Preheat the oven to 350°F. Pre-bake your prepared pie crust for 7 minutes. Set it aside to cool. In a measuring cup combine the coconut milk and cornstarch. Whisk until smooth.

Melt vegan butter over medium heat in a saucepan. Add pecans and toast in the pan for about 30 seconds while stirring continuously. Add date syrup, date paste, coconut milk mixture, vanilla and salt. Beat with mixer until smooth.

Pour mixture in the pie crust until filled to about 1/4-inch of the top of the crust. 

Optional: add 1/4 cup baking chocolate chips.

Bake in the oven for about 30 minutes, or until filling appears mostly firm when you gently jiggle it. Cool on the counter for 2-3 hours then cover and store in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours, ideally overnight. Allow to sit at room temperature for at least an hour before serving. If it’s too cold then it will be firm but serving it at room temperature makes for the perfect texture.