This Pomegranate Cranberry Custard Pie is a bright and tart counterpoint for any Thanksgiving or holiday spread! Made with a gingersnap crust and topped with fluffy coconut cream, it's a festive treat that's totally vegan. Feel free to use fresh or frozen cranberries!
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Nothing says Thanksgiving like pie! From Vegan Pecan Pie to Simple Vegan Pumpkin Pie and Vegan Apple Hand Pies, I could go on and on about this favorite dessert. Today's recipe is a unique one, so let's get into it!
What is Cranberry Custard Pie?
Cranberry custard pie is a colorful dessert made with a gingersnap cookie crust and filled with a creamy sweet/tart filling made from cranberry sauce, coconut milk, pomegranate juice, sugar, and aquafaba (the water from a can of chickpeas).
How can you set a custard without eggs?
To set a custard without eggs, substitute aquafaba. This can be added in a one-to-one ratio for swapping, making it very versatile when used to bind vegan recipes.
Ingredients Needed for Cranberry Custard Pie
To make the gingersnap crust:
- 2 cups of gingersnap cookie crumbs
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 TBS sugar
- 4 TBS melted butter
To make the cranberry mousse filling:
- Zest of one small orange
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon or one cinnamon stick
- 2 ½ cups fresh or frozen cranberries
- 1 cup water
- Pinch of salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3 TBS pomegranate juice or pomegranate arils (seeds)
- 1 cup coconut milk
- ⅓ cup aquafaba (liquid from a can of chickpeas)
- 3 TBS cornstarch + 2 TBS water, mixed and set aside
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
Tools and Equipment Needed for this Recipe
There are a few tools that will help make this process easier. These include a food processor (optional but recommended if you are making the crust), a fine mesh sieve for straining the cranberry sauce, a standard-size (9-inch) pie plate, a medium saucepan to prepare the cranberry sauce, and a hand mixer for beating the mousse.
How Do I Make a Gingersnap Crust?
1. First, combine gingersnaps in a food processor to get a "sandy" texture. However, if you do not have a food processor, the cookies can be crushed in a sealed bag.
2. Next, add melted butter, sugar, and salt to the cookie crumbs.
3. Finally, add the crust mixture to a pie dish and bake for 15 minutes, until set.
Gingersnap cookies are readily available at grocery stores this time of year. However, if you are not able to find these, any "snappy" cookie (meaning, a hard texture that breaks when bitten into) will work. Some alternatives include vanilla wafers or even graham crackers.
Cranberries are a great counterpoint to heavier Thanksgiving fare and offer a festive pop of color. When I decided I wanted to celebrate this in a pie, I knew there were some crucial points to remember when baking.
How to Make Pomegranate Cranberry Custard Pie
1. While crust is baking, begin making your cranberry filling. Combine orange zest, cinnamon, cranberries, water, salt, sugar, and pomegranate to a medium skillet and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to low and listen for the cranberry "pop." Feel free to help the cranberries along by pressing on them with the back of your spoon. If your mixture is cooking too quickly, add a bit more water. Once cranberries are all popped and the mixture looks like cranberry sauce, remove from heat and let cool slightly.
2. Strain your cranberry compote over a fine sieve into a large bowl, pressing on the fruit to extract as much liquid as possible. This may take a few minutes, but you should be able to get a lot of out of it. Reserve the solids for another use (like stirring into oatmeal!)
3. Add coconut milk, aquafaba, and cornstarch mixture to the bowl and beat on medium to combine. The mixture should increase in volume slightly. Fold in powdered sugar. Pour cranberry mixture into prepared pie crust and bake for 45-50 minutes.
4. To check the pie for doneness, tap the top and see if the curd has set. Keep in mind it will firm up much more once cool!
5. Remove the pie from the oven when there is not much wobble to the filling and the mousse seems stable. Chill for at least 2 hours, until totally cold and set up. Serve with coconut whipped cream and sugar-coated cranberries.
More Tips for Making Cranberry Pie Filling
To make this cranberry pie filling, it is important to cook your cranberries down into a sauce first, and then strain the sauce while it's still fairly liquid/warm. Using a fine mesh sieve ensures that the smoothest parts of the mixture are added, while tougher pulp is left behind.
Since this pie is technically a custard/curd base, it's important to add enough binding agent so that it fully sets while baking. Typically egg whites are used for this, but today we're implementing corn starch and aquafaba (the liquid from a can of chickpeas).
Finally, it is important to cut the tartness of cranberries by adding a bit of sweetener! I love pomegranate for its flavor and color, so that plays a role in this flavor game alongside maple syrup, cinnamon, and orange zest and juice.
More Cranberry Recipes
I hope you enjoy this cranberry custard pie recipe! Please leave a rating or review if you decide to give it a try.
Pomegranate Cranberry Custard Pie
Ingredients
For the crust (feel free to use a store bought graham cracker crust to save time):
- 2 cups of gingersnap cookie crumbs made in a food processor (see note* if you don't have a food processor)
- .5 teaspoon salt
- 2 TBS sugar
- 4 TBS melted butter
For the cranberry mousse:
- Zest of one small orange
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon or one cinnamon stick
- 2.5 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
- 1 cup water
- Pinch of salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3 TBS pomegranate juice or pomegranate arils seeds
- 1 cup coconut milk
- ⅓ cup aquafaba
- 2 TBS cornstarch + 2 TBS water mixed together and set aside
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
Special equipment needed:
- Food processor optional
- Fine mesh sieve
- Pie plate
- Saucepan
- Hand mixer
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350. Begin by making your crust, combining crumbs, salt, sugar, and butter in a large bowl. Mix to combine into a sandy texture. Alternatively, make this entirely in the food processor, taking care to not over-mix (you want the texture to slightly stick together when pinched).
- Lightly oil a standard pie plate and fill with your crumb mixture, pressing crust around the sides of the dish. Bake for 15-17 minutes until golden brown and set. Remove from oven to cool and set aside for later.
- While crust is baking, begin making your cranberry filling. Combine orange zest, cinnamon, cranberries, water, salt, sugar, and pomegranate to a medium skillet and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to low and listen for the cranberry "pop." Feel free to help the cranberries along by pressing on them with the back of your spoon. If your mixture is cooking too quickly, add a bit more water. Once cranberries are all popped and the mixture looks like cranberry sauce, remove from heat and let cool slightly.
- Strain your cranberry compote over a fine sieve into a large bowl, pressing on the fruit to extract as much liquid as possible. This may take a few minutes, but you should be able to get a lot of out of it. Reserve the solids for another use (like stirring into oatmeal!)
- Add coconut milk, aquafaba, and cornstarch mixture to the bowl and beat on medium to combine. The mixture should increase in volume slightly. Fold in powdered sugar. Pour cranberry mixture into prepared pie crust and bake for 45-50 minutes.
- To check the pie for doneness, tap the top and see if the curd has set. Keep in mind it will firm up much more once cool!
- Remove the pie from the oven when there is not much wobble to the filling and the mousse seems stable. Chill for at least 2 hours, until totally cold and set up. Serve with coconut whipped cream and sugar-coated cranberries.
BJ Cowan says
Can’t wait to try it...Perfect for the holidays...
Thanks so much and I’ll be certain to let you know how mine turned out.
Many blessings til next time😊😊😊
Emily says
Thank you BJ, I hope you like it!
Ruthie says
Thank you so much for including the short vid of how to correctly cut a pomegranate!
I always seem to butcher them a make a big mess. Such a better way to do it 👏👏
Delicious!!
Emily says
So glad to hear it was useful!! Thank you so much for rating AR!
Danielle says
The crust on this was wonderful! I'll definitely be keeping this recipe on hand for thanksgivings to come.
Emily says
Thanks so much for commenting, Danielle!!
Sue0523 says
Love the pomegranate “rhombus” 😊! Can’t wait to make this again for Thanksgiving.
Emily says
LOL! And thank you!!