This blogpost also is available in German.
This chocolate pecan maple pie is a sweet seduction, which not only tastes excellent for Thanksgiving, but also for Christmas or for the afternoon coffee party. The pie is dairy and egg free – completely vegan – and really creamy. With a tasty chocolate base, the creamy maple-cream filling and the crunchy pecans nuts, the pie is a hit with young and old as well as non-vegans.
Chocolate Pecan Maple Cake
I can hardly resist a piece of pie, you may already know that. That’s why I like to bake something sweet – especially on weekends – so that we can have something at home when we feel like it. Even if unexpected guests announce themselves, I like to have something at home that I can serve to my visitors. Fast and simple recipes are best. This vegan chocolate pecan maple pie definitely belongs in that category.
When I started baking when I was a teenager, this maple pie was one of my favourites. Of course at that time still in a non-vegan version and with storebought dough. So I had to veganize this recipe from my youth for you guys. In addition, this pie is absolutely sure of success and easy to prepare.
Vegan Chocolate Pecan Maple Tarte
For this vegan chocolate pecan maple pie you need a sweet version of my quiche dough, which I also used for this onion pie and the cauliflower potato quiche. But the pie should also work with the cherry pie short pastry recipe.
For the sweet version you need some sugar besides flour and vegan butter. I like to use coconut blossom sugar or xylitol, because I prefer to avoid regular refined sugar. But you can use conventional sugar if you like. The dough will probably also work with maple syrup, date paste or other liquid sweeteners. You simply have to reduce the amount of water in the dough or leave it out completely, depending on how moist the dough gets. I haven’t tested it myself yet.
For the filling you only need – without the spices – 3 ingredients, maple syrup, vegetable cream and some starch to bind the liquids.
That’s how it works!
This vegan chocolate pecan maple pie is easy to prepare and guaranteed to work! Actually, you can’t do anything wrong if you stick to the recipe. Depending on the type of oven, however, baking time can differ.
The pie dough
A detailed guide with helpful tips and tricks on how to make the perfect dough for this recipe can be found here. Cooling between the individual processing steps is also essential for the sweet version. Blind baking is not necessary for this recipe, as the edges of the dough would otherwise tend to become too dry.
The filling
To avoid powder nests, you can mix the starch with water into a thick paste and then add it while stirring the filling. Alternatively, you can gradually add the starch to the batter using a sieve. In this case stir continuously as well.
The filling is quite liquid, by the way. Don’t worry, that’s normal! It will thicken during baking, but it won’t become very firm. This makes the filling really creamy. And don’t be afraid when the filling inflates in the oven. As soon as you take the cake out, it will collapse. However, it might make sense to place a large baking tray under the baking tin if something spills over or drips down. This keeps the oven clean.
Bake the nuts properly
You can put the pecans on the cake 5-10 minutes before the end of baking. If you put them on the tart at the beginning and leave them in the oven throughout the baking time, they will burn. Simply take the cake out of the oven, spread the nuts on the filling and put it back in the oven for 5 to 10 minutes. To make the pecans crispy, you can spread maple syrup on them.
Pecans – not local but seasonal
Pecans are imported goods, they do not grow in our latitudes. Therefore, there are no regional pecans. They grow mainly in the USA, but also in Australia, China, South America and South Africa. American pecans are in season from October to April, which is why they are often used in US cuisine for autumn and winter recipes. In other words, if you use pecans in your kitchen now, they are at least seasonal.
In general, nuts are very healthy. They provide our body with healthy fats (omega-3 fatty acids). Therefore I try to eat a handful (approx. 20-30g) of nuts every day. I like to vary it a little. So I always take other nuts, some regional, some not. Importing pecans causes more CO2 emissions than consuming local nuts. I`m aware of that. Nevertheless, I wouldn’t want to do without pecans, they are rich in selenium on the one hand and taste totally delicious on the other. But I at least try to limit the pleasure and don’t eat them every day.
However, if you do not want to consume imported nuts at all, you can simply use walnuts instead. These are in season from October to February and are the perfect regional substitute for pecans. Depending on the actual season hazelnuts might work as well. Although hazelnut season is limited to September, October and parts of November.
Alternatives to pecan nut
As already mentioned, pecans are not regional. Moreover, they do not taste good to everyone. If you would like to try this vegan maple cake anyway, nothing stands in the way. Instead of pecans you can easily use hazelnuts, tree nuts, Brazil nuts, macadamia or almonds. According to your taste.
Do you have a nut allergy? No problem, then you can leave out the pecans completely. Alternatively, you could also use coconut slices, a chocolate icing like this one, or crumble with tiger almond flour. Alternatively, you can make a little more dough and cut out leaves or other shapes from the leftover dough to decorate the cake. Then place them on the cake glaze at the beginning of the baking process.
Want to change other ingredients?
In addition to the pecans, some of the other ingredients are also exchangeable. Instead of the cocoa powder in the dough, you can also use vanilla, ground cinnamon or other winter spices. The cocoa powder can also be exchanged with ground nuts.
You can use silken tofu instead of cream. The result will certainly be very creamy, though I haven’t tested it myself yet. But some of my friends like to use silken tofu for pie fillings. To make it even, put all the ingredients for the filling into a mixer and mix well. You`ll probably still need the starch to bind it, otherwise the mixture may not thicken enough.
Gluten-free should be possible with a gluten-free flour mixture. However, you may need something to bind the dough better, such as a flaxseed egg (2 tbsp ground flaxseed + 5 tbsp water). Still have to try a gluten-free version. Let me know in the comments down below if there`s some interest in a gluten-free dough version?
Is Meal Prep possible?
The dough of this recipe is excellent for meal prep. You can prepare it in advance and keep it covered in the fridge up to 2 to 3 days. It`s even suitable for freezing. I usually prepare 2 servings of dough and freeze one for later use. When the time comes, you only need to thaw the dough overnight in the fridge. I would prepare the filling freshly, preferably on the day you want to bake the vegan chocolate pecan maple pie. With the dough prepared in advance, the whole preparation takes only 15 to 20 minutes.
You can keep the already baked pie in an airtight container in the fridge for 2 to 3 days. Like that you can bake the cake the day before in peace and then have more time for your guests the next day. You may even be able to freeze the vegan chocolate pecan maple tart – well wrapped and airtight – and then defrost it in the refrigerator. But I didn’t test it myself.
But also the preparation of the pie itself doesn’t take forever. You’ll have the dough ready in 5 minutes, apart from the cooling part. That’s why this cake is perfect for visitors who come by spontaneously or if you want to bake something quickly.
That’s why you should bake this vegan chocolate pecan maple pie:
It is…
- vegan (egg & dairy free)
- lactose-free
- seasonal
- low waste
- perfect for Thanksgiving & Christmas
- perfect for a coffee party
- the perfect fall & winter dish
- nice and creamy
- a sweet temptation
- quick and easy to prepare
- suitable for meal prep
more vegan & sweet pie recipes:
- raw vegan lemon cheesecake
- rhubarb and coconut crumble cake
- vegan cherry pie
- Swiss Easter tarts
- strawberry rhubarb crisp
- rhubarb pie
If you are baking this vegan chocolate pecan maple pie, I would love your feedback here in the comments. If you share your creation of this recipe on Instagram, please don’t forget to link @velvetandvinegar and use the hashtag #velvetandvinegar. So my community and I won’t miss your contribution.
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your Sarah
Vegan Chocolate Pecan Maple Pie
Ingredients
dough*
- 150 g spelt flour organic
- 25 g cocoa powder organic
- 50 g coconut blossom sugar organic
- 50 g vegan butter organic
- 1 pinch salt organic
- 75 ml water
- a little coconut oil or vegan butter to grease the baking tin, organic
filling
- 150 ml maple syrup organic
- 200 ml vegetable cream organic
- 1 pinch nutmeg organic
- 1 pinch of ground cinnamon organic
- ½ tsp Bourbon Vanilla Powder or Paste organic
- 3 tbsp starch approx. 20 - 25g, organic
- 2 tbsp water
- 1 pinch salt organic
toppings
- 100 g pecans organic
- some maple syrup to brush on, organic
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients except the water for the dough in a bowl to a crumbly mass. Add the water and form a dough. Place the covered dough in the fridge for 30 minutes.
- Remove the dough from the fridge and roll out thinly on a floured surface. Transfer the dough to the cake tin and press down well. Remove excess dough with a rolling pin. To do this, simply roll the wood over the baking tin. Place the cake tin in the oven again for 15 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 180° Celsius.
- Place maple syrup and vegetable cream in a bowl and whip a little with a hand mixer or a blender (does not have to become stiff). Add the spices and stir.
- Mix the starch in water to a paste and fold it under the filling. Continue mixing thoroughly so that no lumps form.
- Pierce the cake base tightly with a fork and pour in the filling.
- Bake the cake for approx. 20 minutes on the lowest groove of the oven. Then take it out, spread the pecans on the filling, spread it with maple syrup and bake again for about 10 to 15 minutes.
Notes
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