This Crustless Pumpkin Pie is refined sugar free and gluten free, and deliciously creamy with just the right amount of sweetness. And you wouldn’t believe how EASY it is to make! Read the post for tips that will guarantee PERFECT results every time.
This crustless pumpkin pie pudding is so satisfying and silky smooth that you won’t miss the crust at all. Plus, you can make it all in ONE bowl!
Ladies and gentlemen, this here is THE BEST Crustless Pumpkin Pie in the world! God daammnn, it’s goooood. 🙂 No exaggerations really, as far as no crust pumpkin pies go, this one takes the um… pie.
Let me first say that I’ve got nothing against pie crusts. In fact, I love pie crust so much that I could eat it on its own. But let’s face it, pie crusts can be a pain in the ass to make. And if I’m making this for family on Thanksgiving day or for friends and guests, I’d rather make my life easier by not having to worry about a finicky pie crust.
So why is this the BEST crustless pumpkin pie?
- Simple ingredients.
- Super simple to make, can make it all in one bowl.
- Gluten free and refined sugar free.
- Foolproof recipe that guarantees delicious, creamy, silky smooth, absolutely perfect results, every time (no weeping or curdling).
- Flexibility to make this either as one large pie to feed a crowd. Or in smaller/individual portions as personal pumpkin pie custards (which is even faster to make).
- Don’t need to worry about pie crusts.
I’ve made this recipe a bunch of times. Made all the mistakes while trying to perfect this gluten free pumpkin pie, so that you don’t have to! 🙂 It’s sweetened with maple syrup which makes this no crust pumpkin pie even more flavorful in my opinion (and also refined sugar free). But you’re welcome to use honey or white sugar or brown sugar if you prefer.
My favorite way to serve this crustless pumpkin pie is to slice it like a pie (duh), and serve with whipped cream. You can do the same. Or let your guests scoop it like a pudding into cups. Afterall, this tastes and feels like a really creamy pumpkin pie pudding too.
For even better results, you can flavor your whipped cream for even more flavor. Use maple syrup, brown sugar, bourbon, vanilla, cinnamon or any other flavor you like. My husband likes it with slightly sweetened whipped cream, I prefer it with a drizzle of extra maple syrup on top.
But the best part is that this no crust pumpkin pie is healthy enough for breakfast too! Just add some granola and Greek yogurt and you have yourself a pumpkin pie parfait.
My first attempt at making this gluten free pumpkin pie was to follow the famous Libby’s no crust pumpkin pie recipe with the refined sugar as well. So I followed the pumpkin pie recipe on the Libby pumpkin can, without the crust. Unfortunately, I was so disappointed with the results, even after following the recipe precisely as stated.
Here’s the one thing you need to keep in mind when making no crust pumpkin pie. Without the crust, the pumpkin pie filling is essentially a pumpkin flavored custard. Therefore it relies on eggs to set it into a creamy, smooth filling.
The two biggest problems I had with some crustless pumpkin pie recipes including Libby’s recipe were,
- Weeping (technical term for that is syneresis)
- Curdling
When a custard is baked at a high temperature, the eggs in the custard bake too rapidly. This leads the eggs to coagulate and separate into curd and whey. That’s because the egg proteins form a very tight network (curds). This tight network causes the water to be “squeezed out” (whey), causing the baked custard to weep. This also makes the custard taste and feel like it’s curdled.
The original Libby’s famous crustless pumpkin pie recipe tests the doneness with a knife inserted into the custard. Then checking whether it comes out clean. I followed this recipe against my better judgement, hoping that the custard would somehow come out OK. But my gut feeling was correct. The problem is, your custard is already overbaked by the time you reach this level of doneness (or will be overbaked by the residual heat).
So here are my solutions to prevent weeping, curdling and overbaking of this no crust pumpkin pie
Solution #1 – Reduce the oven temperature. Baking this crustless pumpkin pie at 350°F as suggested in the original recipe will most definitely cause the eggs in the custard to cook too quickly. This will lead to a curdled texture and weeping pumpkin pie custard. I cook this crustless pumpkin pie at 300°F, so that it cooks low and slow. Allowing for more even baking, and reducing the chances of the eggs overbaking. You can lower the chances of weeping and curdling even more by baking this custard in a water bath. But it’s not necessary. Also remember to preheat oven before placing the crustless pumpkin pie inside.
Solution #2 – Adding cornstarch to the custard. The starch molecules expand as they cook with the water in the custard. Then they can act as a buffer to prevent the eggs from curdling. The result is a creamy, pudding like pumpkin pie.
Solution #3 – Don’t wait until the “inserted knife comes out clean” stage. I always remove this pumpkin pie pudding while the middle is still a bit runny or jiggly. The residual heat will continue to cook the custard to perfection.
Solution #4 – Allow the crustless pumpkin pie to cool completely after baking. It’s important to let the pumpkin pie cool completely, before covering it with plastic wrap and refrigerating it. Let the excess water evaporate while it cools down, uncovered, to prevent the water re-entering the pumpkin pie pudding.
Solution #5 – Use of a thermometer. Since every oven and baking dish can transfer heat differently, it’s hard to say exactly when the custard is done. The foolproof way to know when the custard is perfect and is ready to come out, is to use a thermometer.
Cooking this crustless pumpkin pie to an internal temperature of 165°F – 170°F ensures that you get perfect, creamy, smooth results. I prefer a good medium of 167-168°F, and NEVER over 175°F.
More tips to make a perfect gluten free crustless pumpkin pie
- Do not add the pumpkin pie spice mix into the egg mix. The eggs are gloopy and can cause the spices to clump up and not distribute evenly. So I prefer to always mix the spices with the cornstarch and maple syrup first. Make sure it’s well mixed through. Then add this to the egg mix and whisk. This way, the spices will disperse more evenly through the custard.
- By following the order of ingredients added that’s indicated in this recipe, you can make this no crust pumpkin pie pudding using only 1 bowl!
- Butter the baking dish or pie plate with a very thin coating of butter.
- Pour the custard into the dish and knock it on your kitchen counter-top a few times to knock out any excess air. Air bubbles on the surface of the custard can be removed easily. Use a blow torch to gently flame the surface of the custard.
- I prefer making this in a 9 inch glass porcelain pie plate / dish. It guarantees consistent results every time. I’ve made this in 1/2 cup ramekins and in individual pie dishes (1 cup capacity) as well (see pictures in the post).
- I usually place the pie dish/dishes on a baking tray and bake them in a preheated oven. This way it’s easier to remove the dishes from the oven and even to rotate them half way through the cooking process.
- When the baking is done, I remove the baking tray (with the pumpkin pie dish) from the oven first. Then immediately transfer the pumpkin pie dish/dishes on to a cold surface. Otherwise, the residual heat from the baking sheet/tray will cook the custard further.
- When the crustless pumpkin pie custard has been transferred to a cooler surface, let it cool completely to room temperature. This can take 15 minutes on a very cold day, or up to 1 hour on warmer days. Only then, transfer it to the fridge, wrapped in plastic wrap. Otherwise the condensation will cause the pumpkin pie to “weep”.
Can I make this with canned pumpkin pie filling?
I wouldn’t recommend it. This is made with 100% pumpkin puree, and this is different from the canned pumpkin pie filling. Pumpkin pie filling is already spiced, and yet somehow less flavorful!
So stick with 100% pumpkin puree and add your own spices to get the best results.
Can I make this dairy free?
YES! I have had some readers who have made this pie dairy free. They used coconut milk instead, with great results.
I do prefer evaporated milk because it’s so creamy. But if you use a good quality coconut milk with a higher fat percentage you should be OK. Do NOT use light coconut milk though.
This refined sugar free, gluten free crustless pumpkin pie is guaranteed to be a hit at your Thanksgiving spread. And you can make it any time you want to whip up some simple, delicious pumpkin pie! It’s incredibly creamy, smooth and perfectly sweet, and just so satisfying that you won’t miss the crust at all.
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Crustless Pumpkin Pie Pudding
Ingredients:
- Butter or coconut oil to butter the pie dish/dishes
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp cloves
- ⅛ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
- ¼ tsp salt kosher salt or sea salt
- 1 ½ tbsp cornstarch (cornflour)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup maple syrup
- 2 eggs
- 1 egg yolk
- 15 oz canned pumpkin puree 1 can
- 12 fl oz evaporated milk 1 can
To Serve
- Sweetened whipped cream optional
- Maple syrup optional
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 300°F and butter a glass porcelain 9 inch pie dish, OR 5 mini pie dishes (1 cup capacity), OR 9 ramekins (½ cup ramekins).
- In a large bowl, whisk together the cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, salt and cornstarch. Whisk this mix until there are no lumps in the cornstarch.
- Add half of the maple syrup and whisk it in until the cornstarch is completely dissolved and there are no lumps. Then add the rest of the maple syrup and the vanilla and mix well.
- Add the 2 eggs and yolk, and whisk to combine.
- Add the pumpkin puree and whisk until it's mixed in well.
- Stir in the evaporated milk. Make sure that the evaporated milk is also mixed in well.
- Pour the prepared pumpkin custard into the 9 inch pie dish. Knock the pie dish on a hard surface like your kitchen countertop firmly (don't break the dish though!), a couple of times, to remove any air bubbles. See recipe notes on how to bake this crustless pumpkin pie in smaller dishes.
- Place the pie dish in the preheated oven and bake for 60 - 70 minutes, rotating the pie dish halfway through the cooking time (30 minutes).
- If you have a thermometer, check for an internal temperature of 165 - 170°F in the middle of the pie. If you don’t have a thermometer, remove the pie from the oven while the middle still seems a bit runny or jiggly, but the edges are set - this should take between 60 - 70 minutes.
- Remove the pie dish from the oven and keep it in a cool, dry place to cool down, UNCOVERED. When the pie has completely cooled to room temperature, cover the pie dish and refrigerate it overnight. Keep the pumpkin pie pudding in the fridge until you're ready to serve.
- Slice the crustless pumpkin pie pudding into 8 - 10 servings, and serve with sweetened whipped cream and a drizzle of maple syrup (optional).
Tips & Tricks
- Measure the pumpkin pie custard into the smaller ramekins using a measuring cup. Add ½ cup of the custard into the ½ cup ramekins, and 1 cup of the custard into the mini pie dishes.
- It’s easier to move the dishes in and out of the oven if you place them all on a larger baking sheet/tray. I use a half baking sheet.
- Bake the ½ cup ramekins for about 22 - 25 minutes. The ramekins I used are the flat ramekins, where the pumpkin pie custard only fills up about 1 1/2 inches deep. If it's a taller baking dish, the custard will take longer to bake.
- Bake the 1 cup mini pie dish for about 30 minutes (the pumpkin pie custard only fills up for about 1 1/2 inches.)
- Remove the baking tray from the oven, and then transfer the smaller dishes onto a cold surface to let the individual pumpkin pie puddings cool completely.
Nutrition Information:
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Sarah says
Mine came out exactly as I’d hoped and it looked just like the pictures, cutting just like a pie. The spices were a perfect balance. I would totally make this again!
Dini says
Thank you so much for letting me know Sarah, I’m so happy the recipe came out well and you enjoyed it! 🙂
Melissa says
Excellent results thanks to your instructions! I was worried I wouldn’t like the maple flavor but I didn’t really notice it with all those spices. Thanks for a great tasting recipe.
Courtney says
Excited to make this! I realize I only have half of the maple syrup I need.. do you think I could leave it out or use honey or just use the extra egg white to make up the texture?
Dini says
Hi Courtney!
You can absolutely use honey instead 🙂
The rest of the recipe will stay the same!
Christina Avila says
Hi I just made this 2 pies using this recipe. It really is an amazing simple recipe. But I have ran out of maple syrup and was wondering if I could substitute for anything else.
Dini says
Hi Christina!
Yes! You can use 3/4 of a cup of regular granulated sugar / brown sugar or 1/2 cup of honey instead of maple syrup 🙂
Happy Thanksgiving!
Gina says
Hoping to make the recipe for thanksgiving. Only have 5oz of evaporated milk on hand and was hoping not to go back to the store. Can I substitute the remainder of evaporated milk for whole milk?
Dini says
Hi Gina
I would recommend using heavy cream instead of regular milk if you don’t have evaporated milk. Regular milk won’t have a high enough fat content to keep the custard creamy.
Hope that helps!
Vivian H. says
This crustless Pumpkin pie is absolutely awesome. I made a different one last week, and it was nowhere near as good as this one. At first I wasn’t sure about what the maple syrup would be like, but this recipe is the best!! I will make this one for Thanksgiving for sure.
Dini says
Thank you so much Vivian, so glad you liked the recipe, happy thanksgiving! 🙂
Dianna Bell says
After freezing 2 cup portions of pumpkin mash from our first ever pumpkin patch a month ago, I made multiple batches of this recipe tonight,… putting 1/2 of 1 into a ceramic pan and other 1/2 into a gluten-free graham cracker crust…. the other 2 batches went into regular store-bought pie crusts.
OMG SO smooth and custard-like! Wow!!! I am SO impressed.
I have saved this page and will also print this recipe to make sure I will always have it.
Thank you SO much for making all my hard work worthwhile.
Love love love 🙂
Dini says
Thank you so much Dianna! 🙂 I’m so happy you liked the recipe!
Lauren says
I can’t say enough good things about this recipe, but I’m going to try: I love that it’s a one-bowl deal, I love that it’s quick to put together, I love that there’s so many options for baking (pie dish, ramekins, etc.), and I love all the helpful tips for making sure it turns out smoothly. This is honestly the only successful “custard” that I’ve been able to make so far. Really appreciate your time in sharing this with us!
Dini says
Hi Lauren, thank you so much for your lovely words, you made my day! 🙂 I’m so glad you liked the recipe, and the tips were helpful!
Deborah Barry says
Baffled about that extra egg white. If I’m going to be lazy, should I use 3 whole eggs or two?
Dini says
Hi Deborah
I usually use the extra egg white in an omelette the next day.
You can add three eggs if you really don’t want to separate one egg yolk. The extra liquid from the egg white hopefully shouldn’t have any impact on how the pumpkin filling will set.
Kate says
This recipe is absolutely phenomenal. I’m not a super-skilled baker and it comes out perfect every single time I make it (ok, one time there was a crack in the top but I just put whipped cream over the whole thing and pretended it didn’t happen). The tips and tricks included are also fabulous and helped me solve the cracking problem after the first go around. I made it last Thanksgiving the first time and have now had to remake it at Christmas, Easter, and two birthdays after special requests. I also made a sugar-free mini version in a ramekin for one sugar-free, low-carb guest by omitting the maple syrup and replacing it with sweetener and it still came out great! Thank you, Dini, for the lovely recipe!
Dini says
Thank you so much for your lovely comment Kate! 🙂 I’m so happy you liked the recipe and found the tips and tricks helpful. I find myself making this a few times a year too! 🙂
Dawn says
I am dairy free, so how could I make this delicious sounding custard, without the sweetened condensed milk?
Dini says
Hi Dawn!
I don’t use sweetened condensed milk in this recipe, it’s actually evaporated milk. I have had some readers who have substituted the evaporated milk with full cream coconut milk and have had good results. It won’t be as creamy as with evaporated milk, but should still be delicious!
I hope that helps!
Dawn says
Thanks ! We’ll give it a try!
Kaitie says
I made this pie last night, dairy- free for my husband and keto-friendly for me. I reduced 24oz of full fat coconut milk to about 20oz, sweetened with 1/4 cup equivalent of sweetener, and omitted the maple syrup. I’m super pleased to report it turned out amazing, really nice and velvety and not much coconut flavour at all.
Daniela says
Hello!
Amazing recipe
Is it possible to do the recipe with fresh pumpkin? Any tip?
Thanks!
Dini says
Hi Daniela!
Thank you! 🙂
This recipe can be made with fresh pumpkin puree, but make sure to choose the right kind of pumpkin for the job too. I’ve read that Jarrahdale or Blue Hubbard is a good pick for pie making. Since fresh pumpkin puree has a higher water content than canned pumpkin puree, it’s important to cook out the liquid as much as possible. Or it can make the pie watery.
I hope that helps!
joyce says
I have pumpkin pie MIX, so Can I still use this in foe a crustless? I realize its short notice but thats ok…. thx
Dini says
Hi Joyce!
Yes, you could make this with the pumpkin pie mix. Personally, I’m not the biggest fan of pumpkin pie mix, so I haven’t used it to make pies before. However, the difference between pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie mix is the addition of spices in the pie mix, so you can leave out the spice mix here and follow the rest of the recipe. Good luck and happy Thanksgiving! 🙂
Lamideel says
Made this for Thanksgiving tomorrow. Looks great, tastes great. Seems very light. Very easy. Had a little too much mix for my pie plate so I made the extra in small ramkin, which means I got to taste it – delish.
The only thing I change is that I used agave in the place of maple. Took 60 minutes to bake.
Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Leslie A Schmitz says
yay! thanks for your comments-i was scrolling to see if anyone used agave!! woo hoo!
Andrea says
What about using a conventional oven? Would I have to subtract 5 min and 5 degrees to the oven? And I wouldn’t need to turn the Pie, correct?
Dini says
Hi Andrea,
I also have a conventional oven (i.e. no fan, and not convection), so you can bake this pumpkin pie as specified in the recipe here. You don’t have to change anything. I hope that helps, please let me know if you have any other questions.
Andrea says
I had meant convection. Sorry.
Dini says
Hi Andrea
I haven’t baked in a convection oven before, so I can’t be sure what steps should be taken to convert this recipe. From the articles I have read, they do mention that the oven temperature should be reduced by 25 degrees (farenheit), and that recipes may also take a shorter time to bake. Since this custard is already baking at a low 300°F, I’m not sure if an even lower temperature could be recommended. The main thing is to keep an eye on the pumpkin pie, and check on it from time to time to make sure it’s baking evenly and not overbaking, which can lead to a rubbery result.
Mary says
I was wondering if this recipe could be used in a crust? I have several pies to make and would rather not make separate batches of pumpkin.
Dini says
Hi Mary
Unfortunately, I haven’t baked this particular filling with a crust before. Usually with pumpkin pies with a crust, you have to bake it at a very high temperature first, and then lower the temperature to ensure the filling bakes through. Since I haven’t done that with this filling, I cannot tell you the baking times for certain. But technically there is no reason why you couldn’t use this filling in a crust, because it is almost identical to a regular pumpkin pie filling. You will have to check the doneness half way through baking to make sure. I hope that helps!
Marylyn Jones says
I’ve got it ready to go tomorrow due to time constraints. Can be baking while I load the car for a trip to my daughters and glutent intolerant son in law.
However, I have a big enough batch for two pies. Can I put the mix into a baked pie crust and freeze? Or, can I freeze the mix and thaw later to put into a pie crust for my pie crust loving family.
This is going to be the best ever…..thanks for taking the time to perfect it for all of us.
Happy Thanksgivijng.
Dini says
Hi Marylyn!
Unfortunately, I haven’t made this pumpkin pie filling in a crust, so I can’t give you a proper answer 🙁 I usually don’t like to freeze my custard pies, either, but if you do freeze them, they NEED TO BE THAWED OUT IN THE FRIDGE, because if they thaw out too quickly, they will make the crust very soggy.
You could technically put the filling in a par baked crust, and bake it until the filling is set, but I wouldn’t be able to provide you the precise baking temperature, because I haven’t done this with this filling.
But I CAN say for certain that if this filling is frozen, it will weep as it thaws out, and to minimize the weeping, it needs to thaw out VERY SLOWLY IN THE FRIDGE.
I hope that helps!
Kelsey says
Can I use honey instead of maple syrup?
Dini says
Hi Kelsey,
Yes, you can use honey in place of maple syrup.
Taylor says
Could you use traditional granulated sugar instead of maple syrup?
Dini says
Hi Taylor,
Yes, you can use 3/4 of a cup of regular granulated sugar instead of maple syrup.
Kristin says
This recipe looks awesome! Can I substitute almond flour for the cornstarch or do you have any recommendations? Thanks!
Dini says
Hi Kristin!
The purpose of cornstarch is to act as a stabilizer for the pumpkin custard, so unfortunately almond flour won’t work as well as cornstarch. However, you can instead use potato starch (not potato flour), or AP flour (you will need to double the amount if using AP flour, and it won’t be gluten free either then). I hope that helps!
Kristin says
Thanks! Just pulled this out of the oven and it looks fantastic! I used cream instead of evaporated milk like you mentioned to another person. Thank you and happy Thanksgiving!!! 🙂
Alyssa says
I would love to make this for Thanksgiving next week! However, I won’t be able to get all those individual spices, but I do have McCormick’s pumpkin pie spice mix here already. Could that be used instead and if so, how much would you suggest using?
Dini says
Hi Alyssa!
You can easily use Pumpkin pie spice instead of the individual spices 🙂 Just add about 1 1/2 tsp of the pumpkin pie spice. I hope that helps!
Alyssa says
Great! Thank you so much!
Betty Biggs says
Can I freeze it to ship to my daughter, thought it would be easier than shipping whole pie
Dini says
Hi Betty!
Unfortunately, I don’t recommend freezing custard based pies like this, because they don’t freeze well. They will become watery as they thaw out, which will affect the texture and possibly the flavor as well.
Janis says
Well…I found your recipe 2 days ago after doing exactly what you did…and getting the same curdly results, lol. Too bad I didn’t find your post beforehand? I followed the famous and reliable Libby’s recipe. Thanks for the tips, looking forward to round 2. I also used flat/shallow ramekins. I don’t do dairy, so used coconut milk. I noticed someone asked about using coconut cream. For consistency’s sake, does it matter which? I prefer the coconut milk because the one I buy has no guar gum.
Dini says
Hi Janis!
Yes you can use coconut milk, but it’ll be a little less creamier than using coconut cream or evaporated milk. You don’t have to change the amount, because adding more coconut milk without increasing the eggs will cause the custard to be runny. If you’re using the shallow creme brulee ramekins to make this, then it might take less time for them to bake, but as long as you keep an eye on them, and take them out when they are mostly set, you should be fine! I hope that helps! Let me know if there’s anything else I can help you with 🙂
Peggy says
Sounded great till the evaporated milk was added. I live in Italy and it’s not a common or easy item to find. What can we use to sub it? Thx!
Dini says
Hi Peggy,
You can absolutely substitute the evaporated milk with cream. Evaporated milk is concentrated milk, so it gives the dessert a creamier texture. So a creamier cream (with around 30% fat content) can be subbed at a 1:1 ratio without an issue.
I hope that helps!
Peggy says
Yes super! That helps a lot. I really want to try this for my Thanksgiving feast here. I love pumpkin pie but love the idea of a sort of pumpkin custard pie even more. Thanks so much!
KJ says
can we sub coconut cream instead of condensed milk?
Dini says
Hi Kj,
Yes you can use coconut cream instead. Just make sure it’s unsweetened coconut cream 🙂
I hope that helps!
Karen Derbes says
This crustless pumpkin pie custard is THE BOMB!!!! So delicious, I guarantee you will not miss the crust!!!
Dini says
Thank you so much for letting me know Karen! I’m really glad you liked the pumpkin pie recipe! 🙂
Wilhelmina Wessel says
I am pinning this yummy pie for later!
Shadi Hasanzadenemati says
I love crustless pumpkin pie! It’s the perfect fall dessert and I cannot wait to make it!