Pecan-Maple Pie (Vermont)

QSis

Grill Master
Staff member
Gold Site Supporter
Pecan-Maple Pie (Vermont)

(from the NYTimes New England Heritage Cookbook)

A New England twist on the glorious pecan pie!

4 eggs
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 teas salt
1/3 cup melted butter
1 cup maple syrup (use the real thing, not maple-flavored syrup)
1 cup pecan halves
1 unbaked pie shell, chilled

Preheat oven to 375.

Beat together eggs, sugar, salt, butter and syrup. Mix in pecans and pour into the pie shell.

Bake 15 minutes. Reduce oven temp to 350 and bake 25 minutes longer, or until the filling is set and the pastry is browned.

Serve cold or lukewarm.
 

Jim_S

Resident Curmudgeon
Gold Site Supporter
Thanks, I think I gained a couple of pounds just reading the recipe! :yum:
 

SilverSage

Resident Crone
I've been looking for a good pecan pie recipe without the corn syrup. This looks like it will really fill the bill.

Thanks, Lee.
 

Johnny West

Well-known member
I spotted this one at one of my favorite tumblr sites. :thumb:

I have a bottle of maple crown Royal I've not opened and this looks like a good reason to open it. The bottle came from their first bottling a few years ago. I'm looking for sorghum with no luck. I'll try Win-Co. * The recipe comments below are not mine.

* Pecan Pie with Bourbon and Ginger

One 9-inch (23cm) pie (8 servings)

Adapted from First Prize Pies by Allison Kave

I loved the idea of adding three kinds of ginger to pecan pie and using maple syrup as a sweetener. If you don’t have maple syrup, you can go with golden syrup, which is available in well-stocked supermarkets (depending on where you live), or online. I’ve not used it, but some recommend sorghum syrup as another substitute.

Because I’m like that, I veered from the original proportions a bit. One was that I added a few more pecans, and toasted them first, adding an additional handful to the baking sheet to make up for the ones that I nibbled on. ; ) I also added some melted butter to the filling to give it a little extra silky richness.

If you don’t want to use bourbon, dark rum would be a nice substitution, as would Cognac or rye whiskey. If you want to leave out the liquor, just add 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract and a few drops of lemon juice to counterbalance the brown sugar and maple syrup.

Although I didn’t do it, you could brush the rim with an egg wash – one egg yolks mixed with 1-2 teaspoons of milk, and brush it over the rim before baking the pie. If glazing the rim, it may need to be covered during baking if it gets too dark before the filling is done. You can fashion strips of aluminum foil to cover the rim of the pie if that happens.

For the dough

1 1/4 cups (175g) flour
2 teaspoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 ounces (115g) chilled unsalted butter, cubed
3-4 tablespoons ice water

For the pecan pie filling

1 cup (215g) packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup (125ml) dark amber maple syrup
3 large eggs, at room temperature
4 tablespoons melted butter, salted or unsalted
3 tablespoons bourbon
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
1 teaspoon ground (dried) ginger
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups (225g) pecan, lightly toasted, very coarsely chopped
1/4 cup (50g) candied ginger, finely chopped

1. To make the dough, mix the flour, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a food processor, or in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. (The dough can also be made by hand, in a bowl with a pastry blender, or using your hands.) Add the chilled butter and mix or pulse the dough until the butter is broken up into small pieces about the size of peas.

2. Add 3 tablespoons of ice water and mix until the dough begins to come together. If necessary, add 1 more tablespoon of water if the dough needs it to come together. Turn the dough out on a work surface and give it a few turns with your hands. Shape the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

3. Roll the dough on a lightly floured surface, or between two pieces of parchment paper until it’s about 13-inches (33cm) in diameter. Brush off any excess flour and transfer it to a 9-inch (23cm) pie plate or pan. Tuck the overhanging edges under, between the rim of the pie plate and the dough, and crimp the edge of the dough. Chill the dough in the refrigerator until firm.

4. To bake the pie dough, preheat the oven to 375ºF (190ºC). Prick the pie dough a few times with a fork. Line the pie dough with aluminum foil and fill halfway with beans, rice, or pie weights. Bake until the dough is set and starting to get lightly golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes. Lift out the foil with the weights and bake until the dough is well-browned, about 5 to 8 minutes more. Turn the oven down to 350ºF (180ºC).

5. To make the filling, in a large bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, maple syrup, eggs, melted butter, bourbon, fresh ginger, ground ginger, vanilla, and salt. Stir in the pecans and candied ginger.

6. Pour the filling into the prebaked tart shell and bake until the center of the pie is seems just about set. It should still jiggle a little. Begin checking it at the 40 minute mark, but it may take 45 to 50 minutes to reach that point of doneness. Remove it from the oven and let cool on a wire rack.

Serving and storage: Pecan pie is best served at room temperature and it’s easier to cut when it’s cooled completely. Although it’s no slouch if slightly warm, as long as you don’t mind the pieces looking a little sloppy. Ice cream or whipped cream are fine accompaniments.

The dough can be made up to two days in advance and refrigerated, or frozen for up to two months, either unrolled, or rolled out and fitted into the pan.

The baked pie can be kept at room temperature for up to four days. I’ve not frozen pecan pie but it can probably be done, if well wrapped.
 

QSis

Grill Master
Staff member
Gold Site Supporter
Wow, Johnny, that looks unbelievably great!

Pecan pie is one of the all-time easiest pies to make, but yours is a bit more complex.

I'm sure there is a reason why it's a "First Prize" pie! Please post photos.

And save a small slice for each of us! ;-)

Lee
 
Last edited:
Top