Pecan pie is one of my favorites. My father used to make them when I was a child. This is a recipe based on one in an old cookbook that belonged to him. My daughter and I made this version for Christmas and decided to add the leaf motif around the outer edge. Hope you enjoy it.
Total Time: 1.5 hours including prep time
Yield: 8+ slices
Source: Based on recipe from The Encyclopedia of Cookery, 1948
Ingredients:
- 1 9 inch pie shell
- 1/3 cup butter, softened
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup light corn syrup
- 3 eggs well beaten
- 1 1/2 cup broken pecans
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 3/4 tsp vanilla
- Optional: Dough Leaf Cutouts
- additional pie crust or dough scraps
- leaf cookie cutter
Steps:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Partially bake pie crust, approximately 7-10 minutes or until light brown. Remove from oven and set aside.
- Cream butter and sugar.
- Add Karo syrup and continue creaming.
- Blend thoroughly.
- In a separate bowl, beat the eggs.
- Break pecans into medium to small pieces and measure.
- Beat the eggs into the bowl with the sugar, butter, and syrup mixture. Add the salt, vanilla, and nuts.
- If you are going to add the leaf accents, roll out your pastry scraps now and prepare your shapes. We had a small leaf cookie cutter, but you can free hand cut them as well.
- Turn filling into partially baked pastry shell (add leaves) and return to 350 degree F oven.
- Bake for 50-55 minutes, or until the filling is completely set.
- Cover the edges with foil or a pie edge cover at approximately 45 minutes, to prevent the edge from getting too brown.
- Check with a toothpick to make sure the filling is completely set.
- Let cool to room temperature. Slice and serve. Yummy.
This time my daughter and I decided to dress the pie up a bit by adding leaf shapes to the outer edge. For this you would need to use an additional frozen crust or use the scraps, if you make your own dough.
