Picture Perfect Pumpkin Pie

The tradition around here is to come up with a Leaner Living approved dessert for every Thanksgiving. We have done pumpkin bites, muffins, and bars in the past. This year it was decided to tackle everyone’s favorite turkey day pie (well maybe not everyone’s – apple and pecan pies are good too!). Just looking at what goes into the filling, regular pumpkin pie doesn’t seem that bad for you (except for the loads of added sugar, which we can replace). It is the crust that needed some adjustment. Our love for almond flour made the decision easier for the flour crust replacement choice. Sometimes “healthy” desserts are sub par, but we think you’ll agree that this one makes for a good replacement to the real thing. A quick note – the crust is still a little high in calories so you may want to make just the filling if you’re actively losing weight. If you’re just maintaining, the whole recipe is fine.

Calories (per slice): 320 Protein: 13 g Total Carbs: 11 g (5 g net) Fiber: 6 g Fat: 24 g

Prep Time: 15 – 70 min

Cooking Time: 55 min

What is needed:

(Crust):

• 1 and 3/4 cups almond meal
  
• Either 1 stick of real butter or 1 cup of coconut oil or smart balance butter
  
• dash of salt

(Filling):

• 1 and 3/4 cups canned pumpkin
  
• 2 eggs
  
• 12 oz of low carb milk (hood calorie countdown) or skim milk
  
• 4 scoops of Vanilla Leaner Living mrp
• 3/4 cups of splenda or your choice of equivalent sweetener (xylitol, stevia, etc)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ginger
• 1 tsp cinnamon (or just pumpkin spice)
  

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees
   
2. Mix crust ingredients and form into a ball. Place into fridge (for about an hour)
   
3. Mix filling ingredients.
   
4. Remove crust mixture and roll out using rolling pin and a pinch of flour on flat surface.
   
5. Place rolled out crust into pie dish and trim as necessary.
   
6. Pour in filling
   
7. Bake at 425 for 15 minutes then decrease to 350 degrees and bake for 40 minutes.
   
8. Remove and allow to cool before serving or refrigerate.
   
9. Enjoy as dessert or meal on its own