This vegan sweet potato pie is so rich and creamy, no one will believe it’s vegan. The filling can be made in a food processor for a quick and easy fall dessert the whole family will love.
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We’ve been covering vegan Thanksgiving recipes all month. Over the past couple of weeks I’ve shared recipes for classic green bean casserole, best-ever mushroom gravy, roasted Brussels sprouts, and fan-favorite sweet potato casserole. But now it’s time for dessert and I’ve got a good one for you!
It’s a rich and creamy sweet potato pie!
I’ve been making a variation of this pie for 12 years. It is so incredibly rich and creamy that no one will believe it’s vegan! Better yet, this pie can be made a day or two in advance to keep holiday prep simple and, with several time saving tips throughout, you can assemble this pie in minutes!
It’s the perfect holiday dessert.
Ingredients & Substitutions
This vegan pie is so rich and creamy with the perfect custard texture that no one at your holiday table will believe just how simple it is to make. Made with just 7 ingredients + spices (that you likely already have on hand) this is a no-stress holiday dessert.
Here is everything you need.
Ingredient Notes
- Silken Tofu – It’s very important that you use silken tofu. Silken tofu is a shelf-stable product found usually in the international food aisle of most well-stocked grocery stores. Like regular tofu, silken tofu comes in soft, medium, firm, and extra firm. For this recipe, I recommend using extra-firm.
- Sweet Potatoes – This recipe calls for 1 pound of sweet potatoes. That is about 2 large sweet potatoes. To save on feel free to use canned sweet potato puree.
- Brown Sugar – Check out my guide to vegan sugars and alternative sugar replacements. For a healthier sugar alternative, I recommend coconut sugar.
- Vegan Butter – Look for a high-quality non-hydrogenated vegan butter. I recommend either Earth Balance or Miyoko’s.
- 1 Pie Crust – You can either use homemade or store-bought. Most well-stocked grocery stores carry vegan frozen pie crusts.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step One – Make the Crust
Tips for making the perfect pie crust.
- Have an even mix of vegan butter and coconut oil. By combining the two, you will get the perfect combination of buttery flavor and flaky texture. Do remember: both your butter and coconut oil should be chilled before using!
- Add just enough water to allow your pie crust to come together. We don’t want overly moist crusts. Wetter pie crusts are easier to work with, but the drier it is, the flakier (aka, more delicious) your pie crust will be.
- Chill your pie crust twice. The first chill allows for the dough to harden just enough to be rolled out. If you chill it for too long, you may need to warm the dough up by kneading it between your hands. The second chill allows the fats to re-firm up. This prevents the butter and coconut oil from melting too quickly in the oven so that your pie crust keeps its beautiful structure.
If you are struggling with making your pie crust pretty. Don’t worry. Rustic is always a lovely look and tastes exactly the same.
Time Saving Tip: Save on time and buy a frozen pie crust. Most well-stocked grocery stores carry vegan frozen or refrigerated pie crust. Just check the ingredients to make sure it’s vegan.
Step Two – Bake the Potatoes
Preheat the oven to 350F. Poke a few holes in the sweet potatoes and place them on a baking sheet. Bake for 1 hour, until the potatoes are easily piercable with a fork.
Remove them from the oven and run them under cold water. Once they are cool enough to touch, remove the skin. Place them in a large bowl and mash them with a potato masher.
Time saving Tip: Save on time and use canned sweet potato purée.
Step Three – Make the Filling
Transfer the mashed potatoes to a food processor and add the remaining filling ingredients. Blend until completely smooth. Pour the pie filling into your pie crust, spread evenly with an offset spatula,
Pro Tip: Getting the right tofu is super important. Silken tofu, unlike regular tofu, is a shelf-stable product found usually in the international food aisle of most well-stocked grocery stores. If you can’t find it, you can buy it online.
Step Four – Bake
Bake the pie, uncovered, for 60 minutes. After 60 minutes, check for doneness. The pie should be mostly firm with a little bit of jiggle. If there is still a lot of jiggle to the pie, bake it for another 10 minutes before checking again. You will know the pie is done when the filling starts cracking around the sides
Pro Tip: Your crust will start to brown after about 60 minutes. If that happens, cover the pie in tin foil and continue to bake.
Let the pie cool completely at room temperature before transferring it to the refrigerator to chill. This prevents the pie from cracking.
Serving And Storing
Serving – Chill the pie for at least 4 hours. This pie is best when chilled overnight. This pie should be served cold with coconut whipped cream.
Storing – Wrap leftover pie in plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or the freezer for up to 2 months.
Tips And Tricks
- Ensure that you are not baking above 350F. Anything higher will bake your pie too quickly and, thus, unevenly.
- When checking for doneness, you want your pie to be slightly wobbly. Give it a little shake and see how it feels. If it’s too wobbly, the pie isn’t set and will be too soft. If it has no wobble at all, the pie is overcooked and won’t have the custard-like, melt-in-your-mouth feel.
- Your crust will start to brown after about 60 minutes. If that happens, cover the pie in tin foil and continue to bake.
- Let the pie cool completely at room temperature before transferring it to the refrigerator to chill. This prevents the pie from cracking. Chill the pie for at least 4 hours. This pie is best when chilled overnight.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! It is the only kind of tofu that will blend completely into this custard. It is a shelf-stable product found usually in the international food aisle of most well-stocked grocery stores.
Unfortunately, no. This recipe centers around the tofu being the base of the custard. There are no equal substitutions.
Yes! This pie is best made in advance. Make it up to 48 hours in advance and store it, tightly wrapped, in the refrigerator. Alternatively, you can freeze this pie for up to two months. Let it thaw in the refrigerator the night before.
Yes! To save on time, feel free to use canned sweet potato purée instead.
More Vegan Pie Recipes
- Fresh Berry Fruit Pizza
- Cream Chocolate Silk Pie
- Salted Turtle Tart
- Vegan Chocolate Hazelnut Pie
- Perfect Apple Pie
- Classic Pumpkin Pie
Fore more inspiration check out all my vegan pies and tarts.
Vegan Sweet Potato Pie
Ingredients
- 1 pound sweet potatoes
- 1/2 cup vegan butter, soften
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup coconut milk
- 1/2 cup extra firm silken tofu
- 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ginger
- 1/4 tsp cloves
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
- 1 store bought or homemade pie crust
Instructions
- Start by making your pie crust. Spray a 9" pie pan with cooking spray and set aside. If you are making your own pie crust, follow these instructions. Otherwise, pull your pie crust out to thaw.
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Poke a few holes in the sweet potatoes and place them on a baking sheet. Bake for 1 hour, until the potatoes are easily piercable with a fork. Remove them from the oven and run them under cold water. Once they are cool enough to touch, remove the skin. Place them in a large bowl and mash them with a potato masher.
- Transfer the mashed potatoes to a food processor and add the remaining filling ingredients. Blend until completely smooth.
- Pour the pie filling into your pie crust, spread evenly with an offset spatula, and bake, uncovered, for 60 minutes. At 60 minutes, check for doneness. The pie should be mostly firm and the pie crust should be golden brown. If there is still a lot of jiggle to the pie, bake it for another 10 minutes before checking again.
- Remove from the oven and let cool completely at room temperature before transferring to the refrigerator to continue chilling. The pie should set for 4 hours but best overnight. Serve with coconut whipped cream.
Notes
- When checking for doneness, you want your pie to be slightly wobbly. Give it a little shake and see how it feels. If it’s too wobbly, the pie isn’t set and will be too soft. If it has no wobble at all, the pie is overcooked and won’t have the custard-like, melt-in-your-mouth feel.
- Your crust will start to brown after about 60 minutes. If that happens, cover the pie in tin foil and continue to bake.
Hi, I’m Sarah. I’m a 14-year (and counting) vegan, professionally trained photographer, former pastry chef, founder of My Darling Vegan, and author of the
Nicole says
Turned out wonderfully! Thank you for posting this!
Antonio Cracco | Itschefadvice says
Hi Sarah! A really really nice recipe for vegan sweet potato pie. It was a great experience to read this. I’ll definitely try it next week. Thanks for sharing such a lovely piece.
TINIA FLOWERS says
what does the 1/2 cup extra firm silken tofu do for the pie? is it a binder (egg replacement)?
Sarah McMinn says
Yes, it does work as a binder.
Paula says
This look really good. I may buy the puree sweet potato and if so what size? Is this 1 lb of puree? If I am using the sweet potatoes is the raw 1 lb or puree 1 lb. thank you I always love your recipes.
Nicki says
I would guess you could use about 2.5 cups of purée. I often put sweet potatoes in the crock pot when I don’t feel like putting them in the oven. Rinse, throw them in for about 4 hours on high depending on their size. I don’t poke holes in them or ands water, or anything. The skin comes right off after.