Easy as Pie, Pumpkin Pie (No Crust Needed!)

21 Posted on November 21, 2011 - by Jules Shepard

Categories: All, Desserts, Pies, Recipes, Thanksgiving

Tags: , Allergy Friendly, Dairy Free, Desserts, Easy Pie Recipe, Pie Recipe, Pumpkin, Thanksgiving, Vegan

In the spirit of all things autumnal and Thanksgiving in general, I want to share with you my go-to, super-easy crustless pumpkin pie recipe. Feel free to use a traditional pie crust or even a yummy gingersnap crust with this pie, for sure, but if you are in a rush or worried that you won’t be able to make a successful pie crust (don’t worry -watch my pie crust making video!), then don’t hesitate to wow your family with this recipe as a crustless pie. (See this pie on Fox News DC!)

The flour in the recipe settles to the bottom forming a soft but secure crust that retains its pie-like consistency, yet holds together well enough to cut a beautiful piece of pie.

Gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free and egg-free if you want it to be! Truly a recipe everyone can enjoy! This recipe is from my newest cookbook, Free for All Cooking: 150 Easy, Gluten-Free, Allergy-Friendly Recipes the Whole Family Can Enjoy. From my family to yours – enjoy!

15-ounce pumpkin purée
3/4 cup milk (dairy or nondairy Earth Balance® Soy Milk or So Delicious® Coconut milk – vanilla flavor)
3/4 cup cream or liquid vanilla creamer (nondairy = So Delicious® Coconut or Soy Creamer)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract, gluten-free
4 tablespoons bourbon (use only if using egg replacer)
1/2 cup Jules Gluten Free^TM All Purpose Flour
1/4 cup buckwheat flour
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup granulated cane sugar
1 tablespoon Ener-G® Egg Replacer powder – not reconstituted (or use 2 whole large eggs and no bourbon)
2 teaspoons baking powder, gluten-free
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (or 3/4 teaspoon nutmeg plus 1/4 teaspoon cloves)

Preheat oven to 450ºF.

Butter or spray with cooking oil a 10-inch pie plate and one ramekin.

Mix together all liquid ingredients in one bowl and whisk together the dry ingredients in another. Slowly pour the dry ingredients in to the liquid bowl while stirring. Beat until totally combined.

Pour into prepared pie plate, leaving at least 1/4 inch between the batter and the rim of the pie plate.

Pour any remaining batter into prepared ramekin(s). Smooth the top of the pie with a rubber spatula.

Bake at 450ºF for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 375ºF and bake for 30 more minutes or until a knife inserted into the pie comes out clean.

Serves: 6–8

*This recipe and over 149 more, also available in my new cookbook, Free for All Cooking: 150 Easy Gluten-Free, Allergy-Friendly Recipes the Whole Family Can Enjoy!

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This entry was posted on Monday, November 21st, 2011 at 10:52 am and is filed under All, Desserts, Pies, Recipes, Thanksgiving. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

27 Comments

We'd love to hear yours!

Stephanie said: on November 20, 2010

can I use water instead of bourbon?
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- Jules said: on November 20, 2010
  
  Hi Stephanie, I’d use spiced apple cider instead of bourbon — it gives more flavor!
  Reply
Lori Quinn said: on November 20, 2010

I love this website, it is helping me through our allergy transition. I’d really like to try this for my family but we cannot use alcohol, coconut, milk, soy, almonds, eggs etc. I can use hemp for milk, any suggestions to replace creamer and bourbon? This is our first allergy-free holiday and I’d like to make it as normal as possible. Thanks!
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- Jules said: on November 20, 2010
  
  So glad to be of help to you! My new book, Free for All Cooking, would also be a valuable resource, given your family’s food restrictions. As for a bourbon sub, spiced apple cider works wonderfully! For the creamer, you could use hemp milk, but you would need to thicken it, so add at least 2 Tbs. cornstarch or potato starch to the flour you add and give that a try; if you have a hemp ice cream you like (Tempt makes some good ones), try thawing it a bit and adding that instead of the creamer as another option. Get creative and enjoy the delicious result, even if it doesn’t fully set up because of the substitutions.
  Reply
- Valerie said: on November 21, 2010
  
  I like the idea of not having to make a separate crust!
  
  Lori – Another great resource for those who are avoiding a lot more than just gluten is http://www.kidswithfoodallergies.org. When my youngest only had about 8 safe foods, I was still able to make him a pumpkin pie using a recipe I found there. Many of their options are “top 8″ free.
  Reply
Naomi said: on November 20, 2010

My family loves pumpkin pie, and I look forward to trying your recipe! It’s always a big treat to have the little ramekins with extra pie filling — everybody jumps at the chance for a taste of pie before Thanksgiving dinner!

The ramkein might cook a little faster than the pie — check it about 15 minutes before the pie is done so it doesn’t burn!
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- Jules said: on November 20, 2010
  
  great tip!
  Reply
Mary Blair Denious said: on November 22, 2010

Jules, your pumpkin pie recipe on your website varies slightly from your pumpkin pie recipe I found in Living Without. I am going to make it for my family in Va. Which do you recommend I follow? Thanks, and I am a big fan.
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- Jules said: on November 23, 2010
  
  The recipe printed in Living Without’s October/November issue is a pie filling recipe – it should have been my crustless pie recipe (my fault!). The correct recipe was reprinted on their website with this link. If you want a crustless pumpkin pie recipe, use this blog recipe or the one on the website; use the one in the magazine only if you’re making it with a crust. Sorry for any confusion — have a wonderful holiday!!
  Reply
  - Marilyn said: on November 26, 2010
    
    Wow, am I glad to read this. I made the pie recipe fron “Living Without” twice and wondered what in the world I was doing wrong since there was no crust forming. Now I know. No biggie, though; it was still good as “Pumpkin Pudding” and I made traditional pie for the rest of my family .
    Reply
  - Jen@FrugalFreebiesandDeals said: on November 26, 2010
    
    I made this recipe, too- in fact I just ate it for breakfast. It did not make a crust.. but it does slice decently- we did not mind at all, plus less carbs
    Reply
Bittany said: on November 22, 2010

what is the carbohydrate count…sugar…serving size…and fat content?
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- Jules said: on November 23, 2010
  
  Carbs 44g/Fat 3.9g (8 servings/pie) — all recipes in my ebooks have nutritionals included. Luckily this one is in my Thanksgiving ebook so you can see all those nutritionals!
  Reply
Liz said: on November 23, 2010

I want to make this but do not have any buckwheat flour? Can I use 3/4 cup Jules Flour instead? Or will I be missing something critical? Could I add something else? I just HATE to buy and mix all of those little bags of pricey flour – I have been so happy with my Jules-all-in-one bag!
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- Jules said: on November 23, 2010
  
  Liz, you can certainly use more of my flour – it ought to work just fine for you. I totally understand about not wanting to have to buy bunches of different flours! The buckwheat flour adds some flavor and nutritional value, but it’s not key to the recipe’s success.
  Reply
Angela said: on November 24, 2010

I love your flour, and I’m so excited to try this pie. My 8 year old daughter has been off of most of the big 8 for 2 years now. It has been a crazy couple of years…the learning curve is so BiG! Wish I would’ve had your flour 2 years ago, but I’m so so thankful that I have it now! I got your Free for All cookbook in my hands yesterday and haven’t been able to put it down. This Thanksgiving my sweet girl will be able to eat pumpkin pie for the first time in years! Thank you!!
Angela
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- Jules said: on November 24, 2010
  
  Your little girl is super lucky to have such a dedicated mom! Wishing you all the best Thanksgiving yet!
  Reply
Sharon said: on November 24, 2010

Just made this for Thanksgiving for tomorrow and it turned out really, really good! I had a 9″ pie pan and used 3 ramekins with it. The ramekins actually took the same amount of time to cook as the pie since they were deeper. So glad to have the mini pies to eat today!!
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- Jules said: on November 24, 2010
  
  Yes, it’s a great bonus to have the little ones to “snack” on before Thanksgiving!!!
  Reply
Amanda said: on November 24, 2010

Can you substitute Flaxseed Meal for the buckwheat?

Thanks,
Amanda
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- Jules said: on November 25, 2010
  
  You could, but the consistency with differ; you could always just use more of my flour in lieu of buckwheat.
  Reply
Jacqui said: on November 24, 2010

I tried the dairy-free, egg-free version of this recipe today for my almost 2 year old daughter’s daycare Thanksgiving potluck. It didn’t go over well. Her class had liked the gf, dairy and egg-free pumpkin pie filling I’d made before using a Food Allergy News recipe, but they’d disliked the coconut flake and shortening crust. I figured I’d give your dairy and egg-free version to see if it was better. The kids took a bite and then promptly spit it out. I got a similar reaction from the adults, so I gave it a taste. The flavor is good, but the texture is wrong, more like mochi than a custard, so it sticks to your mouth and tongue and has to be rolled around as it is chewed to get it swallowed.
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- Jules said: on November 25, 2010
  
  Hi Jacqui – I’m sorry that the pie didn’t turn out as you had hoped. It’s hard to say what went wrong with so many variables in baking, and so many brands/ingredient substitutions. Sounds like perhaps it’s the egg substitute with the other ingredients used. I have never experienced what you are describing, so I can assure you that your experience is not common with this recipe! I just made it again last week to rave reviews, so I’d encourage you to try it again sometime, perhaps with some different brands of ingredients. All baking is an experiment, and one ingredient or off-measurement can sometimes throw an entire recipe off — and it’s not your fault! Keep trying and take notes of brands you used, etc. so you know what to try differently next time!
  Reply