter. It won't be quite as tender but it will still taste very good.
Haley
What kind of vegan butter do you use? Is it Miyoko's or can I use an oil-based butter? And if it's oil based, can I just substitute oil instead since you're melting it anyway?
Ginny McMeans
You can use an oil for the inside of the pie. I use Melt and Earth Balance dairy free butters. You just need a fat with the flour for thickening. I like the idea of dairy free butter because I know it will reharden when cooling and I think that using oil might make the filling softer.