Pumpkin pie with nut praline is a delicious twist on the classic, with a creamy spiced filling and crunchy caramel nut topping. It’s perfect for the holidays!

Pumpkin pie with nut praline is a delicious twist on the classic that's perfect for your holiday table!

Why settle for plain pumpkin pie, when you can easily add a little flair to make it into something more fun and delicious? I’ve already discovered what happens when you mix pumpkin pie with chocolate— see this chocolate swirl pumpkin tart and this pumpkin pie with ganache and gingersnap crust. (Spoiler alert, pumpkin + chocolate is amazing.)

So what about combining pumpkin pie with a chunky nut topping? Well the results from that experiment are in too, and this pumpkin pie with nut praline is also a winner!

The pumpkin filling is spiced and perfectly creamy, the topping of caramelized pecans, hazelnuts, and walnuts has a nice contrasting crunch, and a flaky all-butter pie crust holds the whole thing together. Top slices with whipped cream and watch how quickly they disappear.

Pumpkin pie with nut praline is a delicious twist on the classic that's perfect for your holiday table!

How to Make Pumpkin Pie with Nut Praline

There are 3 parts to this pie:

  1. Buttery flaky pie crust
  2. Creamy pumpkin filling spiced with cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cardamom and cloves
  3. Mixed nut praline made with a combination of pecans, hazelnuts, walnuts

Vanilla whipped cream is an optional topping, but I highly recommend it!

Mixing up pumpkin pie filling

Prepare pumpkin filling

I like to use canned pumpkin puree in pie recipes like this instead of making my own. The texture and water content is always consistent and it produces consistent pumpkin pies.

This pumpkin filling is pretty standard— pumpkin, eggs, cream, brown sugar, vanilla, and spices, all whisked together until smooth.

Adding pumpkin pie filling to a parbaked crust

Pour into partially baked pie crust

To avoid a soggy bottom pie crust, I always partially bake my pie crusts when making pumpkin pie. See my full tutorial on how to parbake (or blind bake) pie crust for more info. It’s an easy step that ensures your pie crust is flaky and fully baked.

Once you have partially baked your pie crust, add the pumpkin filling, brush the edges with egg wash for color, and bake immediately.

Mixed nut praline

Top with nut praline

While the pie is baking, prepare the nut praline on the stove. Bring the mixed nuts, brown sugar, maple syrup, butter, salt and vanilla to a boil and cook for a few minutes until mixture is smooth.

When the pie is almost fully baked but it still slightly jiggles in the center, remove it from the oven and spoon nut mixture over the top. Return it to the oven and bake for 15 minutes more until the topping is bubbly and golden.

The last step is maybe the hardest of all— waiting for the pie to cool! But it will be worth the wait, I promise.

Pumpkin pie with nut praline is a delicious twist on the classic that's perfect for your holiday table!

Can this pie be made ahead?

You have a few options to prep this pie in advance:

  • The pie crust can be made ahead and stored in the fridge for up to 5 days and (double wrapped) in the freezer for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge.
  • The baked pie can be stored in the fridge for up to 1 week, but is best within 3-4 days of baking.
  • This pie also freezes well! Let it cool completely, then double wrap with plastic wrap and store in the freezer for a month or more. Thaw overnight in the fridge or re-warm from frozen in the oven (remove plastic wrap first).

To reheat, cover with foil and warm in a 350°F oven for 30 minutes, or 35-40 minutes if frozen.

More pie tips

  • Crimping the edges of the pie crust can be as simple or elaborate as you’d like! For this pie I used a classic 3-finger crimp. See this video for 4 more easy options.
  • Always brush pie crusts with a simple egg wash (1 egg mixed with 1 tablespoon water) for a colorful crust. Without it your pie crust will be dull and colorless.
  • For the cleanest slices and easiest serving, let pie cool completely before slicing.
  • Because pumpkin pies contain eggs and cream, they should always be stored in the fridge.
  • Looking to save some time, learn how to make pie crust in the food processor.
  • If pies intimidate you or they just don’t seem to come out right, be sure to check out my best tips for making perfect pies. I share solutions for the most common pie baking problems.
  • Here’s a list of my favorite pie tools.

Pumpkin pie with nut praline is a delicious twist on the classic that's perfect for your holiday table!

Other holiday pies you’ll love

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Pumpkin pie with nut praline is a delicious twist on the classic that's perfect for your holiday table!

Pumpkin Pie with Nut Praline

Servings: 10 servings
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Chill and Freeze Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Total Time: 4 hours
Pumpkin pie with nut praline is a delicious twist on the classic, with a creamy spiced filling and crunchy caramel nut topping. It's perfect for the holidays!

Ingredients
 

Pie Crust

  • 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour (150 grams)
  • 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup unsalted butter , cold and cubed (113 grams)
  • 2-4 tablespoons cold water
  • 1 egg + 1 tablespoon water , for egg wash

Pumpkin Filling

  • 15 oz can pumpkin puree , not pumpkin pie filling (425 grams)
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1 large egg yolk
  • ¾ cup heavy cream (175 ml)
  • 1 cup packed light or dark brown sugar (215 grams)
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger
  • ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
  • teaspoon ground cloves
  • ½ teaspoon salt

Nut Praline Topping

  • ¼ cup butter (56 grams)
  • 1 ½ cup mixed chopped nuts (I used pecan, hazelnut, and walnut, about 150 grams)
  • ½ cup packed light or dark brown sugar (105 grams)
  • 2 tablespoons maple syrup
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions
 

To prepare crust

  • Combine flour, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Add butter and use a pastry blender or 2 knives to cut butter into dry ingredients until largest pieces are the size of peas.
  • Add cold water a tablespoon at a time until mixture starts to stick together.
  • Use your hands and bring the mixture into a ball. Dough should still have some dry crumbly parts but will hold together when you shape it. Do not add too much water.
  • Shape into a disk, wrap with plastic wrap, and chill in the fridge for 2 hours and up to 5 days.
  • Roll out into a large 13-inch circle on a floured surface and transfer to a pie dish. Press dough into the pan and trim edges to 1 inch. Pinch and crimp edges as desired.
  • Freeze crust in the pan for 30 minutes.
  • Line crust with foil that's been greased with nonstick spray and fill with pie weights or dry beans/rice.
  • Bake crust at 425°F for 20 minutes until it appears dry and is just starting to turn brown. Remove foil and weights and bake for 5 minutes more. If any crust puffs up, press it back down with the back of a spoon while crust is still warm.
  • Set crust aside to cool while you prepare filling. The crust can be prepared several days in advance and stored at room temperature.

To prepare filling

  • In a large bowl, whisk together all of the filling ingredients.
  • Pour into partially baked pie crust. Brush edges of the crust with egg wash.
  • Bake at 350°F until filling is mostly set, but still jiggles in the center, about 45 minutes. If pie crust browns too quickly, cover with foil.

To prepare nut praline topping

  • While pie is baking, make the praline topping.
  • Melt butter in a saucepan and add nuts, brown sugar, maple syrup, salt and vanilla.
  • Bring to a boil, then continue to cook for a few minutes until mixture is smooth and slightly thickened.
  • Spoon praline on top of partially baked pie. Return to the oven and bake until topping is bubbly and golden, about 15 minutes.
  • Let pie cool completely before slicing. Serve with vanilla whipped cream.

Notes

NOTES:
  • For more help, see my full tutorial on how to partially bake pie crust.
  • This pie can be made ahead. Store in the fridge for up to 1 week or double wrapped in the freezer for up to 1 month.
  • Nutrition information is an estimate.
Calories: 533kcal, Carbohydrates: 54g, Protein: 7g, Fat: 34g, Saturated Fat: 15g, Cholesterol: 146mg, Sodium: 377mg, Potassium: 256mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 37g, Vitamin A: 7435IU, Vitamin C: 2mg, Calcium: 85mg, Iron: 2mg
Cuisine: American
Course: Dessert
Author: Annalise
Have you tried this recipe?I’d love to hear about it! Leave a rating and review below, or take a photo and tag it on Instagram @completelydelicious with #completelydelicious.