Happy Halloween, everyone! Today’s recipe is for Tofu Pumpkin Pie. I love pumpkin pie, and I love it even more when it’s super easy and relatively quick to make. Plus, you’ll learn how to make my Root Beer Sweet Potato Casserole… and yes, it IS as good as it sounds!

For the full recipes and nutritional information, click here or keep reading!

Our pumpkin pie filling is the exact same filling used in my Pumpkin Icebox Cake. I won’t go into too much detail here (check out that page or down below for the full recipe), though I will say that you may want to at least give your tofu a squeeze in cheesecloth (or use a tofu press) to remove some of the excess moisture, unlike in the cake where you don’t have to. I didn’t, and while the pie turned out fine, the top cracked while baking which may not be the look you’re going for. Squeezing or pressing the tofu will also help the bottom crust stay crisp longer.

Anyway, onto the crust. This recipe had been adapted from one in a 1981 Better Homes & Gardens cookbook. My changes include a reduction to the salt and, of course, using plant-based milks instead of dairy. I have used cashew milk in the past which was great, but today I’m using coconut milk (and no, you can’t taste the coconut in the final crust).

Preheat your oven to 425°F (220°C). Whisk or sift together the flour and salt.

Pour the oil and milk into the same measuring cup, but DO NOT MIX. Frankly, I don’t know why not; it’s not like they’ll actually blend together anyway. But hey, you’re the boss, BH&G.

Dump the liquids into the dry and start mixing. The beauty of this recipe is, unlike most pie crusts, it’s really hard to overmix this. Keep mixing until you have a lovely smooth dough.

This recipe is for two crusts, so place your dough ball onto your work surface and divide it in half. You can of course make double the filling and make two pies (that’s what I did for the printable instructions), but you can also wrap the second half in plastic wrap to use for another recipe. If you do that, just remember to use HALF of all of the filling ingredients listed in the recipe.

Roll out one of your dough halves between two sheets of waxed paper until it’s large enough to fit in a 9″ pie plate.

Transfer the dough to the pie plate, removing the waxed paper. Flute the edges. Shoutout to my mom for being the pastry chef / hand model for this recipe. As I said, this is a very easy pie crust, but I haven’t had much practice with this recipe whereas she is our pâtissière par excellence (plus, somebody had to take the pictures, right?)

Now pour your filling into the crust. I like to leave my filling top a little swirly-whirly-lumpy-bumpy on the edges, but by all means smooth it out if you prefer. Bake this at 425°F (220°C) for 15 minutes, then turn the heat down to 350°F (175°C) for 45 minutes. Check on it after 30 minutes, and if the top looks like it’s getting too dark, cover it with aluminum foil.

And there it is! Now, you see that cracking? That’s because I only drained and patted the tofu dry rather than pressing or squeezing it. Again, not a big deal, but it might be something to take into consideration.

Serve with your favorite whipped cream (mine is the Soyatoo Soy Whip) and maybe a Dandies pumpkin marshmallow.

Now onto our sweet potato recipe. Obviously, the key ingredients in Root Beer Sweet Potato Casserole is root beer, right? Well, not exactly. The key ingredient here is root beer concentrate, available in your grocery store’s baking aisle, right next to the other extracts. If you can’t find it, or if you don’t want to buy it just for this recipe, you can take a can of your favorite root beer and reduce it in a saucepan on low heat until it’s thick and syrupy. Just remember to skip or adjust the added sugar in this recipe, as well.

1 medium sweet potato should be enough for two servings. I washed mine, but I didn’t scrub it as I won’t be using the peel. Prick it all over with a fork to release steam and wrap in aluminum foil.

Bake at 350°F (175°C) for about an hour or until a knife easily passes through it. Let it cool.

Remove the flesh from the skin. If you’re making this for a special occasion, you might want to either press this through a sieve to remove the fibers or make this in a blender. However, since this is just for me, I don’t mind it being a little hairy.

Mix in your root beer concentrate, sugar, and spices. If you’re using the root beer syrup method as mentioned above, just add in a teaspoon of the syrup at a time until you reach the desired intensity.

If you’re making these as a make-head dish for Thanksgiving, they are now ready to be stored in the fridge or freezer until the big day. That morning, defrost as needed and pour into a baking dish. If you like, you can top with vegan marshmallows. I’m using Dandies pumpkin marshmallows again (because pumpkin).

Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 30 minutes or until the marshmallows get all bubbly and melty and toasty.

This is obviously incredibly sweet, but it’s so satisfying alongside all of your savory Thanksgiving dishes. I love them because it’s a dish that everyone recognizes, but with a twist to keep them interesting!

Next week, I’ll be making my AMAZING (ahem, if I do say so myself) Peperoncini Brussels Sprouts. Don’t like Brussels sprouts? Trust me,

you will!

Tofu Pumpkin Pie with Easy Oil Pie Crust | Printable Version

Makes 2 pies (16 servings)
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 1 hour

Ingredients:

 Crust:
2 ¼ c all-purpose flour
½ t salt
3 oz unsweetened coconut milk (or milk of your choice)
½ c canola oil
Filling:
2 15 oz cans pure pureed pumpkin
18 oz tofu, any variety, drained and pressed
1 ½ c sugar
½ t salt
2 t ground cinnamon
1 t ground ginger
½ t ground nutmeg
¼ t ground cloves
¼ t ground cardamom

Whipped cream (such as Soyatoo Soy Whip), for garnish

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C)
2. For crust, sift or whisk together flour and salt.
3. Pour milk and oil into the same measuring cup. DO NOT MIX.
4. Pour liquid into the dry ingredients and mix until smooth.
5. Roll out half of the dough between two sheets of waxed paper until large enough to fit in a 9” pie plate. Repeat for second half of dough.
6. Transfer dough to two 9” pie plates, removing the waxed paper.
7. For filling, blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth. Pour into prepared crusts.
8. Bake for 15 minutes, then turn the oven down to 350°F (175°C) for 45 minutes. If the top looks like it’s getting too dark, cover with aluminum foil for the remaining time.
9. Serve with whipped cream as desired.

Root Beer Sweet Potato Casserole (FAT FREE!) | Printable Version

Makes 2 servings
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Ingredients:
1 medium sweet potato
¼ t root beer concentrate
2 T sugar
Dash of salt
¼ t vanilla extract
⅛ t pumpkin pie spice
¾ c mini marshmallows
Directions:

1. Prick the sweet potato all over with a fork to release steam. Wrap in aluminum foil and bake at 350°F (175°C) for about an hour, or until a knife easily goes through the sweet potato. Allow to cool.
2. Peel the sweet potato and press through a sieve to remove the fibers, if desired. Mix in the rest of the ingredients (apart from the marshmallows).
3. Pour mixture into a small baking dish and cover with marshmallows. Bake at 350°F (175°C), preferably under a broiler, for about 15 minutes or until the marshmallows brown.