Pecan Pie
Photo: Quinn Dombrowski, CC BY-SA 2.0
This pecan pie pairs a flaky, blind-baked crust with a dark brown sugar and corn syrup filling spiked with bourbon. Roasting the pecans whole before chopping them deepens their flavor and keeps them evenly toasted. The crust is chilled twice and baked empty first, so the bottom stays crisp under the filling. It is a traditional Southern dessert, often served at Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Instructions
Spread the whole pecans on a baking sheet and roast them in a 350°F (175°C) oven for 10 minutes. Let them cool, then chop them coarsely. Cube the butter for the crust and freeze it with the shortening for 20 to 30 minutes.
Pulse the flour, sugar and salt in a food processor to mix. Add the chilled butter and shortening and pulse 8 to 12 times, until the butter pieces are about the size of peas. Stir the cold water and vinegar together, pour it down the feed tube with the machine running, and pulse until the mixture starts to clump into a dough.
Turn the dough onto a board, press it into a disk, wrap it in plastic and refrigerate for about 30 minutes. Roll it out on a well-floured board into a circle, working from the center outward and turning and flouring as needed so it does not stick.
Lift the dough on the rolling pin into a 9-inch pie dish and press it into the corners. Prick the bottom with a fork to keep it from puffing, then freeze the shell for 30 minutes.
Line the shell with parchment and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Set the dish on a cookie sheet and bake on the middle rack at 375°F (190°C) for 20 minutes. Lift out the parchment and weights and bake 10 minutes more.
While the crust bakes, melt the filling butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the brown sugar and salt, add the corn syrup, and bring to a boil, stirring now and then so the bottom does not burn. Boil for 1 minute while stirring, then take it off the heat.
Stir in the bourbon, vanilla and chopped pecans, and let the mixture cool for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Beat the eggs and stir them in a little at a time.
Reduce the oven to 350°F (175°C). Pour the filling into the hot crust and return the dish, still on the cookie sheet, to the lower third of the oven. Use a pie shield if you have one to keep the edges from browning too much.
Bake for 45 minutes. The filling should still jiggle slightly when you take it out.
Cool the pie on a rack for 2 to 4 hours. It finishes setting as it cools, so do not cut it early.
Make it personal.
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