When I first saw purple sweet potatoes at the store, I jumped for joy. I don’t even know why exactly. There’s something so fun about trying a tried-and-true ingredient in an unexpected hue – it’s a great way to get kids to try again too!
So I grabbed a bag, spiralized them and slowly ate them throughout the week with eggs or whatnot. Then, suddenly, a purple sweet potato pie video popped up on my Facebook feed and I thought, I can recreate this. But there was one catch. I wanted it to be ridiculously easy to make. Almost as ridiculous as the ridiculously gorgeous purple color nature so miraculously made.
There you have it. The simplest, no-bake, 5-ingredient purple sweet potato pie on the planet. And there’s no added oil, no refined sugar, and it’s vegan and gluten-free. I’m as shocked as you are, I know. You just have to try it. The flavor is unreal.
It’s like grandma used to make, except nothing like grandma used to make. The creamed coconut is the trick here to add creaminess without overpowering. It’s a must try. And this pie, well, go make it for your next holiday party. No one needs to know it’s healthy, because no one will believe you anyway! Enjoy!
5-ingredient, no-bake Purple Sweet Potato Pie
ACTIVE: 20 min TOTAL CHILL TIME: 4 hours
Vegan | gluten-free | oil-free | refined-sugar free
Ingredients
- 1 7oz box of organic creamed coconut
- ½ cup maple syrup
- 2 cups purple sweet potatoes (cooked and peeled)
- 1 cup pecan pieces or halves
- 1 Tbsp pumpkin pie spice (or see note to make your own)*
- Chocolate drizzle (optional)
METHOD
To soften the creamed coconut, soak the bag in warm water (before opening) for a few minutes. Remove coconut from bag and transfer to a small saucepan. Add ¼ cup water directly to the creamed coconut and place over medium-low heat, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon to break apart until it forms the consistency of mashed potatoes. Add ½ cup maple syrup directly to saucepan. Heat 1-2 minutes more, continuing to break apart any lumps until it resembles a glaze. Remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly. Measure out ½ cup of glaze and set aside (this will be used for the pecan topping).
In a food processor, add the cooked purple sweet potatoes followed by the pumpkin pie spice. Top off with remaining 1 cup of the coconut maple syrup glaze. Pulse until smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides as you go. Taste and adjust seasonings, if needed. Pour into greased pie dish, pressing down to flatten into an even layer.
Add reserved ½ cup glaze back to saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir in pecans and cook for 1 minute until fully coated in the glaze. Pour over pie filling and flatten into a single layer as much as possible (alternatively, you can skip this step and pour the reserved ½ cup glaze directly over the top of the pie, flattening it out to an even layer, then decorate with 1 cup pecan halves in a circle pattern starting at the center for an even prettier presentation).
Cover with plastic wrap and place in fridge to set for 4 hours. You can remove from fridge and let come to room temperature before serving. Serve with optional chocolate drizzle, whipped cream/coconut whipped cream or even a scoop of plain yogurt.
For the optional chocolate glaze: in a small saucepan, heat 1 tsp of coconut oil over medium-low heat. Add a heaping ¼ cup of chocolate chips and stir just until melted, removing from heat as soon as no clumps remain. Use a fork or transfer melted chocolate sauce to a squeeze bottle and drizzle over the top of your pie (this can be done immediately before serving as well).
*Note: to make your own pumpkin pie mix, simply use 1 ½ tsp cinnamon, ¾ tsp ground ginger, ½ tsp cloves and ¼ tsp nutmeg.
Recipe by Andrea Branchini
Enjoy!