This gluten-free, vegan pumpkin pie forms its own crust as it bakes. Delicious and addictive–and low-fat and only 153 calories per serving!
I asked my readers yesterday to identify a close-up photo of a food. The mystery food wasn’t a mystery to most of you: it was indeed a Pumpkin or Squash Pie. But, if I were the kind of teacher who demands exact answers (and I used to be), you would have had to have written “Impossible Fat-Free Gluten-Free Vegan Cushaw Pie” in order to get full credit.
Cushaw? What the heck is that? Well, do you remember these cute squashes?
I did a little research into cushaw squash and found that much of the pumpkin that we buy in cans is actually cushaw and its close relatives; it’s less stringy than pumpkin and makes better pies. So I feel like it’s okay to call this a pumpkin pie even though it originated from a crazy little crookneck squash called a cushaw.
So that’s the “cushaw” part of the name. What about the “impossible” part?
If you grew up with a mother who relied on Bisquick baking mix, as I did, you may remember their Impossible pies. What you did was mix Bisquick in with the pie ingredients, and as the pie baked, a sort of crust formed on the bottom and sides. I’m not too embarrassed to say that the first cheesecake I ever made was the Bisquick Impossible Cheesecake–and it was really good. Flash forward to the present when I’m looking to get rid of the most fattening part of the pie–the crust–and the idea of a vegan Impossible pumpkin pie hit me.
So I went straight to my favorite cookbook–Google–and started looking for info on Impossible pies. I no longer use Bisquick, so I wanted to see if people had made this work with flour, and I was happy to find that they had. In fact, Something in Season (website no longer available) and Bob’s Red Mill both had gluten-free versions of the pie, so I knew it could be done without Bisquick.
What remained to be seen was whether or not it could be done without oil or dairy products. I did a whole lot of substituting, but I’m happy to report that the pie was a success: Though the inside is more like a custard than a regular pumpkin pie, a slight crust formed along the bottom and sides of the pan, so you can actually pick up a slice of this pie and eat it like a piece of pizza. But it’s dangerously addictive, as shown by the fact that my husband ate about 6 pieces of it yesterday!
Update 7/30/18: My husband asked for pumpkin pie for his birthday–in the middle of summer! With no winter squash available, I made this pie with canned pumpkin, and it was a complete success. I didn’t need to make any changes to the recipe.
The only difference I could detect is that the pie made with canned pumpkin is a much darker color. It looks like any other pumpkin pie, instead of having a “squashy glow.” I’m not sure why it cracked, but I’ve heard from a lot of people who had that happen, whether they used fresh or canned. It doesn’t bother me; I think the cracks are interesting. (The pie in the photos with the white plate was made with canned; the green plated pie was made with fresh.)
So if you don’t have any winter squash available, do not hesitate to make this recipe with canned pumpkin. It’s great!
When you serve this pie, don’t feel obligated to tell your family or guests that it’s crust-free, fat-free, gluten-free, or vegan, but if they do wonder what’s left after so much is left out, tell them “Flavor, pure, delicious flavor!”
Check out all my delicious, low-fat vegan Thanksgiving recipes.
Impossible Vegan Pumpkin Pie
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups soy milk or other non-dairy milk
- 1 tablespoon Ener-G egg replacer see Notes
- 1/4 cup water see Notes
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 cups pureed or mashed cooked pumpkin, cushaw, or winter squash (or canned pumpkin), see Notes
- 1/2 cup brown rice flour see Notes
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon ginger powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/8 - 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray a 9-inch deep dish pie pan with cooking spray. (I used a Pyrex pan, and it came out with no sticking.) A deep dish is recommended because this pie will rise a lot during cooking but will fall back down as it cools.
- Put the first five ingredients in the blender, and blend well. Add the pumpkin, and puree. Add the remaining ingredients and blend on high for 2 minutes, stopping to scrape the sides a couple of times to make sure everything is thoroughly blended. Pour into a pie pan and bake for about 60 minutes. The top and edges should be brown, but the edges should not be over-done. (Since this is a custardy pie, using the standard toothpick or knife test does not work; it will remain somewhat moist in the center, but it shouldnât be uncooked.)
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the counter. For best results, refrigerate until chilled before eating.
Notes
Nutritional info is approximate.
Please pin and share:
Louise Gagnon
It’s in the oven now! đ I didn’t use actual pumpkin but something that looks the same, a winter squash called Potiron: http://www.tarn-web.com/french/frrecipe_31.htm (not my site)
It’s more dense and dry. I cut them in half, seed them and bake them cut side down at 400f for about 35-40 minutes. Let them cool slightly and just peel off the skin. I find they make the best “pumpkin” pie đ
Louise Gagnon
I loved it! đ
Alta
I’m wondering if you could use cooked brown rice and leave out the water instead of rice flour. Just blend it up with the other ingredients???
virginia
I really have a question. I am not a fan of soy milk, is almond milk a good substitue?
I do love your website /blog. Thanks.
Susan Voisin
Almond milk should work.
MJZ
Almond milk does work. I used it.
Lana
Susan,
I have made this pie 3 times. I replaced corn starch with arrow route, and Rice Flour with Oat Flour one time and then Barley Flour another time. (It’s what I had on hand) All 3 recipes were bitter. I also used white sugar. What made it bitter? Thanks for your help.
Lana
Almiel
I’m guessing it’s the baking powder, which gives the pie a bit of a metallic taste, which I don’t like. I wonder how it would turn out if it was left out? Or if there’s something else that could be used for the leavening?
One idea might be to use club soda in place of (some of) the water. It would be better mixed by hand in this case. This is the same concept as “beer bread”.
Almiel
As soon as I hit Submit I realized my idea might not work. Beer has yeast which is why it works in beer bread. Club soda does not. Back to the drawing boardâŚ
MJZ
I made this Impossible Pumpkin Pie this past weekend. IT IS AMAZING! We are huge fans of traditional pumpkin pie. So much that we make it for birthday cakes in our house. Since becoming WFPB I have missed pumpkin pie so much. Not any longer. This so much like the real thing, and who really likes crust anyway? Not us. My 7 year old, a pie connoisseur, said “this is the BEST pumpkin pie EVER!” and he did eat 3 pieces for breakfast yesterday. (I know that is a lot, but he had a big day of swimming at a meet, so he burned it off, I am sure) Thank you for all the delicious recipes you create and share. They have really made my transition to WFPB happy and satisfying.
Oli
This sounds and looks amazing. I’ve read all the comments and I’m now ready to make this pie. Do you think coconut palm sugar will work to replace the sugar?
Susan Voisin
It should work fine. Enjoy!
Gina Castellanos
I made the pumpkin pie last night and I loved it!! It’s a great recipe!!
Even my husband loved it, and he doesn’t like pumpkin.
Liane Blanco
I just made this, and it’s cooling in the freezer. It looks and smells delicious! I used canned pumpkin, and doubled up on the cornstarch to make sure it got firm enough; it did! I used coconut milk, and gluten-free bisquick for the flour. Can’t wait to try it!
Meredith
Made this finally. I bought a pie pumpkin at the market and it turned out great, a little wet/custardy in the center, but quite tasty. I only had 1/4 cup brown rice flour so used 1/4 cup coconut flour.
Deb
I love this pie!
anita
I would like to substitute coconut flour for the rice flour, but I am unsure of the ratio. I know coconut flour soaks up more liquid, so was going to try Ÿ c. of coconut flour in place of ½ c. rice flour. Do you have expert recommendations above this?
Amber
My 5-year-old daughter and I made this pie a couple of days ago as a test run for Thanksgiving. It was fantastic!
We used canned pumpkin; I replaced the ginger, nutmeg, and cloves with allspice; and I did not use cooking spray. My little one couldn’t wait until the next day to try it, so it was not completely chilled. The slices came out of the pan very neatly. The allspice was stronger than I would have liked. However, we found that it totally mellowed when we tried it completely chilled the next day.
I had a difficult time with blending the recipe. It seems I don’t have a blender with a large enough capacity. The next time we make it, I plan to try using an electric mixer.
We loved this recipe. We ate a quarter of the pie at each sitting!
jan weiss dembs
I dislike cloves. Can I omit them?
Susan Voisin
Sure!
tina
can i use canned pumkin?
Susan Voisin
Yes, other people have used canned and said it works.
Kim Fuhrmann
I have not been able to bake with Ener-G – the pies/brownies I’ve made have all come out completely mushy! I am following the instructions on the package but still…. Is anyone else having problems?
Susan Voisin
That’s really odd. Ener-g isn’t supposed to thicken much, so are you sure that it’s the problem? In this recipe, it just gives a little leavening. It’s a custard-like pie, so it’s supposed to be a little mushy.
Kim Fuhrmann
Well, then, I guess it came out just right then! lol It was very tasty! I guess I’ll have to adjust other dry ingredients in my brownies tho – talk about mush! đ
Becca
I’ve made this a few times. Recently, I made this for my mom who is off sugar. I substituted maple syrup for sugar, only used about half amount (6-8 tablespoons instead of 3/4 cup. I didn’t have a winter squash and just used a can of pureed pumpkin. It turned out great.
Kim
I made this recipe for my grandparent’s golden wedding. We are German therefore no one of my family has ever eaten pumpkin pie. Plus they usually dislike my vegan baked goods.
It was amazing! Most of the pie was eaten by my vegan Partner and me but some others also gave it a try. My granny and my grand-aunt both told me they loved the texture and how it was very delicious – although my granny doesn’t like cinnamon.
I will definitely make this again!
Debra Drew
Brown rice flour okay for this?
Susan Voisin
Yes, perfect.
Lee
Hi! I made this for Canadian Thanksgiving this year and it was amazing! We used our own pie pumpkin puree from our garden! (not the puree, the pumpkins)
I’m watching my sugar nowadays, and wondered if it would screw up the magic if I only included 1/3 cup of sugar? Or even if I went with liquid Stevia?
Thank you for your excellent blog! I come here often!
Susan Voisin
I’ve made mini pies from this recipe using Stevia, and they came out pretty well. I posted the recipe on Facebook. You can see how I did it at this link:https://www.facebook.com/notes/fatfreevegancom/mini-sugar-free-impossible-pumpkin-pies/10150386859097992
SPRING
Can you freeze this? Just wondering because I want to make in advance for Thanksgiving.
Susan Voisin
I’m sorry, I’ve never tried. My instinct says no, but I’m not sure why. It’s a delicate pie, almost like a custard, and I’m not sure it would hold up well to freezing.
jenny
substitutions made:
12oz morinu firm silken tofu instead of almond milk
3/4 c agave nectar instead of sugar
1 15oz can organic pumpkin puree instead of DIY roasted squash
HOLY SMOKES- this was SO fantastic! I actually just made this tonight after returning home from a non-vegan thanksgiving, feeling a void in my life because no pie was eaten. I remembered seeing this recipe a few years back, and thought to myself, “i’m pretty sure i can whip up a self-crusting pumpkin pie in like five minutes”, so i did! It’s currently 0 degrees in minneapolis, so the pie was chilled and set in less than an hour from removing it from the oven. oh, and i found a little vanilla coconut milk ice cream in the back of the freezer to go with! this recipe made my night!
jenny
i should add, the tofu made the consistency creamy yet firm, maybe more so than just using ND milk, but it was fantastic- not mushy at all!
Lucille
This looks delicious and so easy to make. I will certainly try it. I have never eaten pumpkin pie!
Maya Kirby
We always use this recipe at Thanksgiving, and it is definitely amazing! We love how good it is! Thanks for making a great pumpkin pie for our family tradition!
Linda Infantino
Can I use aquafaba for the eqg relacer? If so, how much?
Susan Voisin
I haven’t tried it, and there is always a danger when you change ingredients in a recipe like this, but you could try using a quarter cup of the aquafaba. I would do a trial run before planning to serve it for any special occasion.
Zoe
Dear Susan–Thank-you for creating this wonderful recipe. I tried it this past Thanksgiving with buckwheat flour, and am happy to report that it was a success, so if anyone is looking for a GF option, I would recommend trying that substitution.
Thanks for all your work and for sharing it with us, it is very much appreciated!
-Zoe
Crista
Dear Susan,
I’ve already made this pie several times and want to make it again for my boyfriends birthday. But the season for orange pumpkins is over, so I was wondering if I also could use butternut squash. Since those with orange pumpkin where fantastic!!!
Thank you for all your incredible recipes from this dutch girl,
Crista
Susan Voisin
I haven’t tried it, but I think it should work with butternut squash. If you try it,please let me know how it comes out. I’m so glad you like the recipe!
nancy
Hi Susan
I know fall is here when I make your version of pumpkin pie
I LOVE IT xoxoxoxo
It will be made many many times over the next few months.
Thank you for the recipe
Nancy
Deb
Love the taste.
Mine cracked on the top quite a bit in the oven and it scooped out more like pudding than pie.
I want to try it again. Any suggestions?
mom
Interesting that they don’t include the sugar count in the nutrician analysis.
That is a lot of sugar. I would use maple syrup and cut it by at least half.
Barbara Sutton
I LOVE this pumpkin pie. No crust needed! So delish. New favorite here at our house.
Carol
Can this pie be prepared ahead of time and frozen? Thanks for the information.
Susan Voisin
I’ve never done that, so I don’t know if that would affect the texture.
Kristen
I made this today, and it was delicious and easy. I happened to have brown rice flour on hand, yay,! I did use flax eggs because I don’t have the En-R G and that stuff’s a little expensive, but it turned out really well. I love the pudding-y texture with a little crusty edge. The omnivore man who ate it with me was quite impressed, too. I’ve made a couple things from this blog and want to thank you for great recipes.
Amy
I’m excited to try this. Has anyone tried it with lite coconut milk?
Does it freeze ok?
Lou
I know this recipe has been on your blog for some time, but I made it today as a Thanksgiving test run, and this is perhaps the best dessert I’ve ever eaten. My daughter was scraping the batter from the Vitamix and licking the spatula, and asked how she could remove the Vitamix blade so she could eat more batter. Really, really amazing recipe.
Karle
I was at the store to buy brown rice flour. There was a superfine ground brown rice flour and a whole grain stone ground brown rice flour. Would the superfine expensive flour work better for this recipe or not?
Karle
At the store they had a superfine brown rice flour(expensive) and a cheaper whole grain stone ground brown rice flour. Would the superfine work better for this recipe. I bought the cheaper version and will use it to make the recipe. Just wondering.
Karle
At the store they had a superfine brown rice flour(expensive) and a cheaper whole grain stone ground brown rice flour. Would the superfine work better for this recipe. I bought the cheaper version and will use it to make the recipe. Just wondering.
Susan Voisin
I think I use superfine. Iâm away from home now and canât check the bag. I donât think it makes a huge difference.
Chris
An excellent pie. When I ran out of brown rice flour for the third one, I used buckwheat flour. It is dark, but has an amazing flour. Thank you for maintaining such a great site!
Chris
*FLAVOUR
Karen
After having read some of the comments, I am wondering if sweet potato could be substituted, making sure that it is not to wet, draining it adequately, also substituting the sugar for organic honey, will experiment, also substituting some of the milk for yoghurt, will keep all informed
Crista
I made this pie again this weekend for a friends birthday. Everyone loved it!! I am soooo glad I found this recipe a few years ago! I mostly use coconut milk (not that canned fatty one, but the ‘milk alternative in a package’kind) or oatmilk and that works perfect as well. As I am a student I am sometimes wondering if I could replace the brown rice flour with oat flour, since that is cheaper. However, it is still a quite inexpensive pie, especially when pumpkins are in season.
I also use fresh pumpkin, since I am dutch and we do not have canned pumpkin or anything like that here in the Netherlands đ This time I just microwaved the pumpkin to get it soft and that worked really well too!