Description
An amazing centre piece for your Holiday dessert table, this Cranberry Chocolate Meringue Pie with Pecan Crust has it all: Fluffy, creamy Italian Meringue laced with Cranberry sauce, a decadent, creamy dark chocolate ganache and a crunchy pecan crust with cinnamon, to round it all out. Plus it’s secretly gluten and lactose free, so everyone can enjoy it!
Ingredients
Crust
- 2/3 cup pecans
- 1/4 cup oats
- 2/3 cup buckwheat Flour
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground allspice
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 3 tbsp maple sirup
- 3 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil
Cranberry Sauce
- 2 cups 225 grams fresh or frozen cranberries
- 1 cup 150 grams sugar
- 1/2 cup 125 grams fresh orange juice
- 1 tbsp finely chopped rosemary (optional)
- 1 tbsp orange zest
Ganache
- 1 cup full fat coconut milk from a can (shake well before opening.)
- 8 ounces 70% chocolate (finely chopped)
Cranberry Meringue
- 4 large egg whites
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal or 1/4 teaspoon fine salt)
- 1/2 tsp cream of tartar or 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
Make the Pecan Crust
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Line the bottom of a springform pan with parchment paper.
- Toast pecans on a baking sheet for 5–8 minutes, until fragrant. Cool slightly.
- Pulse pecans in a food processor until coarsely ground (a mix of fine and coarse pieces).
- Pulse oats until finely ground. Combine ground pecans, oats, buckwheat flour, cinnamon, allspice, and salt in a bowl.
- Add olive oil (or coconut oil) and maple syrup. Mix to form a sticky dough.
- Press the dough into the bottom of the springform pan, creating an even layer. Prick with a fork to prevent bubbles.
- Bake for 14–18 minutes, until golden brown. Cool completely in the pan.
Prepare the Cranberry Sauce
- In a saucepan, combine cranberries, sugar, orange juice, orange zest, and rosemary (if using).
- Bring to a boil, then simmer on medium-low for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Mash cranberries with a potato masher. Simmer until the sauce thickens.
- Strain the mixture through a sieve, pressing with a spoon to extract liquid. Cool and refrigerate until thickened.
Make the Ganache
- Heat coconut milk in a saucepan until just boiling.
- Pour hot coconut milk over chopped chocolate in a bowl. Let sit for 1 minute, then stir until smooth.
- Pour ganache over the cooled pecan crust (still in the springform pan). Chill until firm.
Prepare the Cranberry Meringue
- Beat egg whites with salt and cream of tartar (or lemon juice) until soft peaks form.
- Heat sugar and water in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Boil without stirring until it reaches 240°F (115°C) on a candy thermometer.
- Gradually pour hot sugar syrup into the egg whites while beating. Avoid hitting the whisk. Continue beating until glossy stiff peaks form.
- Stir cranberry sauce to loosen. Beat two-thirds into the meringue for a pink hue. Fold the remaining sauce in for streaks.
Assemble the Pie
- Run a knife around the cooled ganache crust to loosen. Remove springform ring and transfer the pie to a serving platter.
- Pile cranberry meringue on top, creating peaks and swirls.
- (Optional) Lightly torch the meringue for a caramelized effect.
Notes
It’s best eaten on the day of making the meringue, as the addition of the cranberry sauce can cause a bit of weeping when left for a day or more, but it’ll still be perfectly delicious (if slightly moister at the bottom) up to at least 2 days in the fridge. It might be ok for up to 4 days, but it was always eaten before in my house, so I had no chance to test that theory. Please let me know if you do.
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Calories: 616
- Sugar: 64
- Sodium: 257
- Fat: 30
- Saturated Fat: 14
- Carbohydrates: 84
- Fiber: 6
- Protein: 7
- Cholesterol: 1







