Epic Vegan Sweet Potato Pie

Prep Time 4

Cook Time 1 35

Total Time 5 35

Servings (Slices)

Course Dessert

Cuisine Gluten-Free (optional), Vegan

Freezer Friendly 1 month

Does it keep? 4-5 Days

Ingredients

1 (9-inch) vegan pie crust (store-bought or homemade // gluten-free as needed)
1 ¾ cups roasted sweet potato purée (2 medium sweet potatoes (~2/3 lb or 300 g each) yield ~1 ¾ cups or 425 g sweet potato purée)
1 cup water (plus more for soaking cashews)
3/4 cup maple syrup*
1/4 cup raw cashews*
2 Tbsp cornstarch*
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp sea salt

FOR SERVING optional

Dairy-free whipped cream (coconut or cashew)

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

ROAST SWEET POTATOES: To make sweet potato purée, halve the sweet potatoes lengthwise and place cut side down on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake at 375 F (190 C) for ~40-45 minutes or until very tender to the touch (up to ~1 hour if your sweet potatoes are on the larger side). After baking, move to one side of the pan and wrap the parchment paper over top to steam. Let steam for 5 minutes. Then peel away skin and mash in a mixing bowl (or food processor). Set aside.
SOAK CASHEWS: Add cashews to a heatproof bowl and cover with hot water by at least 1-2 inches. Let them soak for 15-20 minutes, then drain and set aside.
PIE CRUST: If making a homemade pie crust, prepare it while the cashews soak and par-bake if indicated in the pie crust recipe (or the pie crust package if using store-bought). We used our homemade gluten-free pie crust and par-baked for 20 minutes.
Before proceeding with the filling, double check that your oven is preheated to 375 F (190 C).
Place the mashed sweet potatoes into a high-speed blender with the water, maple syrup, soaked and drained cashews, cornstarch, vanilla extract, cinnamon, nutmeg, and sea salt. Blend on high until smooth and creamy.
Pour the filling into your prepared crust and smooth the top with a rubber spatula (if desired). Bake at 375 F (190 C) for 10 minutes. Once the 10 minutes is up, reduce the oven temperature to 325 F (162 C) and bake for 45-50 minutes until the center is just slightly jiggly. The center should be more solid than liquid with a structured jiggle instead of one that looks more liquidy. Remove from the oven and let cool at room temperature for 30 minutes before cooling it completely in the refrigerator for about 3 hours.
Serve cold topped with dairy-free whipped cream (coconut or cashew). Store leftovers in the refrigerator lightly covered for up to 4-5 days or in the freezer for 1 month (or longer).

Video

Notes

*We tested with canned sweet potato purée and DO NOT recommend it. The flavor is acidic and it doesn't set up properly.
*If you prefer only mildly sweet desserts, you can reduce the maple syrup to 1/2-2/3 cup, but we found 3/4 cup to be the perfect balance between being indulgent and becoming overly sweet.
*If nut-free, you could try replacing the water and cashews with a thick dairy-free milk, but we haven't tested it this way and can't guarantee the result.
*We tested with arrowroot starch in place of cornstarch and strongly preferred cornstarch. If you want to use arrowroot starch, use 1 ½ Tablespoons, but know the texture will be different. It’s a bit pudding-like and slightly gluey.
*Loosely adapted from our super talented friend Joy the Baker.
*Nutrition information is a rough estimate calculated with our homemade vegan + gluten-free pie crust and without optional ingredients.

Nutrition (1 of 10 servings)