Chocolate Macadamia Nut Pie (Dairy Free & Gluten Free)

Have you ever experienced the sensational deliciousness of Chocolate Macadamia Nut Pie? My lips landed on this creamy dream when I was in Maui in 2017. We had come across a pie shop called Leoda’s Pie Shop with the best individualized size pies. Their Chocolate Mac Nut Pie was out of this world. A graham crumb crust, caramel center, chocolate custard, toasted macadamia nuts, toasted coconut, sprinkle of salt and whipped cream. Like seriously!!!

So last year I took it upon myself to try to re-create this masterpiece all by memory. I took on this challenge as I was planning a Hawaiian themed birthday party for someone who loves Hawaii and couldn’t travel their given the no travel rules. I made a menu with items re-created from their favorite restaurants such as The Royal Hawaiian, Mama’s Fish House, Cafe O’Lei, Leoda’s Pie Shop.

This recipe is definitely a labor of love and you have to go into making the pie knowing it’s going to take a while. This is not a quick recipe but trust me it is very bit worth it. I make these in mini foil pie dishes for individual servings. You can also make in one large pie plate if you prefer.

I’ve now made this pie a couple times and feel like it’s worth sharing with all of you to enjoy too. And as I do, I found a way to make it dairy free and gluten free.

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Chocolate Macadamia Nut Pie (Dairy Free & Gluten Free)

Prep Time 1 hour

Cook Time 20 minutes

Servings 4

Author Olivia Ward

Ingredients

Crust Ingredients

• 1/2 cup pecans
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds
• 1 cups gluten free graham crumbs
• 1/4 cup dairy free butter (I used the MELT brand)
• 4 mini foil pie tins

Date Caramel

• 1/4 cup medjool dates pitted* and soaked for 15 minutes in boiling water
• 1/8 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1 tbsp water
• 1 tbsp canned coconut cream (or simply chill a can of full fat coconut milk and scoop off 1 tbsp of fat from the top which is the "coconut cream")
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• Pinch of salt

Macadamia Layer

• 1/4 + 1/8 cup macadamia, chopped

Creamy Chocolate Filling

• 1/4 cup dairy free butter, cut into chunks (I used the MELT brand)
• 5.5 oz bittersweet chocolate chopped (I used dark chocolate chips for ease)
• 3.5 tbsp granulated sugar
• 1/8 cup cornstarch
• 4.5 egg yolks
• 1.75 cups full fat canned coconut milk
• 1/2 tbsp cacao powder
• 3/4 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

1. CRUST
2. Place all crust ingredients into a food processor and chop until a fine crumb is created that started to form a ball in the food processor.

3. Divide crust mixture amongst 4 foil mini pie tins.

4. Press crust mixture into the base of the foil tins. Bake at 350 F for 10 minutes.
5. Remove from heat, set aside and allow to cool.
6. DATE CARAMEL
7. Drain soaked dates. Add all caramel ingredients into a high-speed blender or food processor and blend until mixture is smooth and there are no date chunks detectable.
8. Add more almond milk, 1-2 tbsp at a time, if needed to thin the caramel.
9. Add approximately 2 tbsp date caramel on top of each cooled crust until caramel is used up. Set aside.
10. MACADAMIA NUT LAYER
11. Chop macadamia nuts and add approximately 1 tbsp on top of caramel layer of each mini pie. Set aside the additional chopped macadamia nuts to use as topping after filling the pies with the chocolate layer.
12. CHOCOLATE FILLING
13. Chop the chocolate and butter.
14. Separate the yolks and whites from all the eggs. Set aside the whites. Place all the yolks in a bowl and whisk together. Set aside. In a small bowl, using a whisk, whisk together the cornstarch and sugar. Add the egg yolks to the sugar and beat until it is creamy and mostly smooth. Set aside.
15. In a medium-sized pot, heat the coconut milk over medium heat and slowly increase to medium-high heat. Stir occasionally with a wooden spoon, making sure to scrape the bottom of the pot. When ample small bubbles form, but is NOT BOILING (the milk will burn if you let it boil), turn off the heat and in a slow drizzle, pour a scant amount of the hot coconut milk into the egg yolk mixture, whisking the mixture so the eggs do not curdle. Slowly and gradually add another drizzle/stream of the coconut milk and stir. Repeat the process until all of the hot coconut milk has been incorporated into the egg mixture. You are tempering the eggs so that they slowly heat up. This way you avoid curdling (scrambling) your eggs.
16. Pour the hot egg and coconut milk mixture back into the pot and heat over medium heat again. Whisk constantly until it has thickened considerably (about 4 minutes). The mixture should amply coat the back of your wooden spoon when thickened. Stir in your chocolate and butter until smooth. Add the cocoa powder and vanilla and whisk together. Push the chocolate mixture through a sieve into a medium-sized bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, fitting/pressing the plastic wrap against the top of the pudding, not the bowl itself, to eliminate “pudding skin”. Refrigerate for an hour. It will continue to thicken while cooling.

17. After refrigerating, divide the pudding mixture into the 4 mini crusts. Top with additional macadamia nuts. Refrigerate until ready to serve.