This pecan pie not only tastes like the holidays, but it will make your kitchen smell so inviting and cozy for hours. With a buttery, almost toffee like filling surrounding a whole bunch of salty pecans, it is no surprise that this pie is such a timeless classic.
Let’s get it started…
For this pecan pie, I am using my favorite classic pie dough recipe. You can absolutely buy a pre-made crust, but if you would like to make your own (its fun and really simple!), check out my step-by-step recipe for classic pie dough. Get your pie dough to the chilling stage and then start gathering the rest of your ingredients.
You will need 1 1/4 cups of roughly chopped pecans, 1 cup of granulated sugar, 1/8 cup of brown sugar, 1 cup of light corn syrup, 6 tablespoons of melted butter, 2 teaspoons of vanilla, 3 large eggs and 1/2 teaspoon of salt.
In a large bowl, combine 1 cup of granulated sugar, 1/8 cup of brown sugar, 1 cup of light corn syrup, 6 tablespoons of melted butter, 2 teaspoons of vanilla, 3 large eggs and 1/2 teaspoon of salt and whisk until smooth and fully combined.
Transfer your chilled dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll it out to about a 12 inch round. Place the rolled dough into a 9 inch glass pie dish and gently press it into place. Using a sharp knife, trim away excess dough and shape the edge into your desired shape. I trimmed the dough fairly flat with the top rim of my pie dish and smoothed it out a bit with my hands. As you can see in the photos, I will be adding a decorative braided edge around my pecan pie eventually, so this layer of dough just needs to be smooth and level.
Now that your pie dough is prepped, evenly distribute 1 1/4 cups of roughly chopped pecans throughout the base of the pie dish.
Now pour that beautiful filling over the pecans and cover the whole thing with foil.
Bake in a 350 degree oven for 40 minutes.
While the pie is baking, let’s make some beautiful braids…
Using the second portion of pie dough, roll it out to about 1/4 inch thickness and cut long strips about 1/2 inch wide. Working with three strips of similar length, gather their tops together and press them together to connect at the top. Starting with the strip furthest to the right, lay this strip over the center strip and then lay the strip furthest to the left and the strip that was originally in the center towards the right side of your board. Repeat this process starting on the left side and alternate sides as your work your way down the length of the strips creating a simple three strand braid. Transfer the braids onto a plate, cover them in plastic wrap and place them in the refrigerator until you are ready to put them in place.
Once your 40 minute timer goes off, very carefully transfer your pie dish onto a heat proof surface, such as a wooden cutting board. The filling will still be loose, so be sure to keep the pie dish flat during this transfer, so you don’t spill that delicious and very sticky filling onto anything (especially your hands)…
Remove the foil, put your beautiful pie dough braids in place and return the pie to the oven. Bake for an additional 20-30 minutes or until the dough is golden brown and the center of the filling is mostly set. It is ok if there is a little bit of jiggle in the middle, but it should not look wet or loose. If it does, bake it for a few more minutes.
Once it is finished, let it cool on a cooling rack for 2 hours before slicing.
After all of that waiting, cut yourself a nice big slice and enjoy!!
Classic Pecan Pie
Ingredients
- classic pie dough (check out my classic pie dough recipe!)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/8 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1 cup light corn syrup
- 6 tablespoons butter, melted
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 large eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/4 cups pecans, rough chopped
Instructions
- Prepare your classic pie dough or unwrap store bought dough
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
- Roll out chilled pie dough on a lightly floured surface
- Transfer the dough into a 9 inch glass pie dish
- Use a sharp knife to trim away the excess dough and shape the edge into your desire shape
- Place the prepared pie dough in the refrigerator to chill while you prepare the filling
- In a large bowl, combine 1 cup of granulated sugar, 1/8 cup of brown sugar, 1 cup of light corn syrup, 6 tablespoons of melted butter, 2 teaspoons of vanilla, 3 large eggs and 1/2 teaspoon of salt
- Pour 1 1/4 cups of roughly chopped pecans into the base of the pie dough and spread them out so they are evenly distributed
- Pour the filling over the pecans
- Cover the pie dish with foil
- Bake on the center rack of a 350 degree oven for 40 minutes
- If you are decorating with braided dough, carefully transfer the pie onto a heat proof surface (the pie filling will still be loose, so keep it very level when removing it from the oven)
- Remove the foil and add the braided decorative dough
- Whether you are adding the decorative dough or not, bake uncovered for an additional 20-30 minutes or until the center is mostly set and the dough is golden brown
- Transfer the pie onto a cooling rack to cool for 2 hours before slicing
