Saturday, November 18, 2006

Pumpkin or Squash Pie Reinvented

Pumpkin Coconut Pie

This pumpkin or squash pie is free of dairy, soy, eggs, gluten, rice and most other allergens. It's also vegan.

The pie has a very silky texture, softer and more pudding-like than a traditional pumpkin pie. To make a grainless pumpkin pudding, just bake the filling with no crust.

I was going to try making it without the baking soda and cream of tartar, and calculate the baking time more carefully. But then I discovered that I'd developed an allergy to coconut, so I won't be making it again.

If you try it, please do post any improvements or adjustments you make in the comments.

Feel free to adjust the spice amounts for whatever you usually use in a pumpkin pie. Remember that you're not adding the eggs, so you'll probably want a lesser amount of spice in a pie than one with eggs.

Pumpkin or Squash Pie

First, make crust. Gluten-free recipe here, grain-free version here.

Put crust in pie pan and bake for 5-10 minutes or until crust is just a bit firm on the bottom.

Pie filling:

Mix together dry ingredients:
1/4 cup tapioca flour
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger (I measured this heaping)
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves (measured scant)
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp cream of tartar (if allergic to grapes or sulfites, substitute about 1/2 to 1 tsp lemon juice or cider vinegar with the wet ingredients)


Combine in a separate bowl:
1 15-oz can Libby's Pure Pumpin (not pumpin pie filling--just plain pumpkin) or 1 1/2 to 2 cups squash puree*
1/2 cup coconut milk (I use Trader Joe's light coconut milk; it's corn-free and lower-fat, too) or other milk substitute (for a recipe using plain water, see here)
1/2 cup pure honey or other liquid sweetener

Blend pumpkin mixture into dry ingredients until smooth, and immediately pour into pie crust.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes or until set in the middle. A knife will not come out clean when it's finished; it will still be very gooey in the middle until chilled. Don't be concerned if it puffs up a bit in the middle and then collapses as it cools.

Chill before serving.


* If you want to use a fresh pumpkin (or any kind of winter squash such as butternut or acorn squash), you can make your own squash puree.

Bake it whole (or cut in half face-down with 1/2 inch of water in the pan) at 350 degrees in the oven until tender. Scoop out the flesh and mash it with a potato masher.

Then use the blender to process it into a smooth puree. You can add all the other ingredients to the blender and just mix it all up in there if you like instead of mixing wet and dry ingredients separately.

5 comments:

Amy said...

I was wondering if you'd considered making it with almond or cashew milk? Are you and Baby E eating either of those?

purple_kangaroo said...

Thanks, Amy. I actually developed a recipe using just water, tapioca, pumpkin and spices. I'm going to bake it again tonight and refine it a bit, and then will post the recipe.

IamCath said...

Thanks for the pie idea! We have many allergens to avoid, and this recipe was perfect. I cheated and used a wholly wholesome pie crust (didn't need to avoid the wheat), but followed the rest of the recipe fairly straightforward. I used 100% Vermont maple syrup in place of the honey. My kids couldn't get enough of this pie! It will be a recipe we will use for years to come. It held together very well after chilling overnight (in fact, the kids could pick a piece up and eat it with their fingers). I'm thinking of making mini pies to have on hand as a snack. Do you think this would freeze well? Thanks again!

purple_kangaroo said...

Iamcath, I don't know why it wouldn't freeze well . . . I've seen ice cream made from coconut. It would certainly be worth a try! Let me know how it works if you do it, please?

Anonymous said...

I tried the pie with the coconut milk - very, very good! My mom, husband and I thought it tasted as good as a traditional pumpkin pie. I did what Cath did and used maple syrup - actually I used about 3/4 c maple syrup and 1/4 c honey. Spice wise I used a premade pumpkin pie blend, and then a little more cinnamon. I was very impressed with the flavor of the pie.

Just for fun, since this baking without eggs is new to me, I made a tofu pumpkin pie at the same time for a little side by side comparison - same canned pumpkin and spices. Did not care for that one at all - for some reason the spices came across too strong (weird since I used the same ratio for both).

I liked the texture and flavor of this one much better. It's a little thinner than a traditional pumpkin pie, but nothing to worry about. It tasted great.

Thanks for the recipie!!! I will definitely make it again.