One of my all time favorite desserts is pecan pie. I'm not sure why, because I don't really even like pecans. Maybe it's the Quebecer in me, having grown up eating sugar pie, (which is exactly what it sounds like, a pie filled with sugar). Sometimes in Quebec we get fancy and use maple syrup along with brown sugar in the filling. Either way it is one of the sweetest (and therefore yummiest) desserts you will ever consume.
Because of this nostalgia I love making pecan pie for the holidays. A couple of years back I found a great recipe and have adapted it a bit through some trial and error. This pie is actually pretty easy to make, mainly because I opt to not make my own crust. I find it way too labor intensive and finicky for not enough of a payoff. The frozen crusts you can buy in the store are perfectly acceptable. It's really all about the filling anyway.
Here is the link to what the author calls "The Perfect Pecan Pie" and here are my changes:
- I buy frozen crusts (the recipe isn't super clear, but the filling is enough to make 2 ~9 inch pies)
- I lightly toast the pecans first and I like a very "pecan-y" pie so I use ~2 1/2 cups of pecans, but really it's to taste ( to toast the pecans I put them on the stove-top in a dry frying pan on low-medium heat and stay very close, because they can go from toasty to burnt in seconds)
- I sometimes use corn syrup (as they call for) but I have also substituted it for molasses
- The recipe also doesn't specify salted or unsalted butter for the filling. I use salted butter because it just tastes better.
- I check my pies at the 40 minute mark, and then every 5 mins after until they're done. Keep in mind that it will continue to cook a bit after you take it out, and you really don't want to over-bake it.
- These pies freeze pretty well, so they can be made in advance. Yay!
Enjoy!