Vegan Chocolate Cream Pie

The chocolate cream pie that my grandma made when I was a kid was my absolute FAVORITE part of the holidays! Everyone always wants pumpkin or apple or pecan, but chocolate cream pie has always been the dessert of my dreams! Finally, I have created a vegan version of my grandma’s chocolate cream pie, and I am thrilled to share it with you all!

Classic chocolate cream pie usually consists of heavy cream, sugar, flour or cornstarch, and eggs for the filling and topped with an egg-white meringue. I originally wanted to make this pie with some egg substitutes like Follow Your Heart’s Vegan Eggs or Just Eggs, but didn’t find it gave me the true springy filling I was looking for. Then, I thought maybe using some flax meal might give me the consistency I was looking for, but I didn’t want the flax texture in the creamy filling.

After thinking and experimenting long and hard on this dreamy pie, it finally occurred to me to use some tofu! I have made many a successful tofu quiche, and I figured that tofu would lend the wonderful and creamy texture I was looking for. Boy was I right!

This pie is insanely creamy and chocolatey. It has a custard type of filling, and is topped with dreamy aquafaba meringue. If you are looking for a new type of pie- I highly recommend that you give this one a spin! It’s my favorite!

Homemade pie crust was the direction I went with this recipe. Don’t shy away from making your own crust folks. It’s actually super easy and extremely satisfying IF you have the time! The pie crust I made is basically Martha Stuart’s Pie Crust Recipe– but veganized. I used vegan Miyokos butter rather than regular butter, and I used 1/4 cup of ice water. You can also use a store-bought pie crust for a quick and easy pie miracle (just ensure that it’s vegan!).

I’ll give you the recipe in three parts- first the vegan pie crust, second the delicious chocolate filling, and thirdly the dreamy meringue topper! My grandma’s chocolate cream pie (veganized) is super wonderful and makes me feel cozy and nostalgic!

If you need tips on what Aquafaba is for the meringue you can find it in my Vegan Essentials Guide. Here is also a link that tells you what Cream of Tartar is. It can be found at most grocery stores and is incredibly helpful in creating a nice and fluffy meringue! I hope that you give this recipe a try this holiday season!

If you want more of my dessert recipes, I highly recommend that you check out my Apple Focaccia or my Carrot Oatmeal Cookies, but this Vegan Chocolate Cream Pie tops all desserts for me! Enjoy guys. 🙂

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Vegan Pie Crust:

• 2 1/2 cups of All Purpose flour (plus extra for rolling out)
• 1 cup of Vegan Butter- I love Miyokos! (plus more for buttering the pie dish)
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp of salt
• 1/4 cup of ice water (or more if needed)

Vegan Pie Crust Method:

• I’d like to begin this methodology by saying that you will be using your hands for this pie crust. Ensure that your hands are clean, your butter is nice and cold, and that you have your ice water ready to go before you start mixing. You will need to work quickly to ensure that the butter doesn’t completely melt! Also have a clean counter or work space prepared for turning out and rolling out the dough. This comes together super quick! Okay, let’s do this!
• In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Sift the ingredients together well.
• Next cut up your vegan butter into small cubes. Put the butter into the flour mix, and use your hands to crumble the butter into the flour. Work quickly, until the entire flour mixture is kind of crumbly sand type texture.
• Then, you will add in your 1/4 cup of ice water. Start there. Again use your hands to work the water into the flour/butter mix. It should come together with a little bit of kneading. If it seems too dry, you can add 1 Tbs. of ice water at a time to get the right consistency, but 1/4 cup usually always does it for me.
• When the dough has come together nicely, turn it out onto a floured surface. Cut the dough in half, and shape each half into a disk. This recipe makes 2 pie crusts!
• Wrap each disk with parchment paper and place into a plastic container. (You can also use plastic wrap, I just never keep plastic wrap around the house.)
• Chill the dough in the fridge for half an hour.
• Take the dough out of the fridge, unwrap it, and place it on a floured surface. Take a rolling pin, and pat it with flour. Begin by rolling it out away from you, then to the left and right. Keep rolling it out evenly in every direction until you get a nice large circle of a pie crust.
• You may have to use your hands a bit to press down certain areas that remain thick- no worries! It’s pie! It’s supposed to be fun!
• When you think you have properly rolled out your dough to fit the dish, make sure that you butter your pie dish generously on all of the surface area. Use your rolling pin the roll the pie crust over the pin for easy transfer to the dish.
• Once the crust is transferred to the dish cut off the excess crust over the edges, and use your fingers to pinch the edges to make a pretty design. You can also just use a fork to decorate the edges!
• Another BIG tip is cover the edges of the pie crust with aluminum foil until the last fifteen or twenty minutes to ensure that they don’t burn!

Chocolate Cream Pie Filling Ingredients:

• 14 oz. of firm tofu
• 1/2 cup of oat milk (I like Oatly)
• 1 cup of sugar
• 5 Tbs. of Cocoa Powder
• 1 tsp. of vanilla
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 3 Tbs. of All Purpose flour

Chocolate Cream Pie Filling Method:

• Preheat the oven to 350º F.
• Drain and pat your firm tofu dry with a clean cloth or paper towel.
• Break the tofu into small “chunks” with your hands and place into a blender.
• Add in the 1/2 cup of oat milk and blend until smooth.
• Next, add in the sugar, cocoa powder, vanilla, and salt. Blend again very well.
• Add in the 3 Tablespoons of flour and mix well.
• Pour this mixture into the prepared pie crust, and smooth it out evenly. I used a 9 inch pie dish.
• When your oven is preheated, bake the pie for 40 minutes. Then you will add in your meringue topping and bake for an additional 20 minutes.
• If you did not see my tips for the crust above, I like to cover the pie crust edges with aluminum foil until the last twenty minutes. For this recipe, I take the pie out at 40 minutes, take off the aluminum foil on the edges, add the meringue topping, and continue to bake for an additional 20 minutes until the meringue is nice and golden brown in certain spots. Recipe for Meringue topping below!

Aquafaba Meringue Topping:

• About 1/2 cup of Aquafaba (or liquid from one can of chickpeas)
• 1/4 cup of sugar
• 1/2 tsp. of vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp. cream of tartar

Aquafaba Meringue Topping Method:

• Place all of the ingredients into a large mixing bowl.
• Using a hand mixer, whip the ingredients for several minutes until it become creamy and forms stiff peaks.
• Take the chocolate pie out of the oven after 40 minutes, and top with this meringue topping. You can get creative here and make swirls with the back of a spoon if you so desire.
• Place the pie back into the oven for 20 minutes. The top will be nice and golden in certain spots.
• That’s it! Enjoy!

Please feel free to leave comments and thoughts below! I hope that you give this a shot, it is absolutely INCREDIBLE! Can’t stress the deliciousness enough. Happy pie eating to you and yours.