Easy Pecan Pie with Maple Syrup to enjoy for the Holidays

Pecan Pie is a traditional American dessert and Thanksgiving favourite, and whilst there are stacks of recipes and variations out there, this one is so simple without compromising on taste or quality. I really encourage you to give it a try, as it is just so quick and easy and delicious. My only concession is to buy a frozen shortcrust pastry base, as I am baking this in Tropical Cairns, and the thought of making pastry in the Tropical Summer heat of 33 deg. is rather challenging. I  bought a frozen pastry base which can be used for both savoury and sweet tarts, as I like the contrast of a slightly savoury base with the sweet filling.

Traditionally Karo Syrup is used when making Pecan pie in the U.S., however the maple syrup works beautifully and some books say it was used before Karo Syrup, a form of corn syrup,  became the preferred choice. Texas claimed the Pecan Pie as it's official dessert in 2013, as the Pecan nut is  the official nut of Texas. Just a little bit of history there.

The biggest challenge with this is being very careful with the pastry so that it arrives home and into the freezer without being broken. I bought two just in case. Well Murphy's Law prevailed, I don't know how it happened, but one ended up in lots of small pieces and the other one stayed in tact, thank goodness. Not to worry though, because as my daughter Shannon said, the second broken one can still be baked and sprinkled over other desserts, ha, ha. Waste not, want not.

While the pie is baking, the pecans rise to the top, leaving a gooey layer of sugary custard below almost like a light caramel, which contrasts well with the crisp nutty surface. To be honest, I haven't baked a Pecan Pie for a long, long time, although I had eaten this particular one before when my friend Chris made it. She very generously gave me her recipe. I think it will become a family favourite. I was cooking this for Shannon and Dan, and of course Mr. HRK, and as Dan is originally Canadian, I thought that he would appreciate this traditional dessert, and he certainly did.

This only took me about 10 minutes to assemble before placing it in the oven, and as I was also making lasagna for the main course, it was great to make a very easy dessert.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

Sweet short crust pie case (frozen)

3 eggs beaten

1/2 cup sugar

½ cup maple syrup (the real stuff, not imitation)

½ teaspoon vanilla

1 cup chopped pecans

Method:

Preheat oven to 175 deg. F

Mix eggs, sugar, maple syrup, and vanilla together.

Spread chopped pecans over your pie base and pour mixture over the top. (Sometimes the brand of pie case can be a little small for the mixture if the eggs are extra large and some spillage can occur so place pie on a tray.)

Bake in a moderate oven for 30-45 minutes. This depends on how hot your oven is. At home, I probably would have cooked this for 40 minutes, however Shannon's oven is quite hot and I took it out after 35 minutes as I didn't want to risk burning it.

Serve with a delicious ice cream.

Pecan Pie straight out of the oven

I was a bit worried about taking the pie out of the alfoil case as it was the first time I have baked a frozen tart shell, and I didn't want it to risk breaking it up. However next time I make it I will be brave and remove it from the alfoil, ha, ha.

Thanks for dropping by.

Best wishes

Pauline