Want to know the secret to making the best, most perfectly flaky pie crust? Keep the butter cold! Yes, even for vegan pie crust! This recipe uses vegan butter, flour, and a small amount of sugar, salt, and water to create the BEST pie crust. Simply mix it together, form into a dough, and roll it out into a pie crust. This recipe is incredibly easy!
You’ll Also Love: Vegan Pizza Dough
Ingredients
This recipe only requires 5 simple ingredients! Here’s what you’ll need to get started:
Flour – All-purpose flour works best in this recipe. However, you could also use a mix of almond flour and all-purpose!
Sugar – A tiny bit of granulated sugar sweetness this pie crust to perfection.
Salt – A dash of salt brings balance and depth to the crust. If you prefer a saltier pie crust, feel free to add 1/4 teaspoon more salt to the recipe!
Vegan Butter – The star of this vegan pie crust recipe is vegan butter! Vegan butter sticks work best, but a vegan butter spread like Earth Balance also works.
Cold Water – The cold water (or almond milk) softens the dough and brings it together. I used 4 Tablespoons, but 3 Tablespoons will create an ever-so-slightly drier dough if that’s preferred.
How to Make Vegan Pie Crust (5 Easy Steps)
Making this Vegan Pie Crust is SO easy! Here’s how to whip it up in no time at all:
- Mix the dry ingredients.
- Add in cold, chopped vegan butter and mix until coated evenly.
- Slowly add in cold water until dough is evenly crumbly.
- Roll into a ball, refrigerate, and flatten with a rolling pin.
- Press into a pie pan and refrigerate for later or bake!
Making a Gluten-Free Vegan Pie Crust
This Vegan Pie Crust is already dairy free, but it can easily also be made gluten free. Using a 1-to-1 gluten-free flour is the best option! Another option is to use almond flour instead of all-purpose, although the results tend to be a bit drier rather than flaky. Here’s a great article for how to substitute almond flour for all-purpose flour in baking recipes!
Making Vegan Pie Crust With Coconut Oil
Another option is to use coconut oil in vegan pie crust rather than vegan butter. While vegan butter adds that delicious buttery taste, coconut oil is a great alternative!
The key to making coconut oil work in a pie crust is to make sure that it is VERY cold throughout the entire process before baking. This is a little trickier with coconut oil vs vegan butter, but is definitely possible. Simply make sure that you start with cold, solid coconut oil and continue to place the dough in the refrigerator or freezer for a few minutes throughout the process!
Tips for Making the BEST Vegan Pie Crust
Keep the Butter Cold
From the time you start the recipe to right before you bake it, it’s important to keep the butter as cold as possible in the dough. This is what makes that delicious flaky crust we’re going for!
A few ways to do this is to wash your hands with cold water before starting, cut the butter on a cutting board that’s been in the refrigerator, and place the dough in the fridge for a few minutes throughout the process if it seems like it’s warming up too much.
Use a Food Processor
Another option is to use a food processor for making the dough! This can be really helpful for keeping the butter cold (as working with your hands will warm it up quicker). Simply pulse the food processor to chop up the butter, then add in the mixed dry ingredients and continue to pulse. Add in the cold water 1 Tablespoon at a time, pulsing until the dough is crumbly but begins sticking together!
Transfer Pie Crust With a Rolling Pin
Once you’ve flattened the vegan pie dough into a disk, use a very lightly floured rolling pin to wrap the dough over. Then simply unroll it over the pie dish, guiding it as you unroll.
Form the Edges
No one is saying your pie crust has to be pretty. But bonus points if it is! You can use a fork to form ridges around the edges of the pie crust (super quick and easy). Another method is to use your index finger to flute the edges, gently wrapping the dough around your finger to create the flute!
Blind Bake with Weights
Whether you’re fully pre-baking the pie crust (for no-bake pie filling) or partially baking the pie crust, it does help to blind bake with pie weights! However, it’s not a requirement and/or you can use a fork to poke a few holes in the bottom to keep it from rising in the oven.
Wrap Edges with Foil
After 15 minutes of baking the pie crust, it’s import to wrap the edges with foil or a pie shield to keep them from burning!
Make the Pie Crust Ahead of Time
To make your vegan pie crust ahead of time, simply wrap the pie dough in plastic wrap and place in a freezer safe airtight container. Refrigerate or freeze!
How to Store Vegan Pie Crust
There are many ways to store vegan pie crust! Here’s how to store it and how long it will last:
Pre-Baked Crust – A pre-baked crust can be lightly wrapped and stored at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Refrigerator – Vegan pie dough can be wrapped and placed in an airtight container to keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Freezer – To store vegan pie dough, wrap tightly and place in an airtight container. Refrigerate for 1 hour, then move to the freezer and store for up to 6 months!
The Best Pie Fillings
Want to know what to fill your delicious vegan pie crust with? Here are a few ideas for the best pie fillings for this type of crust!
- Pumpkin Pie
- Pecan Pie
- Chocolate Hazelnut Pie
- Apple Pie
- Blueberry Pie
More Vegan Recipes You’ll Love
- Healthy Apple Crisp Recipe
- The BEST Vegan Caramel Sauce
- Easy Fluffy Pecan Pie Pancakes
- Vegan Cranberry Ginger Crumble Fruit Bake
- Vegan Pumpkin Spice Coffee Creamer
Did you make this recipe? Be sure to give it a rating below and tag your photos @jar.of.lemons!
Easy Vegan Pie Crust
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup vegan butter (8 Tablespoons, cold)
- 3-4 Tablespoons cold water
Instructions
- Mix the flour, sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl.
- Keeping the butter as cold as possible, cut it into small 1/4-1/2 inch pieces.
- Mix the butter into the dry ingredients until evenly coated and distributed.
- Mix in the cold water, 1 Tablespoon at a time, until the dough is crumbly but begins to stick together.
- Form the dough into two balls (for two pie crusts), wrap, and refrigerate for 10-15 minute (or more, if possible).
- Use a rolling pin to flatten each pie crust one at a time, creating a 11-12 inch disk.
- Gently transfer the pie crust to a 9-inch pie pan and press down.
- Use a knife to cut the excess crust around the edges and form the edges to desired shape.
- Refrigerate until ready to fill with pie filling and bake (according to pie recipe directions)!
Pre-Baked Pie Crust
- For a pie recipe that calls for a pre-baked crust, preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
- Line the pie crust with parchment paper and add pie weights or dry beans.
- Bake for 15 minutes.
- Remove from oven and carefully wrap the edges with foil.
- Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
- Bake for another 40-45 minutes.
- Fill with no-bake pie filling and enjoy!
Notes
Tips for Success:
- Keep butter cold
- Use a food processor
- Transfer pie crust with rolling pin
- Use pie weights and a pie shield if necessary
How to Store:
- Pre-Baked Crust – A pre-baked crust can be lightly wrapped and stored at room temperature for up to 3 days.
- Refrigerator – Vegan pie dough can be wrapped and placed in an airtight container to keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Freezer – To store vegan pie dough, wrap tightly and place in an airtight container. Refrigerate for 1 hour, then move to the freezer and store for up to 6 months!
Ginger lily says:
I love this recipe! I’ve used it a couple times now and it’s great for both sweet and savory vegan pies. I usually use cold almond milk instead of water and it turns out wonderful. Thanks for an awesome recipe!
Jar Of Lemons replied:
So happy to hear that you enjoyed this! Thanks for making it!
Serena says:
Love how easy this is!
Jean says:
This vegan pie crust is amazing! They cant believe its vegan.