Paul’s favorite pie in the whole world is the Pecan Pie.  He’ll eat it for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks in between.  He considers it a true food group.  “Pecan”, how do you pronounce it?  Do you say pee-KAHN, pee-CAN, PEE-can, pick-AHN?  It seems that us southern folks pronounce it pee-KAHN, the northern and north eastern states pronounce it PEE-can and PEE-kahn.  Funny how a word can be pronounced different ways depending on where you live.  I tend to say pee-KAHN while my husband says PEE-can.  And I don’t know if it’s because I’ve been around him a long time, but when I talk about making a pecan pie, I tend to say PEE-can pie.

This pie is super simple to make and I would put it in the same ‘easy’ category as my pumpkin pie.  If you haven’t read that blog, it’s the one just before this one, just click on the link.  Every year I make both a pecan pie and pumpkin pie for our Thanksgiving dinner at my parent’s and I typically make them back to back, the same evening.

If all possible, I try to give credit to recipes that I pick up from someone else.  So often, I find a recipe that I like and by the time I make it, it gets altered to the point that it’s not even the same recipe any more.  However, this recipe really came from an old old Betty Crocker’s Picture Cook Book.  Well, I made one tiny change to it, but nothing that alters the flavor of the pie.  It was originally my Mother-In-Law’s cookbook and now we get to enjoy cooking from it.  It is a First edition, copyright 1950.  I just love this book!  It has been used (as you can see on the left) and is full of loose recipes she tucked away between the pages and I just refuse to change it.  That’s what gives it it’s charm.  She had two of these books.  The one on the left is the one we cook from and the one on the right is the one my Sister-In-Law has.

I use a wire whisk to mix the batter for this pie and then fold in the pecans.  I just don’t find it necessary to drag out the ole mixer.  Pour it into an unbaked pie shell, put it in the oven and I’m practically done.  It’s an easy dessert to take anywhere, especially for a Holiday party or meal.

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Here’s how I make it.

Pecan Pie

For convenience, I used a ready made pie crust that I unrolled into my glass pie pan.  I folded under the edges and used my fingers to crimp the edges, nothing fancy here, but you could make it all pretty if you’d like..

Time saving tip:  Get one of the standard size frozen pie shells in the freezer section of the grocery store and just let it thaw out.  The aluminum foil pie plate is disposable and if you’re taking it some where, you don’t have to worry about remembering to bring it back home.

First, melt the butter and whisk in the eggs until frothy.

Then add the sugar, salt and dark corn syrup.  Make sure it’s the dark one and not the clear one.  That’s key for this pie!

With your wire whisk, mix it super well.

Add the pecans.  The original recipe came out of the Betty Crocker Cookbook and it called for 3/4 cup of pecans but I always double that.  It is, after all, a pecan pie!

A flavor tip:  If you have time, roast the pecans in a 300 degree oven for 10 minutes for a deeper nutty taste.

Fold them into the batter making sure all of the pecans are coated in that delicious syrupy batter.  I can truly eat just the batter with a spoon!  I love it!

Pour it into an unbaked pie shell.  Jiggle it a little to help it settle and I usually arrange the pecans with my rubber spatula to make it even all around.

Bake it in a 375 degree oven for 40-50 minutes or until the center is set.

It’s just so easy and delicious.  Thank you, Betty Crocker!  I just love her books, especially this old one.

What is your favorite pie?

Do you have a favorite old cookbook?

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Here’s the printer friendly recipe.