As a child, I never enjoyed pecan pie.  It was full of nuts and that, to my child brain, meant it was somehow healthy.  Little did I know that pecan pie is sweet, salty, syrupy, and oh-so-delish.  So when I got older, I started to enjoy pecan pie.  But not all of the time.

I’ve had pecan pie that is sensational.  But not as often as I’ve had pecan pie that is lacking in flavor, goopy, too sweet for its own good, or paired with a soggy, lackluster crust.   So it has always been my mission to find a perfect homemade pecan pie recipe.

Yesterday, I did.  It’s the perfect pie recipe for Thanksgiving, or, in my case, for my father-in-law’s birthday, as was the case yesterday.

This recipe is adapted from Baking Illustrated: The Practical Kitchen Companion for the Home Baker.  If you’re a home baker who doesn’t have this book, then you need to have it.

Perfect Pecan Pie

Ingredients:
A favorite pie crust recipe
6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed
1 cup packed dark brown sugar (light is okay, but dark will provide a better taste)
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs, beaten and set aside
3/4 cup light corn syrup (dark will work, but light is better in this case)
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
2 cups of pecans, toasted and chopped into irregular pieces

Directions:

1.  Pre-bake your pie crust.  Make sure you use pie weights or line the unbaked crust with foil and fill with dry beans.  It will otherwise shrink, and no one likes a shrunken crust!  Bake it only until golden, being carefully to not baked too much.

After shaping the crust, it's time to blind bake it!

1a.  Reset your oven temp to 275 degrees.  Yes, 275.

2.  While your pie crust is baking up, start the filling.  The method in the book calls for a double boiler sort of setup.  But instead, in a medium saucepan over low heat, melt the butter.

3. Stir in the brown sugar and the salt until the butter is absorbed.

4. Add the beaten eggs, the corn syrup and the vanilla.  Stir until well blended, and heat until the mixture is shiny and hot to the touch, about 130 degrees.  It will be a beautiful caramel color.

5. Once the mixture is hot and read, stir in the pecans.

6. Pour into the pie shell and back in the middle rack until the pie looks set and soft, like Jello, when gently pressed with the back of a spoon.  It will take about 50-60 minutes of baking time.

7.  Allow to cool on a rack.  Best to cool completely (4-5 hours) before slicing.

The finished pie (with bad lighting, sorry!)