Before telling you about this Open-Faced Vegan Pumpkin Apple Pie we gotta go to that good ol’ disclaimer: Housevegan.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. This post contains Amazon affiliate links.
Who else is hella stoked for fall pie season?! This Open-Faced Vegan Pumpkin Apple Pie is my solution to being fickle in terms of pie. Recently I wanted some pie, and while my go-to is usually Fudgy Vegan Chocolate Pudding Pie, it’s not late enough in the season for that. Plus I was feeling something spiced which meant apple or pumpkin. But which one? Apple is so refreshing, but I want pumpkin everything right now. Combining the two was the only way out of this situation without making two pies.
Really, this whole thing started when my little sister came to visit us with the hope of watching Halloween movies.
My sister is 5, and we pretty much have the exact same tolerance for scary movies. I had my mind set on watching Disney’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow at some point (it’s always on my FAL), and I thought it might be perfect to watch with little M. It’s decently spooky, and full of gags which is something that today’s kids seem to find really important.
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow is one of my favorite movies to watch this time of year, and it gets me seriously in the mood for Halloween. Taking place in the American northeast during a post-colonial fall, this film is so beautifully autumnal. The color scheme is focussed on deep reds, blues, greens, and browns, and the mood of the story really gives that feeling of danger, but in a way that’s safe for kids (and me).
While my sister enjoyed the movie and its spookiness, she was a little confused about the Headless Horseman. She kept referring to him as the “headless horseMAN” – emphasis on man. We tried explaining that he wasn’t a horseMAN, but a man on a horse. I’m still not sure she got it, but it’s fine.
Anyway, I digress. This pie thing all started early into our movie night when Ichabod swiped this little pie from a pie tray:
It was at that moment that I was like “Oooo pie!”.
I love pie, but I don’t make it often because it seems like such a to-do. With that in mind I tried to keep this pie as easy as possible by using a vegan store-bought pie crust from Wholly Wholesome, and by keeping the fillings very simple. I also decided to layer the fillings and keep the pie open-faced to avoid a second crust-related step.
To extra appease my laziness, I decided to forgo vegan pumpkin pie stabilizing standards like tofu, and instead altered the filling for my Homemade Pumpkin Pie Pop Tarts. By omitting the non-dairy milk and upping the starch, I was able to come up with a really simple pumpkin pie filling that was sliceable yet smooth.
While this pie would be great for Thanksgiving, it’s also a really nice everyday pie. It’s not hard to make, it comes together relatively quickly, and oh man is it easy to eat. And why wouldn’t it be? Apple pie and pumpkin pie are easily the best pies, and now you don’t have to chose between them.
Mentioned in this post and recipe:
Open-Faced Vegan Pumpkin Apple Pie
Ingredients:
- 9″ Vegan Pie Crust (homemade or store-bought – I like Wholly Wholesome Traditional Organic Pie Shell)
- 3 Granny Smith apples – peeled, cored and cut into 1/8 inch slices
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 6 tablespoons cornstarch
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- pinch salt
- 1 1/4 cup pureed pure pumpkin
- 1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
2. In a large bowl combine the apples, lemon juice, 2 tablespoons of the cornstarch, 1/2 cup of the sugar, cinnamon, and salt, and stir until the apples are evenly coated with the other ingredients.
3. In another large bowl combine the pumpkin puree, vanilla extract, pumpkin pie spice, and the remaining cornstarch and sugar. Stir until the mixture is thoroughly combined.
4. Pour the pumpkin mixture into the pie crust, and use a spatula to spread it around evenly.
5. Top the pumpkin filling with the apple filling by layering them slightly over each other in a clockwise circle around the outside perimeter of the pumpkin filling. Once that circle is complete, layer the apples in another circle a little closer to the center going counter clock-wise. Continue this process alternating clock-wise positions until you’ve reached the center of the pie. You may or may not have some apple slices leftover.
6. Bake the pie in the pre-heated oven for 40-45 minutes, checking in on it after about 20 minutes. If the edges or top of the pie start to brown before it’s done baking then cover it loosely with foil until it is finished.
7. Remove the pie from the oven, and allow it to rest for around 2 hours before serving. This allows the filling to tighten up a bit, and will help prevent the apple juices from leaking.
