Pumpkin Pie No Evaporated Milk

Published Nov 19, 2024

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Looking to recreate a simple fall classic but forgot to buy evaporated milk at your grocery run? Here’s how to make the perfect pumpkin pie without evaporated milk– one that’s just as creamy, delicious and packed with all that delicious pumpkin flavor.

Pumpkin pie on a plate topped with cream and cinnamon.

This easy recipe is also perfect for beginners, so if you’ve really been hesitant about making traditional pumpkin pie from scratch. You’ll love its simplicity.

If you love pumpkin-inspired recipes and really want to try some good ones this fall, you might want to try making my pumpkin spice doughnuts or pumpkin chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast or indulge in an easy pumpkin roll cake or a heavenly pumpkin cake with cream cheese frosting for dessert.

Why You’ll Love This Easy Pumpkin Pie Recipe

The recipe is quick and easy. You’ll just need around 20 minutes of hands-on kitchen time to put it together. There is no need to bake the crust first or for pie weights.
It’s perfect for fall and Thanksgiving. On days when you’re entertaining and just looking for something no-fuss and straightforward, you can always turn to this recipe.
It’s also a great make-ahead recipe. You can put it together a day or two ahead of time and serve it later whenever you like.

Recipe Ingredients

Ingredients for Pumpkin Pie without evaporated milk.

Flour: Your regular all-purpose flour works fine.
Sugar: I used a mix of brown sugar and white sugar here. Brown sugar lends such a beautiful caramel-like flavor to the pie filling, which is exactly what I needed.
Butter: For the crust. Use unsalted butter.
Heavy cream: This will add the much-needed richness to the pie filling and compensate for the lack of evaporated milk.
Pumpkin puree: You’ll need about a can of pumpkin puree. Make sure you use pure pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie filling. You can easily make homemade pumpkin puree by roasting pumpkin and blending it into a puree.
Large Eggs: For that rich, custardy texture. Make sure the eggs are at room temperature before using them.
Vanilla: Just a dash to enhance the flavors of the spices and the pumpkin, and for its beautiful sweet aroma.
Spices: I used a mix of ground nutmeg, ground cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice.
Salt: To season the pie crust and filling. I love using sea salt!

For the full list of ingredients with measurements, check out the recipe card below.

Recipe Variations

Spice it up: To deepen the kick of spice in the pumpkin pie, add a pinch of allspice or freshly ground black pepper to the filling.
Topping fun: Experiment with different toppings to add a bit of extra oomph to the pumpkin pie. I love topping mine with maple-sweetened whipped cream and lots of candied or roasted pecans.
Gluten-free: To make a gluten-free pumpkin pie, use your favorite brand of gluten-free flour instead of all-purpose flour.

Substitutions

Sweetener swap: You can substitute maple syrup or honey for sugar (only for the filling) if you want to.
Spice swap: If you don’t have ground nutmeg or cinnamon, try using other ground spices like cardamom, cloves or ginger, which have similar earthy tones.
Heavy cream swap: If you don’t have heavy cream, you can use half and half, which should also work. Or use whole milk, almond milk, or coconut milk for a dairy-free option.

Pumpkin pie no evaporated milk in a white pie dish.

How to Make Pumpkin Pie without Evaporated Milk

This is a very easy-to-follow homemade pumpkin pie recipe. I use a simple homemade pie crust, but you can definitely make this with a storebought crust as well. It is simple and straightforward, and I hope it becomes your best pumpkin pie recipe!

To make pumpkin pie without evaporated milk, start by preheating your oven to 425 degrees and grease your pie dish with butter.

For the pie crust

Step 1: Prep dry ingredients. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, salt, and sugar using a whisk or your hands until well combined.

Flour and other dry ingredients in a bowl.

Step 2: Add butter. Chop up the butter into small pieces and add it to the dry ingredients. Using your fingers or a pastry cutter, work the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs.

Dry ingredients and butter for pie crust in a bowl.

Step 3: Prep the dough. Slowly add cold water, a little at a time, and gently mix until the dough starts to come together. Don’t overmix!

Step 4: Chill time. Shape the dough into a ball and wrap it tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least an hour, or leave it overnight.

For the filling

Step 1: Combine eggs & pumpkin. In a large bowl, whisk the egg and pumpkin together until well combined.

Step 2: Prep the filling. Now add the heavy cream, vanilla extract, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie mix, and whisk everything together until the mixture is smooth and well blended. You can use a whisk or a blender.

Brown sugar and other ingredients added to egg mixture.

Mixed filling for pumpkin pie with no evaporated milk.

To assemble

Step 1: Roll time. Take the chilled pie dough from the fridge and transfer it to a well-floured surface. Roll out the pie and transfer to the pie dish.

Step 2: Shape it. Shape the crust as you want to and pour the pumpkin pie filling into the unbaked pie crust.

Pumpkin pie filling poured into unbaked pie crust.

Step 3: Bake time. Bake the pumpkin pie for 15-20 minutes, and then lower the temperature to 350°F and bake for an additional 30 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean.

Baked pumpkin pie with no evaporated milk.

Step 4: Cool and serve. Let it cool on a wire rack for about 2 hours before serving, or refrigerate until ready to serve.

Expert Tips for Perfect Pumpkin Pie

I love making pie crust from scratch, but if you want to make things quicker and easier, you can just use a store-bought pie crust for this recipe.
If the center of the pie looks slightly jiggly, even at the end of the cooking time, don’t worry. It will set and firm up as it cools down.
Avoid overbaking the pie or getting it out of the oven suddenly. Both of these can cause the top of the pumpkin pie to crack.
For the perfect crust, you can also blind bake (or par bake) the crust for a few minutes before you add in the pumpkin pie filling.
If the crust of the pie starts to brown quickly, wrap it with aluminum foil.

How to Store

Storing: Got some leftovers? You can cover them up in plastic wrap and refrigerate them for up to 4 days.

Freezing: You can also freeze the pie if you want to, but remember to use a freezer-safe bag or container to prevent freezer burn.

Slice of homemade pumpkin pie served with cream.

Serving Suggestions

Serve this rich and creamy pumpkin pie with other fall classics like a juicy roast turkey (if you’re making this for Thanksgiving) or a herb roasted duck and some delicious sides like fried carrots, garlic butter rolls and rosemary garlic mashed potatoes!