Go Back
Louisiana Pecan Pie with Dark Cane Syrup and an All-Butter Crust

Pecan Pie

This is pecan pie the older Louisiana way, built on dark cane syrup instead of corn syrup. The filling bakes into a translucent toffee custard, deep and faintly smoky rather than cloying, under a thick raft of pecan halves that toast as the pie sets. An all-butter crust, blind-baked first, stays crisp underneath. Mixed by hand in one bowl, no mixer required.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 35 minutes
Servings: 8 Slices
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 585
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1.25 cups all-purpose flour for the crust, plus more for rolling
  • 1 tsp granulated sugar for the crust
  • 0.5 tsp salt for the crust
  • 0.5 cup unsalted butter very cold, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
  • 4 tbsp ice water plus up to 1 tbsp more if needed
  • 2 cups pecan halves fresh, preferably Southern-grown
  • 3 large eggs room temperature
  • 1 cup dark cane syrup Steen's or similar; see notes for substitutes
  • 0.5 cup light brown sugar packed
  • 4 tbsp unsalted butter melted and cooled slightly, for the filling
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 0.5 tsp salt for the filling

Equipment

  • 1 9 inch pie plate glass or metal, not deep dish
  • 1 Rolling Pin
  • 2 Mixing bowls one large, one medium
  • 1 pastry blender or two forks
  • 1 Whisk
  • 1 rimmed baking sheet to catch drips
  • 1 pie crust shield or a ring of aluminum foil
  • 1 wire cooling rack

Method
 

  1. Make the crust. Whisk the flour, 1 teaspoon sugar and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a large bowl. Add the cold cubed butter and cut it in with a pastry blender until the mixture looks like coarse gravel with some flat, flaky pieces of butter still visible, about 2 minutes. Do not work it to a powder.
  2. Sprinkle in 4 tablespoons ice water, one tablespoon at a time, tossing with a fork after each. Squeeze a handful of dough. If it holds together, stop. If it crumbles apart, add up to 1 more tablespoon water.
  3. Press the dough into a flat disc, wrap it, and chill 1 hour. It needs the rest, so do not skip it.
  4. Roll the chilled disc on a floured counter into a 12 inch round, about 1/8 inch thick. Lift it into the 9 inch pie plate and settle it into the corners without stretching. Trim the overhang to 1 inch, fold it under, and crimp the edge with your thumb and forefinger. Freeze the shell 20 minutes.
  5. Preheat the oven to 400 F. Line the frozen shell with parchment, fill it to the rim with dried beans or pie weights, and blind-bake on a rimmed baking sheet for 18 minutes. Remove the parchment and weights. The crust should look dry and pale blond. Reduce the oven to 350 F.
  6. While the crust bakes, spread the pecan halves on a second baking sheet and toast them in the oven for 6 to 7 minutes, until they smell nutty. Set aside.
  7. Make the filling. In a medium bowl, beat the eggs with a whisk just until the yolks and whites are blended and no streaks remain, about 20 seconds. Stop there. Over-beaten eggs foam and crack the top.
  8. Add the cane syrup, brown sugar, melted butter, vanilla and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Stir with the whisk, do not whip, until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is smooth and glossy, about 1 minute.
  9. Pour the filling into the warm blind-baked shell. Scatter the toasted pecans evenly over the surface. They will float into a single layer and toast further as the pie bakes, so there is no need to press them down. For a show top, arrange them in concentric rings, rounded side up.
  10. Fit a crust shield or a ring of foil over the rim. Bake at 350 F on the rimmed baking sheet for 50 to 65 minutes. Start checking at 50 minutes.
  11. The pie is ready when it is slightly puffed and the outer 2 inches are firm, while a 2 inch circle in the center wobbles like set gelatin when you nudge the pan. A liquid ripple means it needs another 8 to 10 minutes.
  12. Cool the pie on a wire rack, completely undisturbed, for at least 4 hours. The eggs finish setting as it cools, and this is the only thing standing between you and a runny slice.
  13. Cut with a thin sharp knife, wiping the blade between slices, and serve at room temperature.

Notes

  • Serve slices at room temperature with lightly sweetened whipped cream, vanilla ice cream, or a bourbon hard sauce, and strong black coffee alongside.
  • No cane syrup? Use sorghum, light molasses thinned with 2 tablespoons water, or light corn syrup. Corn syrup gives a sweeter, milder pie.
  • Beat the eggs only until blended. Whipping them aerates the filling, which foams up and cracks as it bakes.
  • The pie is done when the outer two inches look set and the center jiggles like firm gelatin, not like liquid. It firms up entirely as it cools.
  • Cutting a warm pie is the number one cause of a runny slice. Give it 4 hours minimum.
  • Store loosely covered at room temperature up to 2 days, or refrigerate up to 4 days. Revive chilled slices in a 300 F oven for 10 minutes.