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Chocolate Turtle Pie {Vegan, Paleo}

Published: · Modified: by · This post may contain affiliate links · 10 Comments

Chocolate Pecan Pie made healthier!! Luscious chocolate filling, smooth caramel and buttery pecans on a flaky shortbread crust. NO grains/gluten, sugar, eggs, or dairy! This pie is 100% Vegan & Paleo friendly 🙂
Chocolate Turtle Pie PrettyPies.com

Paleo & Vegan Chocolate Pecan Pie

Are you ready for a recipe makeover?

I recreated one of my favorite desserts, Chocolate Turtle Pie, and made it much healthier using whole foods. So, YES, you can have your pie and eat it, too! 😉

Have YOU ever experienced the amazingness that is chocolate turtle? It's the scrumptious combination of chocolate, CARAMEL, and pecans!

But in this pie, you won't find any sweetened condensed milk, corn syrup, bleached flour, or refined sugar in this recipe. So what's it made of?? Unconventional ingredients that are delicious and good for you!Chocolate Turtle Pie PrettyPies.com

Secretly Made with Avocado!

The chocolate filling is made with (gasp!) AVOCADO. (And no, it doesn't taste like guac! Haha!) They make it so smoooooth and creamy.

Avocados make the perfect healthy swap for traditional chocolate pie filling. Blended with maple syrup, cacao and coconut oil, avocado takes on a delicious rich chocolate flavor that you don't have to regret eating. And avocados are SO incredibly good for you. 
Rich, creamy chocolate topped with sweet caramel and toasted pecans on a buttery crisp crust. But made healthier using whole foods!

How to make Quick & Easy Dairy-Free Caramel

This pie has a thick layer of caramel spread on the chocolate.

But it's made with 1 ingredient:

DATES! Have you tried date caramel? It's super easy to make and has a similar flavor to conventional caramel, but it's vegan, Paleo and full of healthy fiber!
Rich, creamy chocolate topped with sweet caramel and toasted pecans on a buttery crisp crust. But made healthier using whole foods!

Crisp Toasted PECANS

Don't even get me started on PECANS. Freshly roasted with a touch of sea salt... Mmmm!

But when you combine them with chocolate and caramel! It elevates them to a whole other level.Rich, creamy chocolate topped with sweet caramel and toasted pecans on a buttery crisp crust. But made healthier using whole foods!

This pie would be a wonderful addition to your holiday menu! Thanksgiving, Christmas, or any fall party!

If you're looking for more healthy and festive desserts, check out my Cinnamon Maple Crunch Pie or  Secret Ingredient Chocolate Silk Pie! 

Click the image below to save this recipe on Pinterest:

Chocolate Turtle Pie PrettyPies.com
Emily

Chocolate Turtle Pie

Rich, creamy chocolate topped with sweet caramel and toasted pecans on a buttery crisp crust. But made healthier using whole foods!
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 3 hours 45 minutes
Servings: 10 slices
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Crust:
  • 2 ¼ cups almond flour
  • 4 ½ Tbs oil I used almond
  • 1 ½ Tbs maple syrup
  • 1 Tbs ground flax + 1 Tbs water
  • ¼ teaspoon pink salt
Chocolate Filling:
  • 3 ripe avocados
  • ½ cup raw cacao powder to taste
  • ¼ cup coconut oil melted
  • ½ cup pure maple syrup to taste
  • 1 Tbs vanilla extract
  • 1/16 teaspoon almond extract
  • 1/16 teaspoon pink salt
Caramel Layer:
  • 1 heaping cup medjool dates pitted
  • Water to soak
  • Pinch of pink salt
  • Dash of vanilla optional
Topping
  • 1 cup pecan halves roasted

Method
 

To make the crust:
  1. Preheat oven to 350. Lightly oil a pie plate.
  2. In a mixing bowl, combine flour and salt.
  3. In a small cup, combine flax, water, oil and maple syrup.
  4. Pour wet over dry and mix well. Press into a standard size pie dish.
  5. Bake for 16-20 minutes until lightly golden. Set aside to cool.
To make the chocolate filling:
  1. Add avocados to food processor and blend well.
  2. Warm coconut oil gently in a glass measuring cup in the microwave.
  3. Add warm oil and remaining ingredients to taste (add more syrup or cacao, if needed).
  4. Spread over cooled crust. Set in the fridge while you prepare the caramel.
To make the caramel layer:
  1. Place pitted dates in a bowl and cover with water (about ½ cup).
  2. Soak for 30 minutes. Remove dates from water and place in food processor, but SAVE the water.
  3. Blend dates, vanilla and salt then stream in water and until desired consistency is achieved (about 3-4 Tbs).
  4. Spread caramel on top of chocolate layer. Decorate with pecans.
  5. Refrigerate for 3 hours to set. Enjoy!

Notes

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I may earn a small commission from qualifying purchases made through referral links in this post (at no additional cost to you). 
Featured Products:
Food processor from Amazon
Cacao Powder here on Amazon
Blanched Almond Flour here on Amazon
Nutiva coconut oil: here on Amazon
I always buy avocados from ALDI -- they're frequently on sale for 59 Cents 🙂
To Store: Keep refrigerated or frozen. If frozen, set out at room temp for 30-45 minutes before serving. (I LOVED it from the freezer!)
Should keep about 5 days in the fridge, but it's best consumed within 2-3 days, since the crust will soften slightly the longer it sits.

More Gluten/Dairy-Free Holiday and Seasonal Dessert Recipes

About Emily

Emily Spain is the creator and recipe developer of Pretty Pies, a destination for people with dietary restrictions such as dairy-free, gluten-free, and sugar-free, along with those pursuing a healthier lifestyle. She is also the author of two cookbooks specializing in wholesome sweets– PS It's Healthy and Yay It's Sugar-Free! For more than eight years, her recipes have reached millions across the globe and helped readers enjoy delicious desserts without detriment to their health.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Kathryn

    This looks amazing! So soft and fudgy, perfect little treat, thanks for sharing : )

    Kathryn |

    Reply

    • Emily

      Thanks! I'm happy to share

      Reply

  2. Celyne

    Looks delish and paleo too!

    Reply

  3. Celyne

    It was a perfect and delicious Easter dessert!
    Since I like to personalize recipes I did this: once the pecans were roasted, I added some maple syrup to the pan and let them caramelize a bit; I then let them to cool on parchment paper. I made extra maple-covered pecans to nibble on...

    Reply

    • Emily

      Yum! Sounds amazing Celyne!! I could eat my weight in maple glazed pecans

      Reply

  4. Laila

    For the crust what oil did u you use? Can you use coconut oil?

    Reply

    • Emily

      I used almond oil in this one (now I use avocado oil) but coconut should be fine. It just might be a little crumbly.

      Reply

  5. Crystal

    This looks fabulous! I’m kicking myself that I don’t have any avocados in the house today as some want Pecan Pie and some want a Chocolate Silk pie, which I used your recipe for last year and it was AMAZING! Even my mother in law really liked it and she likes “traditional” SAD food. So thankful for your work and recipes, I didn’t even bother googling for a paleo pecan pie recipe without eggs, and I won’t have a super sad 5 year old this year who can’t eat pecan pie!

    Reply

    • Emily

      Thank you! So glad the pie was a hit last year. That makes me so happy to hear

      Reply

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