For some reason, I always find myself experimenting with pumpkin recipes during the fall. If you’ve followed me for a while you would already be very familiar with my Pumpkin Muffin Recipe.
The obvious go-to dessert for any Thanksgiving meal is pumpkin pie. Why not change things up a little and try these vegan pumpkin pie bars?
Don’t worry, vegan pumpkin pie bars are not as complicated to make as the traditional pie recipe.
The pecan crust topped with creamy pumpkin pie filling is guaranteed to have your guests rushing back for seconds!
Ingredients for pumpkin pie bars
Pecan crust ingredients:
- 2 1/2 cups (225 g) of raw pecans
- 1 tsp of ground cinnamon
- 5 Tbsp (71 g) of brown sugar
- 5 Tbsp (71 g) of non-dairy butter
- 1/2 tsp of sea salt
Pumpkin Pie Filling ingredients:
- 1 cup (200 g) of pureed pumpkin (I prefer to puree the pumpkin from scratch, you can also use canned pumpkin puree)
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) of pure maple syrup (make sure there is no added sugar)
- 2 Tbsp of corn starch
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) of coconut cream
- 1/3 cup (113 g) of coconut sugar
- Pumpkin pie spice (1/2 tsp of ground ginger, 1/2 tsp of ground nutmeg and 2 tsp of ground cinnamon)
- 1 tsp of vanilla extract
Vegan pumpkin pie bars recipe
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 C)
Step 2: make the pecan crust
To make the pecan crust, add the raw pecans, cinnamon, coconut sugar, and sea salt to a food processor and pulse for about one minute. Then add the non-dairy butter and continue to pulse until all the ingredients are well combined and finely ground.
Step 3
Transfer the pecan mixture to a parchment paper-lined baking dish, spread it evenly, and push it down with a spatula. Put in the oven and bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.
Step 4: make the pumpkin pie filling
Add all the pumpkin pie filling ingredients: pumpkin puree, maple syrup, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and vanilla extract into the food processor and blend until it is smooth and creamy.
Step 5
Pour the pumpkin pie filling on top of the pecan crust and spread evenly with a spatula. Add to the oven and bake for 40 – 45 minutes.
Step 6
Remove from the oven at let cool at room temperature. Then put it in the fridge for at least two hours to let it set.
Step 7
Slice into even squares, it’s now time to serve and enjoy your vegan pumpkin pie bars.
Substitute ingredients
Here are a few substitute ingredients in case you are short of or don’t like some of the ingredients proposed in the original recipe.
For the pumpkin pie crust
Almond flour: if you have an allergy to pecan nuts, you can substitute the pecans with almonds. I would recommend 1/2 a cup (100 g) of almond flour for this recipe.
Coconut oil: If you don’t have any dairy free butter, you can use 5 tablespoons of coconut oil instead.
For the pumpkin pie filling
Almond milk: if you don’t have any coconut cream, you can substitute it with 1/4 cup (85 g) of almond milk.
Expert Tips
How to make my own pumpkin puree?
Pumpkin puree is just so easy to make. All you need is a small to medium size baking pumpkin. cut the pumpkin in half with a big kitchen knife. Scoop the seeds out from the middle. Place both pumpkin halves, and flesh down on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Place in a preheated oven at 400 degrees F (200 C) and cook for 45 to 50 minutes. Remove the pumpkin halves from the oven and let them cool to room temperature.
Scoop out the pumpkin flesh with a tablespoon and add to a food processor. Pulse until the flesh turns to pumpkin puree. Add a little salt and voila! You now have homemade pumpkin puree that is ready to be used to make your pumpkin bars.
How to make my own pumpkin spice blend?
The second key ingredient for a pumpkin pie bars recipe after pumpkin puree is the pumpkin spice blend. You can choose to purchase the pumpkin spice blend from the grocery store but like all things at Simply Health Fitness Recipes, we like to make it all from scratch.
All you will need are the following 4 ingredients: ¼ tsp of ground ginger, 1 tsp of ground cinnamon, ¼ tsp of ground nutmeg, and ⅛ tsp of ground cloves (I usually crush about 3 gloves in a pestle mortar).
Mix all the ingredients in a small bowl until everything is fully combined and pour the blend into a small airtight jar.
Equipment
Food processor to blend the pecan crust as well as the pumpkin pie filling
Baking dish and parchment paper to bake the pumpkin pie bars
