Pecan Pie

Robustly flavored Pecan Pie features a dark brown sugar and maple custard base, plenty of pecans, and a foolproof pie crust! This easy pie recipe does NOT include shortening or dark corn syrup!

Other holiday favorite desserts to try next: this apple crumble, apple fritter bread, pumpkin cheesecake bars, or this simple pumpkin cake.

Pecan pie recipe without corn syrup

My dad’s favorite pie and probably all-time favorite dessert is pecan pie. Naturally, it’s always been a recipe I’ve wanted to get perfect for him. And thanks to Gemma’s new book, Bigger Bolder Baking (affiliate link), I’ll finally be able to make him the best pecan pie. If you aren’t familiar with Gemma, she’s a YouTube sensation and incredible baking blogger. She just released a new cookbook where she’s sharing over 100 flavor-packed recipes with minimal effort. 

I’ve barely adapted this pie from her book, and we’ve become obsessed with it. It’s definitely got a place at our Thanksgiving table this year. And one of my favorite things about it? It has MAPLE syrup instead of dark corn syrup. The rich maple flavor pairs perfectly with the pecans and the slight molasses flavor from the dark brown sugar.

Toasting pecans

For Pecan Pie you’ll want to toast the pecans first. This enhances the flavor and texture of the pecans and the pie texture is especially improved because the nuts stay crisp in the pie instead of getting overly soft and/or soggy. The Kitchn goes into more detail on why it’s so important to toast nuts before baking.

So how to toast them? Simply spread them in a baking pan and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit until golden brown, stirring about halfway through. Generally, nuts will be toasted in 6-10 minutes. Watch them carefully; nuts can quickly go from perfectly toasted to burned.

How to make Pecan Pie

Throughout this post I’ve broken down the steps for making Pecan Pie in picture form. Below is a description of what’s happening in each of the numbered photos.

• Pictures 1-4: making the pie crust
• 1: Cutting the cold butter into the flour + salt + sugar. The 2 best pie crust tips: keep things as cold as possible and handle as little as possible.
• 2: Add the egg yolk + water mixture into the flour + butter mixture. Gently mix and then knead until *just* combined; you don’t want to over mix or over knead.
• 3: Wrap the dough into a flat even disc and wrap tightly with plastic wrap (we don’t want the dough to dry out). Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and preferably 2 hours. This allows the butter to re-solidify and gluten to relax.
• 4: Roll out the dough and fit it into the pie pan. Crimp the edges if desired (it’s not as hard as it looks! See below for more info).
• Pictures 5-8: (pictures below) making the filling
• 5: Combine the filling ingredients. Tip: make sure all the filling ingredients are the same temperature — room temperature for best results. Do not add hot butter to cold ingredients, or they’ll separate and the fat will curdle.
• 6: Chop most of the toasted pecans into fairly small pieces.
• 7: Add chopped pecans to the rest of the filing.
• 8: Pour the filling into the prepared pie crust and bake.

Crimping pie crust

There are many ways to finish the edges of your pecan pie, but I like the crimped edges best.

To do so: cut off any large amounts of excess pie dough and then fold the remaining excess under the edge and seal together into a thick snake-like crust edge. Even out the thickness around the edge and make sure the dough is sitting on the rim of the pan. Use both index fingers and your thumb to press the dough into a crimping pattern. Make sure your fingernails are short for best results!

Pecan Pie FAQs

How do I know when it’s done?

Pecan pie is done as soon as the center of the pie is fairly solid with a very slight jiggle. Other ways to tell:

• A knife inserted in the center will come out clean.
• Using a kitchen thermometer, the internal temperature of the pie should register 200 degrees F in the center.

How far in advance can I make pecan pie?

You can also make the pie dough 1-5 days in advance. The longer it sits in the fridge, the harder it is to roll out, but with some arm muscle, it will work out fine. You can also toast the pecans 1-5 days in advance and keep them in an airtight container. With the crust and pecans prepared ahead of time, the filling can be whipped together in minutes.

You can make this pie 1 day in advance. Follow the directions to make it and then let it cool completely. Once cooled, cover tightly and keep at room temperature until ready to serve. Warm individual slices if desired.

You can also freeze the pie (completely baked) for up to 3 months, covered tightly and stored securely. 

What type of maple syrup should I use?

Whatever you do, don’t use pancake syrup in this pie! Did you know that pancake syrup is really corn syrup with maple flavoring added?  It’s very important to use real pure maple syrup. 

QUICK TIP

Grade A Maple Syrup? Up until 2014, maple syrup came in two grades: Grade A was the clear, golden type and Grade B was the darker, more-robust flavored syrup. The grade indicated the strength of the flavor, not the quality, and Grade A was produced earlier in the season than the stronger Grade B. Now, though, all maple syrup is Grade A, with a few distinctions: Grade A Golden, Grade A Amber, Grade A Dark and Grade A Very Dark note the progression of the darker, stronger flavor. Grade A Very Dark is what we used to call Grade B.

More amazing desserts:

• Candied Pecans Recipe with a free printable
• Oatmeal Pecan Cookies reader favorite
• Coconut Cream Pie with a graham cracker crust
• Pecan Streusel Pumpkin Pie reader favorite
• Cinnamon Roll Apple Pie with a streusel topping

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Pecan Pie

5 from 2 votes

- Review this recipe

Robustly flavored Pecan Pie with a dark brown sugar and maple custard base, plenty of pecans, and a foolproof pie crust! This easy pecan pie recipe does NOT include shortening or dark corn syrup!

SAVE TO RECIPE BOX

Print Recipe

Pecan Pie

5 from 2 votes

- Review this recipe

SAVE TO RECIPE BOX

Print Recipe

Robustly flavored Pecan Pie with a dark brown sugar and maple custard base, plenty of pecans, and a foolproof pie crust! This easy pecan pie recipe does NOT include shortening or dark corn syrup!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword pecan pie

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes

Servings 10 servings

Calories 477kcal

Author Chelsea Lords

Cost $4.87

Ingredients

Pie Crust

• ▢ 1 and 1/3 cups all purpose flour
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
• ▢ 1 tablespoon powdered sugar
• ▢ 7 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed and chilled
• ▢ 1 large egg yolk
• ▢ 2- 3 tablespoons cold water

Filling

• ▢ 6 large egg yolks, at room temperature
• ▢ 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
• ▢ 2/3 cup dark brown sugar, packed
• ▢ 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
• ▢ 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
• ▢ 2 cups pecans halves, divided
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
• ▢ 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

US - Metric

USMetric

Instructions

• CRUST: In a large bowl, combine the flour, salt, and powdered sugar. Stir. Add in the butter and using a pastry cutter, cut it into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolk and water until smooth. Pour egg yolk mixture into the center of the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon until combined as much as possible. Gently knead with your hands to form a crust (add extra tablespoon of water if needed). Handle the dough as little as possible and once it's formed into dough, wrap it in plastic wrap and gently flatten into a small disc. Refrigerate for (at least) 30 minutes to allow the gluten to relax before rolling. You can make the crust ahead of time and refrigerate for 1-5 days.
• TOAST PECANS: (Melt butter right now so it has time to cool to room temperature.) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spread pecan halves on a rimmed baking sheet and toast them for 8-10 minutes or until fragrant and lightly browned. Remove and let cool. Divide the toasted pecans, reserving 3/4 cup for the top of the pie. Chop the remaining 1 and 1/4 cups to add to the filling mixture.
• FILLING: Combine the ROOM TEMPERATURE egg yolks, syrup, brown sugar, and cream in a large bowl (it's very important all ingredients are same temperature for this filling). Whisk until smooth. Once the melted butter is completely to room temperature, drizzle it in while whisking constantly. Fold in the chopped pecans. Reserve the bowl from the egg yolk, and if there are any bits of mixture remaining, they can be brushed over the crust before baking.
• ASSEMBLY: Roll out the pie crust on a lightly floured surface. Turn the dough about a quarter turn after every few rolls until you have a 12-inch circle of dough. Use the rolling pin to lift up the dough and gently place place into a 9-inch pie pan (preferably glass or ceramic; avoid metal). Gently tuck it in with your fingers, making sure it is smooth and then crimp the edges of the crust. Chill for 15 minutes in the refrigerator or freezer (don't skip this step!). See Note 1 for pie crust tips.
• ASSEMBLY, CONT.: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Pour the prepared filling into the chilled crust (you don't need to blind bake the crust). Press the remaining 3/4 cup pecan halves on top. Place the pie on a lined sheet pan. Use a pastry brush to brush any tiny remains of the egg yolk and water mixture (from the reserved bowl; you didn't need to leave some specifically, but there should a bit leftover) onto the crust. Place into the preheated oven.
• BAKE: Bake for 40-55 minutes, or until the filling is set. The filling is "set" when it's very slightly jiggly in the center. It should not slosh around at all. If it is sloshing, return it to the oven for another 10-20 minutes (baking times can greatly vary with pecan pies). If the edges of the crust begin to brown, cover with a pie shield. Once the filling is set, remove the pie and let cool completely on a cooling rack, 3 to 4 hours, before slicing. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

Recipe Notes

Note 1: Crust tips:

• The less the crust is handled, the better it will perform.
• Keep it chilled to prevent the butter from softening.
• If desired, you can crimp the crust following the instructions in the blog post.
• You can also brush the edges of the crust with egg yolk to encourage a golden brown appearance after baking.
• Unbaked crust freezes well.
• Some crusts need to be blind baked (pre-bake without any filling) but Pecan Pie doesn't need that step.
• When baking, a pie shield can protect against the crust over browning. The blog post contains tips on making your own pie shield.

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 477kcal | Carbohydrates: 38.9g | Protein: 5.7g | Fat: 34.7g | Cholesterol: 175.7mg | Sodium: 21.9mg | Fiber: 2.2g | Sugar: 26g

We do our best to provide accurate nutritional analysis for our recipes. Our nutritional data is calculated using a third-party algorithm and may vary, based on individual cooking styles, measurements, and ingredient sizes. Please use this information for comparison purposes and consult a health professional for nutrition guidance as needed.

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