You need to make this pie the day before you want to serve it so it has plenty time to cool and firm up in the fridge. It needs a full night (8 hours or so) to firm up.
First, cook your sweet potato first. To make things faster, I cooked a small, whole sweet potato in the microwave for about 5 minutes until really soft. Bake if you don't want to use a microwave, as steaming/boiling will add extra water. Let it cool some before proceeding.
Preheat your oven to 350°F degrees and grease a 9 inch pie dish REALLY well. Do not skip the spray or the crust will stick to the dish! Press your dough into the greased dish, flat and evenly across and going up the sides (if using homemade). You do not prebake the pie crust whether using my recipe OR a store-bought one. Use the crust raw because the pie bakes a really long time.
For the filling, first add the syrup and walnuts only to a high powered blender. I used my Vitamix. If you don't have one, I don't think a regular blender will be powerful enough, so I would suggest using your food processor. Blend until fairly smooth. Scrape down the sides and add the cornstarch, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and salt, pumpkin and sweet potato. Blend until completely smooth. It should be like a pudding consistency.
Pour the batter onto the crust and smooth out with the back of a spoon flat and evenly along the sides. I swirled the spoon in a circular motion for a pretty effect.
If using my homemade pie crust, place 4 double-folded 8 inch strips of foil around just the edges of the crust, just placed flat along the edges. (see photo) Crimp them underneath the pie dish. This is crucial so the crust doesn’t burn. Make sure they are not dipping into the pie filling, otherwise that will affect how the filling bakes up. OR, use a pie crust protector (linked below) which works much easier! (linked above) If using a store-bought crust, this can vary so I wouldn’t cover the crust unless you see it is browning too much towards the end of the baking.
Bake for 55 minutes (set your timer!), then add one large loosely placed piece of foil over the whole pie ONLY IF the top is browning too much. It should be a dark golden brown, but only place the foil if it looks like it may start to burn. I have not experienced this though. Just gently place it on top loosely, no need to even remove the pie.
Bake 10 more minutes with the foil on top, which will be 65 minutes total or until the center is set, not jiggly and a deep golden brown (as pictured). A toothpick will not come out clean. I removed mine at exactly 65 minutes. It will finish cooking as it cools and will firm up in the fridge a lot overnight.
Cool to room temperature (2 hours) and then chill in the fridge overnight or 8 hours. This will bring it to the complete firm, set texture. Once ready to serve, loosen the crust by gently going around the edges with a sharp knife. Keep stored in the fridge until ready to serve. I love to eat my pie cold, but if you prefer it room temperature, just set it out at room temperature a bit before serving time. This pie will last a week in the fridge.
Notes
Walnut Pie Crust: My original recipe was written with a walnut crust, but since that crust sticks horribly to any ceramic dish, I removed it from the main ingredients and created a new pie crust that is linked. However, due to many loving it and it working beautifully in a clear glasspie dish, I've included it here. Make sure you only use glass for this crust.Ingredients for Walnut Crust:
1 3/4 cups (190g) raw walnuts
6 tablespoons (48g) cornstarch
2 tablespoons (16g) oat flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
3 1/2 tablespoons (70g) pure maple syrup
Directions for crust:
Add the walnuts to a food processor and process into somewhat a flour, about 15 seconds. Add the cornstarch, oat flour, cinnamon and salt and pulse until briefly mixed. Add the syrup and process until large sticky chunks form. Press into a greased 9 inch glass pie dish evenly on the bottom and around the sides evenly. Follow the baking instructions as listed under step 5 and make sure you cover the crust or it will burn!
Icing Drizzle:If you would like to make the icing drizzle that was originally featured in the pie when I first wrote the recipe, here are the ingredients. I removed it from the actual recipe since I had added it to look pretty and decorative, but it is completely unnecessary flavor-wise and feel that the pie doesn't need it. Also, it was tricky to make pretty drizzles. However, for those asking and would like to try it:
2tablespoonswater or plant-based milk
2tablespoonsmaple syrup
pinchsea salt
2teaspoonscornstarch
4tablespoons (60g)liquid melted coconut butter (melt in microwave to complete liquid first, then measure)
Make sure none of the liquids are cold or it will cause the coconut butter to seize up. Whisk the ingredients together until smooth and use a piping bag to drizzle on the chilled pie.