This was one of my bakery’s most popular pies and I can understand why. It’s not cloyingly sweet yet has the body and richness that begs you to take another bite. I always need to drink something like coffee or milk because it’s so rich. A scoop of good vanilla ice cream takes this Pecan Pie over the top!
I have to be careful with this pie in several ways.
- First of all you want a crisp bottom crust, so blind baking (pre-baking until the crust has set) is an important step. But be careful here! The filling for Pecan pie is so runny that ANY cracks or holes in the crust will let the filling seep through to the pan before it has had a chance to bake into the firm consistency you need. If you are making your own crust, process the butter into the flour more completely than you would otherwise. In fact, this is one pie where I will advise you to forget about flakiness and count on the amount of butter in the crust to just make it tender. Those big flakes of butter sometimes leave flaky gaps that turn into holes with fillings like this. And never use a cracked frozen pie crust for this pie.
- I don’t use 100% intact pecan halves. I find the pie doesn’t cut as beautifully when your knife has to get through crispy pecans on top of a softer filling. You would need a very sharp knife, plus chill the pie down to very cold before slicing! An easier way is to chop up about half of the pecans so there is still the presentation of those beautiful halves but they are closely interspersed with pecan bits.
- Place the pecans directly onto the baked pie crust so you can arrange the halves and pieces in an artistic way. I like all of the halves pretty side up. Then slowly pour the filling over the pecans. It works! You may need to use a toothpick to flip over a couple of the pecan halves but I find this a lot easier than trying to arrange the pecans once the filling has been poured.
- The pie filling is a lot more manageable if you make it, then allow it to cool before completing the pie for baking. I like to make the filling the night before and refrigerate it. Microwave it in a microwave safe container just enough to stir any butter that separated back into the mixture. Then pour it onto the pecans with the control that you just can’t get from warm filling. Let’s face it, that delicious stuff is viscous while it’s unbaked!
- Be careful not to underbake this pie. It will forgive a little overbaking, but if it is underbaked you will get runny insides and the pie will not be servable. 200° F, measured at the center of the pie, is your goal. Don’t take the pie out before then!
Harriett’s Pecan Pie
Classic Pecan Pie with a generous portion of crunchy pecans, balanced with enough of that gooey filling to satisfy.
Ingredients
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 325° F
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Toast the pecans, if desired, in a 325 degree F oven for 10 - 15 minutes, stirring frequently.
Carefully arrange pecans and pecan bits in bottom of pre-baked pie crust
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In a medium saucepan over medium heat melt the butter, brown sugar and salt, heating and stirring until thoroughly combined, shiny and hot.
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In a medium mixing bowl, use a whisk to beat the eggs, then add agave syrup, corn syrup and vanilla.
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Pour egg mixture into sugar mixture, whisking to combine thoroughly. Return to medium heat and cook, whisking constantly, until sugar is melted. When you lift some of the filling in your whisk, you should not see granules of sugar suspended in it. Temperature should be about 130 degrees F
At this point you can pour the filling into a sturdy microwavable container and refrigerate for one hour to overnight for a more manageable filling -
Gently pour the filling over pecans in the pie shell. Use a toothpick to rearrange any errant pecans.
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Bake on lower middle rack until center feels set yet soft, like gelatin, when gently pressed (about 45 to 60 minutes). Check the temp. It must reach 200 degrees F
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Let cool completely before slicing, about 4 hours. Refrigerate.
