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Pumpkin Custard {dairy free}

November 8, 2017 by Erica 22 Comments

Pumpkin Custard

One of the main reasons I eat pumpkin pie is the custard filling. So I figured I’d just cut to the chase and make the pumpkin custard.

Pumpkin Custard

This is a simple, one-bowl recipe, and it works as breakfast, snack, or dessert. Dress it with whipped coconut cream, a dollop of yogurt, a crumble of nuts, or just have it solo.

As you read the recipe, you will come across the part about creating a water bath for the pumpkin custard. You may be tempted to skip this step, and you could, but your custard will likely crack, separate from the sides of the ramekins, and burn.

Here’s the reasoning: The pumpkin custard is thickened by the egg proteins, and sets well below 212°F (180°C), the boiling point for water. Unless the proteins are protected from the high heat of the oven, they’ll overcook and tighten or shrink, causing the custard to crack or separate into curdled egg and liquid. A water bath insulates custards from the direct heat of the oven because water can’t get hotter than 212°F (180°C), compared to the 350°F (180°C) oven. So the water bath protects the custard from overheating.

Pumpkin Custard

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5 from 4 votes

Pumpkin Custard {dairy free}

Make sure to use ramekins or oven-proof bowls that can hold between 4 and 8 ounces (between 118 and 237 ml). The water bath is essential to keeping the custard from cracking while it’s baking.
Another option is to bake all the custard in one large baking dish, which may take longer to bake but is easier to use to serve various portion sizes, and creates fewer dishes.
While not sweetener-free, this recipe taps into the sweetness of the squash puree, vanilla and cinnamon to sweeten the custard. If you prefer your custard a little less sweet, you can reduce the sweetener by 1 to 2 tablespoons.
If you’re following SCD, use honey instead of maple syrup.
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 164kcal
Author: Erica Kerwien

Ingredients

  • 1 3/4 cups pumpkin puree, homemade or canned about 15 ounces
  • 1/4 cup of dairy-free milk coconut, almond, or substitute with more squash
  • 3 eggs
  • 1/2 cup honey or maple syrup
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon of ground nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon allspice
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C, or gas mark 4).
  • Prepare a deep baking dish with 6 ramekins or other oven-proof bowls, and add enough water to the baking dish to reach 3/4 of  the way up the sides of the ramekins.
  • In a mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients and whisk or mix until well blended.
  • Fill each ramekin a little more than halfway with the pumpkin custard.
  • Bake for 45 minutes, or until the pumpkin custard is set.
  • Remove the ramekins from the water bath and cool for about an hour. Store in the refrigerator until ready to serve. You can make this recipe a few days ahead as well.
  • Serve with whipped coconut cream (see below) or maple whipped cream on top.

Nutrition

Calories: 164kcal | Carbohydrates: 30g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 82mg | Sodium: 231mg | Potassium: 213mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 26g | Vitamin A: 11240IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 34mg | Iron: 2mg

Pumpkin Custard

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Whipped Coconut Cream

I use coconut milk in a container for coconut cream, but you can also use a can. I make sure there are no other ingredients added to the coconut milk.
Occasionally I open a container that doesn’t have enough cream, so I usually add extra coconut milk containers to the refrigerator, just in case.
You can use honey or maple syrup, or any other sweetener you prefer.
For SCD, use only honey.
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 58kcal
Author: Erica Kerwien

Equipment

  • Whisk

Ingredients

  • 1 cup coconut cream  Use at least 2 containers of coconut milk to obtain enough cream separated from the coconut milk
  • 1  teaspoon maple syrup or honey
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Place the coconut milk in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours or overnight. This allows the cream to separate from the milk.
  • Scoop the coconut cream from the liquid and place it in a bowl with the honey (or maple syrup).
  • Whisk the coconut cream gently for about a minute, or until it is light and fluffy. If the cream is a bit dry or stiff, you can add a bit of coconut milk to smooth it out.
  • Use the whipped cream immediately, or store in the refrigerator for a few days.

Nutrition

Calories: 58kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Sodium: 4mg | Potassium: 63mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 5mg | Iron: 1mg
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Filed Under: Breakfast, Dairy Free, Desserts, Gluten-Free, Lactose Free, Nut Free, Paleo, Plant-based, Snacks, Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD), Vegetarian Tagged With: coconut, pumpkin

Previous Post: « Wonton Meatball Soup
Next Post: Creamed Spinach {dairy free} »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Karen

    November 23, 2022 at 11:04 pm

    What temperature of water to you pour in the pan? Also, when you take it out to cool, do you remove the ramekins from the water right away or after it cools? Thanks

    Reply
    • Erica

      November 24, 2022 at 4:56 am

      Hi Karen, I use cool water, and probably any temperature will work. I do remove the ramekins from the water once they come out of the oven. Thanks for asking!

      Reply
  2. Elisabeth Ensor

    November 7, 2021 at 12:57 pm

    5 stars
    I’ve made this recipe 3x already! Turns out great every time 🙂 I use honey & molasses as the sweetener and it’s perfect!

    Reply
    • Erica

      November 7, 2021 at 12:59 pm

      Great to hear! love that combo of sweeteners 🙂

      Reply
  3. ReMart

    January 6, 2021 at 8:28 pm

    5 stars
    I made this sugar-free today and it was great! I mixed 1/2 cup Lakanto Golden Monk Fruit Sweetener with almond milk and microwaved it for 20 seconds to dissolve. Did everything else the same and it turned out perfect. I love the texture and creaminess. Thanks for a great recipe!

    Reply
    • Erica

      January 7, 2021 at 9:39 am

      Fantastic news! It’s quite easy to make my recipes low carb. Thank you so much for sharing what worked for you 🙂

      Reply
  4. jennifer wood

    October 12, 2020 at 9:09 am

    What brand of coconut milk/cream do you use?

    Reply
    • Erica

      October 12, 2020 at 5:00 pm

      I prefer homemade these days, using coconut flakes and hot water. See my post on how to make coconut milk for my method and brands.

      Reply
  5. Marylin

    November 10, 2019 at 9:19 am

    5 stars
    Love it! It was slightly sweet for me, so next time I will try using half maple syrup and half coconut sugar. Either way, it is delicious and the texture is perfect. This recipe is a keeper!!!

    Reply
    • Erica

      November 10, 2019 at 10:07 am

      Great to hear! Yes, feel free to adjust the sweeteners and amount.

      Reply
  6. Eleanor

    April 22, 2019 at 7:41 pm

    As Flan/Creme Caramel does really well made in an electric multi-cooker/Instant Pot, this sound like a recipe that would work in one as well! So much easier than dealing with a bain marie in the oven!

    Reply
    • Erica

      April 22, 2019 at 8:53 pm

      Oooh! You are right. Great thinking.

      Reply
  7. Debbie

    October 20, 2018 at 9:11 am

    5 stars
    I love this recipe Erica! I decided to try it in one dish rather than the ramekins. I used my Princess House ( very old but reliable) clear glass 8×8 baking dish. I used my 9×13 Pyrex lasagna dish for water bath. Now, I had to figure out the cooking time. When all said and done, I baked it for 1 1/2 hours, @ 350, checking every 10 min after an 1 hr and 10 mins. Came out beautifully set and delicious! Thought you and your readers would appreciate the input! Just love Comfybelly and use so many of your recipes!!!

    Reply
    • Erica

      October 20, 2018 at 10:30 am

      Yay! Thanks so much for sharing what worked, Debbie. Slow and steady wins the race with this recipe. And the water bath!

      Reply
  8. Leiann

    November 18, 2017 at 12:03 pm

    Just made this. It was so good I made a second batch. So nice to find a recipe that does not have gobs of sugar or sugar substitutes. My hubby loves pumpkin so this was a hit. This is a “keeper”!

    Reply
    • Erica

      November 18, 2017 at 3:37 pm

      Thanks! 🙂

      Reply
  9. Akshaya

    November 16, 2017 at 12:26 am

    Can we use the coconut cream that comes in a container instead of refrigerating coconut milk and taking the cream from that? I have some guests coming over and I urgently need to make the coconut whipped cream as they follow SCD diet like me.

    Reply
    • Erica

      November 16, 2017 at 5:41 pm

      Yes, but you may need to add water to the cream to get the right consistency. Check on the container label.

      Reply
  10. Kelsey

    November 9, 2017 at 6:49 pm

    Hi Erica! If you use one large baking dish, how do you go about the water bath? Thanks!

    Reply
    • Erica

      November 9, 2017 at 9:58 pm

      I thought someone might ask 🙂 I haven’t tried it yet, other than when it’s in a pie crust, but I would still set up a water bath. Which means, you’ll need two baking dishes, one slightly bigger than the other.

      Reply
  11. Joanne

    November 9, 2017 at 5:04 pm

    I prefer the filling in pies, too, and would always leave the crust. This custard will be perfect for me and my husband, since we cannot eat the sugar-laden pies. Also, I wanted to mention that I have your cookbook, and love it!

    Reply
    • Erica

      November 9, 2017 at 5:13 pm

      Thanks so much! Happy holidays!

      Reply

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Measurement equivalents

1 tablespoon 3 teaspoons
1/4 cup 4 tablespoons
1 cup 8 ounces
1 teaspoon 5 ml
1 tablespoon 15 ml

Temperature conversions

Gas Mark Fahrenheit Celsius
  1/4  225  110
  1/2  250  130
    1  275  140
    2  300  150
    3  325  170
    4  350  180
    5  375  190
    6  400  200
    7  425  220
    8  450  230
    9  475  240

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I create recipes using simple, nutrient-dense ingredients, staying as close to the earth as possible.

One of my boys was diagnosed with Crohn’s, which inspired me to start Comfy Belly, and create recipes to share my love of good, healthy food. Read More →

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