A holiday treat, this Vegan Bourbon Pecan Pie is dairy and egg free with a hint of molasses, maple and a taste of bourbon! Plan ahead. You’ll make the pie, then it’ll rest overnight at room temperature to set. The coconut oil crust is a dream to work with and flaky and tender! | Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Rodelle.
It’s the Holiday Season!
We’re getting down to the wire with Thanksgiving so close. December holidays will be here before we know it. I’m feeling ready…
Ready for a break that is! hehe. How about you?
After making an egg-based Bourbon Pecan Pie, I was asked by Bob, a Vanilla And Bean reader, if anyone had tried making my recipe without eggs. I hadn’t heard from anyone who did, so I got to work on this vegan pecan pie recipe.
Making a Vegan Pecan Pie
First, I started working on the crust. After some trial and error I finally came up with a Coconut Oil Pie Crust that’s flakey and tender. Then I got to work on the filling.
I tried aquafaba in direct replacement of the eggs, but I ended up with a too loose filling. Perhaps I didn’t bake it long enough? I ended up freezing the filling to be used later as an ice cream topping. At some point I’ll go back to the drawing board on aquafaba, but wanted to try something different.
I recalled reading a recipe from The Washington Post, by Joe Yonan, some time ago about vegan pecan pie. Joe uses a roux to thicken his recipe so I thought I’d give it a go! I used coconut oil, flour, and bourbon to make the roux. And this worked, but I boiled the sugar mixture too long upon initial cooking.
I had to go back to my baking books and review sugar cooking temperatures from firm ball to hard crack stage. I ended up with a candy Vegan Bourbon Pecan Pie! But at least I was on the right track.
Tweaking the Recipe
After decreasing the flour just a bit, not bringing the filling to a boil on the stovetop, and baking it for just the right amount of time, I finally got the consistency I was after.
What I love about this vegan pecan pie is the richness of the filling. It’s loaded with pecans, a hint of maple and molasses. The bourbon is noticeable but not overwhelming. I also use brown rice syrup instead of the traditionally used corn syrup to avoid GMOs and the over-the-top sweet typical of corn syrup.
Vegan Pecan Pie vs Egg Based Pecan Pie
The texture of this vegan pecan pie recipe is different from an egg-based, custardy pecan pie but still smooth and rich in its own eggless right. And it’s good for me anyway, as someone who is trying to avoid eggs unless they come from the farm down the street.
Rob nor our neighbor is complaining! They’ve devoured most of it, and I’ve had to resist after having WAY too much pecan pie over the past several weeks.
Inspired Ingredients
I use Rodelle’s Organic Bourbon Pure Vanilla Extract, an aromatic and rich vanilla that’s sourced from an association of over 3,000 farmers who collectively make up an employee-owned cooperative. Their vanilla beans and extracts are truly farm-to-table and produce rich, earthy notes that tie the flavors of this pie together beautifully.
Find more inspired recipes from Rodelle at their website.
Make this pie using my Coconut Oil Pie Crust and serve it warm with a big ol’ scoop of Vegan Bourbon Vanilla Bean Ice Cream and a good drizzle of melted chocolate.
Vegan Bourbon Pecan Pie
Ingredients
- 1 Par Baked Coconut Oil Pie Crust , + leftover dough for leaf decorations*
- 2 C Pecans, whole, 245g
- 2 Tbs Coconut Oil, solid
- 3 Tbs All Purpose Flour
- 1/4 C Bourbon, 50g
- 1 C Brown Rice Syrup, 322g
- 2/3 C Dark Brown Sugar, 132g
- 1 Tbs Unsulphured Molasses
- 2 Tbs Maple Syrup
- 2 tsp Bourbon Vanilla Extract, I use Rodelle
For Finishing and Serving:
- Nut Milk
- Organic Cane Sugar
- Extra pie dough cut into leaf or festive shapes*, see note
- Vegan Vanilla Bean Ice Cream
- Melted Chocolate
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F (180C), setting the oven rack in the center of the oven. Toast the pecans for about 10-12 minutes or until fragrant. Rough chop and set aside.
- In a medium sauce pot, add the coconut oil and heat until shimmering. Turn the burner down to low and add the flour whisking until a paste forms. Turn the burner off and whisk in the bourbon until smooth. To the flour mixture, add the brown rice syrup, sugar, molasses, maple syrup and extract. Turn the burner back on to medium low and whisk until ingredients are throughly mixed. Continue whisking occasionally until bubbles just start to form around the edges. Remove from heat immediately and add the chopped pecans. Stir, then pour the mixture into the par baked pie crust and spread it evenly.
- Brush the edges of the crust with nut milk and sprinkle with sugar.
- Bake in a preheated oven for 30-35 minutes. When done, the crust will be golden-brown and the pie will bubbly, loose and not set. Allow to set over night to firm up before decorating with pie dough cut outs* and/or cutting into the pie.
- To cut into the pie, spray a sharp knife with pan spray. Using firm pressure, cut into the pie, wiping the knife off each time to clean it before cutting again. Rewarm individual slices for about 3-4 minutes in a 325F (163C) oven. It will melt if over-heated.
- Serve with vanilla bean ice cream and chocolate drizzle.
- Store the pie covered, at room temperature for up to three days. Some of the sugar will leak out a bit as it sets, but it can be scraped up with a spoon easily when slightly warmed.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate. If this information is important to you, please have it verified independently.
Made it? Leave a comment below!
The most helpful comment may include recipe rating, feedback, any modifications or helping other commentors.
Hi Traci,
Thanks for your reply. I wonder if I could sub agave nectar for the coconut nectar. I understand that you need something thick, thicker than maple syrup. And more molasses might be too molasses-y. I do think the roux will help thicken, so I can always make more roux and add it if the mixture is too thin. I’ll be sure to let you know how it turns out and what I use.
I made this over the weekend for my non vegan in-laws and they LOVED it! My husband and I are vegan and it’s always a pain to try to find recipes to make that everyone will eat at family gatherings, so I went with this and it was a huge success. Thank you for sharing! Your pictures are beautiful, the recipe itself was very easy to follow and your additional notes at the bottom about reheating & serving were perfect!
Hello Tabby! Thank you so much for coming back, rating the recipe and leaving a note! Hooray for success! I’m SO happy to hear it was a hit! Thank youuuu!
Looks amazing! What gorgeous photos too. Before I make this I have a question. For the weights listed next to the cup measurements, did you measure this weight yourself? Or did you find these weights from a conversion website? I only use recipes measured in weight, so I just wanted to check if it was totally accurate and not just estimated (sometimes the conversion websites are a bit off). Thanks!
Hello Claire! Thank you for your note. I weigh everything myself. I hope you enjoy the pie!
THIs looks incredible, but I want to make it for dinner tonight! My boyfriend had recently become vegan and he loves pecan pie. Would it be possible to pull off and serve in one day if I refrigerate it for maybe 2 hours?
Hi there Lauren! I’ve not tried it, but you could certainly give it a go!! I hope you two enjoy it.
I am new to veganism and looking for a delicious vegan pecan pie to bake. So far yours looks the best. My question is can the bourbon be left out as I don’t do alcohol – is there a good substitution or could I just leave it out with out ruining the integrity of the pie? Thank you so much for your time. Deborah
Hey Deborah! Thank you for your note…. since you’re making a roux, you need a liquid – bourbon in this case. But, and although I’ve not tried it, you should be able to get away, with subbing water. The flavor of the pie won’t be what I intended, since bourbon is a vanilla and caramel flavor bomb, but you could give it a go. I hope this helps!
You could probably do coffee!! That’s always good with vanilla and caramel 😍
I’m so excited to find this! My husband loves pecan pie, but our oldest kiddo has a wheat and egg allergy. Going to use a GF crust, wondering your thoughts on using a GF all purpose flour for the roux? I think I’m going to attempt it unless you think otherwise! Fingers crossed!
Hey Trish! Thank you for your note. I wish I could say absolutely it would work… but since I’ve not tried it, it’s hard to say. But, since 1 to 1 AP GF flour says it’s 1 to 1, I think I’d trust it. I hope you enjoy it and it all works out! Would love to hear back either way!
Traci, Where have you been all my life? I have just stumbled upon your lovely site. I have been looking for a realistic vegan pecan pie recipe for 5 years. I’ve attempted 2 other recipes and they sadly were both a major let down. I’m going to try this one over the weekend. I echo others when I say how much I appreciate your site and style. Lots of love to you.
Thank you for your kind words, Bridget. I hope you enjoy the recipe and it works well for you! Thank you so much for stopping by and sharing your thoughts!
Thank you Sylvia!
Thank you Shannon! More flavor than corn syrup – agreed! I use it for many sweet things. Noted on aquafaba… but I’ve used it a few times when I’ve needed binding and it’s not worked for me. I think I need to whip it to a meringue first or reduce it down to a thicker consistency. Always learning, right? Thank you for stopping by!
Thank you for this beautiful holiday vegan recipe. Just wanted to let everyone know that I subbed coconut nectar when my local market didn’t stock brown rice syrup. The pie came out perfect.
Thank you for sharing this with us Heather. I’ll have to keep an eye out for coconut nectar!
Hi Heather,
I’m looking to sub the brown rice syrup or corn syrup. I’m not familiar with coconut nectar. Is it similar in consistency to agave nectar? I’m guessing whatever you use has to be thick and gooey.