Vegan Coconut Meringue Pie
This vegan coconut meringue pie is the creamiest pie ever. Because It’s made with coconut milk, every bite is rich, creamy, and delicious. It’s a beautiful and delicious dessert recipe that you’ll love serving at holiday dinners and special occasions.
This vegan coconut meringue pie is a celebration of all things coconut. I have a passion for coconut desserts, such as this vegan coconut cake, these chocolate coconut macaroons, and toasted coconut donuts.
That’s why making this coconut meringue pie vegan is such a favorite accomplishment!
Ingredient Spotlight
What is aquafaba?
The liquid from a can of chickpeas (referred to as aquafaba) has the perfect starchy consistency to allow it to whip up, just like egg whites, into a meringue. We’ll add cream of tartar because it’s acidic and acts as a stabilizer, helping create a foam. Then adding powdered sugar allows the meringue to develop stiff, glossy peaks. I recommend chickpea liquid from a regular can of chickpeas (not the “no salt” or “low sodium” variety).
Why This Recipe is a Winner
- Using full fat coconut milk creates a creamy pudding base that’s infused with coconut flavor
- Silken tofu is added to the filling to create a texture that holds its shape, even after cutting into it
- An aquafaba meringue is made without eggs but creates a light and fluffy meringue that’s perfect for this pie.
What You Need
You can find the full printable recipe, including ingredient quantities, below. But first, here are some explanations of ingredients and steps to help you make this recipe perfect every time.
- Lemon — We’ll use both the zest and the juice of the lemon.
- Oats — I used rolled oats for this recipe, but you can substitute instant oats.
- Chia — We’ll add some ground chia seeds to create a thicker texture. You can use whole chia seeds; I just prefer ground because it creates a smoother finished texture.
- Syrup — I used maple syrup, but you can substitute agave nectar.
- Milk — We’ll use almond milk for the best overnight oats! Substitute your favorite plant-based milk.
- Yogurt — I love adding some plant-based yogurt (plain, unsweetened) for an even more tangy flavor.
- Protein Powder — I add some vanilla protein powder for increased flavor and nutrients. If your protein powder is not sweetened, you may want to add an extra teaspoon or two of sweetener.
- Cornstarch — We’ll use cornstarch to thicken the lemon curd topping.
- Turmeric — A pinch of turmeric makes that lemon curd sunny yellow.
- Vegan Pie Crust — My go-to favorite is my foolproof vegan pie crust, but you can also use an oatmeal pie crust or even a vegan graham cracker crust.
- Sugar — I used granulated sugar for this recipe.
- Cornstarch — This is a great thickener and is readily available. If you prefer an alternative, you can use arrowroot powder.
- Salt — You can use plain table salt or sea salt.
- Coconut Milk — You’ll need a 15-ounce can of full-fat coconut milk. To ensure it’s full fat, look at the ingredients. It should list 12+ grams of fat.
- Tofu — See my tofu buying guide for information on where to find silken tofu in the store. I buy this at my local grocery store, health food stores, or online
- Vanilla extract — vanilla extract is great, or you can boost the coconut flavor by substituting coconut extract.
- Shredded coconut — You can use sweetened or unsweetened coconut flakes.
- Vegan butter — For storebought, I recommend Earth Balance or Miyokos. Or you can make homemade vegan butter
- Food coloring — To make a nice yellow color to the filling, you can use a drop or two of yellow food coloring, or add a bit of ground turmeric (my preference).
- Aquafaba — For the vegan meringue we’ll need the liquid from one can of chickpeas. I know it sounds like an unusual ingredient, but it works! Learn more about making vegan meringue, including options for making it without chickpeas.
- Powdered Sugar — We’ll add some powdered sugar to the vegan meringue for flavor and lightness.
- Cream of Tartar — We’ll stabilize the vegan meringue with a bit of cream of tartar.
How to Make Vegan Coconut Meringue Pie
I love making vegan Coconut Meringue Pie recipes. First, it’s an easy pie to make. Second, it’s delicious!
- Make the vegan pie crust, then roll it to fit your pie pan. Blind bake the crust for 10 to 12 minutes.
- Prepare the coconut custard by combining the ingredients in a saucepan and cooking it until it’s thick.
- Cream the custard with silken tofu in a food processor and pulse until nice and smooth. Stir in coconut flakes.
- Make the vegan meringue by adding aquafaba and cream of tartar in a mixing bowl and whipping on medium speed until the mixture is frothy. Add powdered sugar and turn up the speed to medium-high and mix until stiff peaks form.
- Assemble the pie by adding the filling to the pie crust, smoothing it out until evenly spread out across the pie. Then top it with the vegan meringue. Add some flaked coconut on top.
- Bake the pie for 10 to 20 minutes, then increase the heat for another 5 to 10 minutes until the meringue has golden edges.
Here are more detailed instructions:
Step One: Make the Vegan Pie Crust
I highly recommend using my Vegan Pie Crust recipe. It makes an amazingly flaky pie crust. Here are the steps:
- Prepare the pie dough as instructed.
- Chill the dough for 30 minutes to an hour
- Roll the chilled dough into a circle about 1/8″ thick.
- Transfer the dough to a pie pan and flute edges with your fingers. Place it in the fridge and chill for about 15 minutes.
- Prick the center of the dough with a fork about 5 times. Cover the base of the pie with a piece of parchment paper and add pie weights to prevent the pie from puffing up as it bakes.
- Blind bake the crust by placing it in the oven and baking for 10 to 12 minutes until the crust is mostly done.
- Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack.
Step Two: Prepare the Coconut Custard
- Stir together the sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the coconut milk.
- Continually stir while cooking until the mixture begins to bubble.
- Reduce heat to medium-low and cook and stir a few more minutes until the mixture is thick. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
- Add the slightly cooled coconut custard and the silken tofu to a food processor. Pulse until smooth. Add the vanilla, coconut, vegan butter, and turmeric (optional) and pulse again until all the ingredients are combined.
Step Three: Make the Vegan Meringue
- Pour the liquid from one can of chickpeas into a mixing bowl, along with the cream of tartar. Mix for a minute or two until it becomes frothy.
- Add the powdered sugar while mixing and then continue mixing at medium-high speed until soft peaks form. Then add the vanilla and mix to incorporate it.
Follow my recipe on Vegan Meringue for more information on how to make it and tips for making it without aquafaba.
Step Four: Fill the Pie and Bake
- Spoon the coconut cream filling into the prepared pie crust and spread it evenly across the pie.
- Top with the vegan meringue, spreading it across the entire pie and creating a seal with the crust.
- Use the back of a spoon to create dollops in the meringue. Sprinkle with shredded coconut.
- Place the pie in the oven and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the meringue peaks are golden.
- Cool for at least one hour on a wire rack. Place in the fridge and chill for 3 hours before serving.
Vegan Coconut Cream Pie
You can skip the meringue if you’d like and make a very simple (and tasty) dairy-free coconut cream pie.
- Make the coconut pie by following the steps above, but instead of making the meringue + baking, prepare my favorite Coconut Whipped Topping. It’s super easy to make and requires no baking.
- Spread the coconut custard into the baked and cooled pie crust. Use a spatula to spread it evenly across the pie.
- Add the coconut whipped topping.
- Refrigerate the pie until chilled, at least to 3 hours.
- To add toasted coconut shreds, place 1 to 2 teaspoons of coconut oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add one cup of shredded coconut and stir frequently, cooking for 3 to 5 minutes, until the coconut is toasted. Remove from heat and allow it to cool completely before sprinkling over the top of your coconut cream pie.
Marly’s Tips
- I buy a regular flaked coconut and put it in the food processor and pulse for several seconds to break it into finer strands
- To make a gluten-free coconut cream pie, simply use high-quality gluten-free baking flour to make the pie crust.
If you love meringue pies, be sure and make this Chocolate Meringue Pie, too. It’s amazingly vegan as well.
More Vegan Cream Pies
Storage Tips
To store the pie, allow it to cool completely then transfer to the fridge. If it’s going to be a while before serving, insert toothpicks into the meringue and then lightly wrap with plastic wrap. The toothpicks will prevent the plastic wrap from sticking to the meringue. You can transfer individual slices to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 5 days.
I hope you love this vegan coconut meringue pie as much as we do!
Vegan Coconut Meringue Pie
Ingredients
Vegan Coconut Cream Filling
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 5 tablespoons cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup silken tofu (or one small package)
- 1 15 oz can full fat coconut milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup finely flaked shredded coconut, divided
- 2 tablespoons vegan butter
- ⅛ teaspoon ground turmeric (optional, for color)
Vegan Meringue
- ¾ cup aquafaba
- ½ teaspoon cream of tartar
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
For the Pie Crust
- Heat your oven to 375°F. Get out a 9" pie pan.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll your pie dough into a circle about 1/8 inch thick. Transfer it to your pie pan. Flute edges with your fingers. Place it in the fridge and chill for about 15 minutes.
- Use a fork to prick the center of the crust about 5 times. Place the pie in a lower oven rack and bake for 20 minutes until the crust is mostly done. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack. Reduce your oven to 350°F.
For the Vegan Coconut Cream Filling
- In a saucepan over medium heat, mix the sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Stir in the coconut milk. Continually stir while cooking until the mixture begins to bubble. Reduce heat to low and cook and stir a few more minutes until the mixture is really thick. Remove from heat. And set aside to cool slightly.
- Once the coconut milk mixture has cooled a bit, add that and the silken tofu to a food processor. Pulse until smooth. Add the vanilla coconut (reserve 2 tablespoons for the topping), vegan butter, and turmeric (optional) and pulse again until all the ingredients are combined.
For the Vegan Meringue
- Pour the liquid from one can of chickpeas into a mixing bowl, along with the cream of tartar. Mix for a minute or two until it becomes frothy.
- As you're mixing, add the powdered sugar a little at a time. Stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Continue to mix at medium-high speed until soft peaks form. Then add the vanilla and mix to incorporate it.
For the Coconut Meringue Pie
- Pour the coconut filling into the prepared pie crust and spread it evenly across the pie. Top with the vegan meringue spreading it across the entire pie and creating a seal with the crust. Use the back of a spoon to create dollops on the top of the meringue. Sprinkle with reserved shredded coconut either before (for toasted coconut flakes) or immediately after the pie has baked.
- Place the pie in the oven and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the meringue peaks are golden. Turn the heat up to 375°F and cook for another 5 to 10 minutes until the meringue has golden edges.
- Cool for at least one hour on a wire rack. Place in the fridge and chill for 2 to 3 hours before serving.
Recommended Equipment
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Notes
The nutrition information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator and should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Enjoy!
Heavenly coconut pie. I’ve made this recipe on several occasions, most recently last night. It can seem a bit daunting in preparations: crust, custard, meringue, but is absolutely worth it! It’s light and creamy and full of coconut flavor (I added coconut extract to the custard.) A family favorite!
Hi Kaitlyn. Thanks so much for your comment! I’m so glad you and your family like this pie recipe! I’m with you – sometimes a little work pays off huge dividends!
So excited to make this for my Dad’s birthday tomorrow! I have a question, though. Not sure if I’m missing it, but I don’t see where you note how much shredded coconut to add to the mixture, and how much to set aside for the topping.
Hi Sara. Reserve a couple of tablespoons of coconut flakes to add on top of the pie. I’ll make sure the recipe notes this.
Absolutely wonderful! I didn’t even bother with the meringue, though I did top it with whipped coconut cream. Do you think that this pie (without the meringue) would freeze?
Now, if only you could teach my husband to like coconut…
Hi Karen. I’ve frozen this pie many times and it’s been just great. I usually cut it into slices and then freeze individual slices, but you can freeze the whole pie as well. I agree, that adding the topping after thawing is the best plan. Regarding your husband, I guess if he doesn’t like coconut that leaves more of that tasty whipped topping for you! 🙂 Also, you could make the vegan chickpea meringue, but serve it as whipped topping. It has a different flavor than coconut so he might like that better. I usually whip it right before serving because it won’t hold its whip like coconut whip does. However, you can rewhip it or even freeze it after it’s whipped. Hope this is helpful!
This looks great! Can I make it ahead of time, like a day in advance?
I’ve made this vegan coconut pie at least a day ahead of time and have had great luck with it!
This pie worked out great. I skipped the meringue, added a can of crushed pineapple (drained) to the filling, and covered the top in coconut. Tropical delight – thanks for the recipe!
OMG. Pineapple in a coconut pie? Love this! I may have to try this adaptation myself! 🙂
So THIS is the meringue you and Cara were talking about on the podcast. OMG it looks to die for!! Will definitely be making this.
Hahaha! Yes it is, Krystal! It really is pretty awesome stuff! xoxoxo