It’s that time of year again, Thanksgiving.

Where we gather around the table carving into a turkey and stuffing it’s insides. This used to be my least favorite holiday because nothing sounded appealing to me on the table. It was torture explaining to my extended family what a vegetarian was and how meat wasn’t in my food pyramid by choice. Add to that that I’m a picky eater. Mashed potatoes, yams and casserole just aren’t things that sound appetizing to me.

But through my own mad cooking skills I have found a way to beat the system and enjoy the holiday to the fullest; hold the turkey.

This year for Thanksgiving, I made several traditional dishes with a non-traditional twist such as this pumpkin pie.

The way I’m preparing it is actually with a vegan spin, I have found that many baked goods stay better longer when made vegan and most people can’t tell the difference in taste so you can fool grandpa across the table.

You will need:

For the crust:

• 2 cups graham cracker crumbs
• ¼ cup coconut oil melted
• 2 tablespoons agave nectar

For the pumpkin filling:

• 1 (14-ounce/400 mL) can pumpkin puree
• 1/3 cup natural cane sugar
• 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
• 1/4 cup full-fat canned coconut milk (use only the white cream portion, see note)
• 2 tablespoons almond milk
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 5 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• Pinch fine grain sea salt

First, preheat your oven to 350F and lightly grease an 8-inch square pan.

Prepare the crust: In a medium bowl, combine the graham crumbs, melted coconut oil, and sweetener until the crumbs are thoroughly coated in the mixture. Scoop the mixture into the prepared pan and smooth out evenly. Starting from the middle, press the crumbs into the pan firmly and evenly. You really want to press hard so the crust sticks together nicely, I use my fingers personally, but I hear a pastry roller works nice too.

Pre-bake the crust, uncovered, for 10 minutes at 350F.

Prepare the filling: In a small bowl, whisk the ginger zest and maple syrup until no clumps remain. Add this and all of the other filling ingredients into a food processor and process until completely smooth, scraping down the bowl as needed. When the crust has come out of the oven, immediately pour this filling on top of the baked crust and smooth out with a spatula.

Bake, uncovered, for around 40 minutes at 350F until the filling has darkened slightly and it’s semi-firm to the touch (although the filling will still be very soft). Place somewhere to cool for about an hour and then into the fridge to set overnight.

Slice into squares then decorate the top as you like, cinnamon, nuts, and coconut whipped crème are all delicious toppings.

Store leftovers in fridge for later.