Friday, December 18, 2009

Classic Old Fashioned Southern Pecan Pie

Follow this recipe and these tips and you'll have yourself a perfect Southern Pecan Pie

Perfect Southern Pecan Pie

Ah, southern pecan pie - a classic no doubt. It is no secret that we love our pecans down south. We use them on top of pies, in the crusts of pies and of course, in pies.  We use them as a topping, in cookies, and even in cookies you might not expect them in. We make glazes with them, put them in cranberries, and even add them to pasta! Heck, we even put 'em on bacon. I could go on. All I can say is thank goodness they are plentiful down here!

But truly, the king of pecans is found in the simple, classic, unadulterated southern pecan pie. I think a lot of people end up with runny pecan pie for a couple of reasons. Too much butter, overbeating and impatience to name a couple. I assure you, this pecan pie is fail proof, it really is! Just make note of the tips, don't make adjustments in the ingredients and your pie will be a perfect pecan pie.

Now, there are all sorts of variations of pecan pies out there that use different ingredients - adding chocolate, whiskey, bourbon, coconut and a wide range of add-ins. We're not talking about those here because this recipe here is just good ole, classic and plain, old fashioned, southern pecan pie. This recipe is based on the old Karo syrup recipe from a hundred years ago, but with my own twists, tips and pie success variations!

I like using the chopped pecans personally. They float to the top as they cook and to me that's pretty enough, and they make the pie much easier to cut than one topped with whole pecan halves. You can use the pecan halves arranged nicely on top instead though, if you prefer.


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Recipe: Classic Old Fashioned Southern Pecan Pie

©From the Kitchen of Deep South Dish
Prep time: 10 min |Cook time: 1 hour | Yield: About 8 servings

Ingredients
  • 3 large eggs
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup of light corn syrup
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 heaping tablespoon all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup of pecans, coarsely chopped
  • 1 unbaked homemade or commercial pie crust
Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare the pie crust by placing it into an ungreased, regular 9-inch glass pie plate and fluting the edges.

Whisk the eggs together, then whisk in the sugar. Stir in the Karo syrup and the softened butter; mix well. Add the flour and the vanilla; combine well and add the pecans.

Pour into unbaked pie shell and bake at 350 degrees for about 55 to 60 minutes or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Shield outside edges of the pie with a pie shield or aluminum foil about halfway through cooking to prevent overbrowning.

~Cook's Notes~

I use Pillsbury pie crusts, Karo syrup and Land O'Lakes butter.

Pecan Pie Tips:

►Toast the pecans for extra flavor.

►Don't use a blender or a mixer. Use a whisk and a wooden spoon and hand mix only ... and don't beat it to death! Many pecans pies end up runny due to over-beating.

►Shield the edges of the pie about halfway through the cooking time to prevent over-browning.

►Let the pie cool completely before slicing. You should be able to hold the pie pan flat in the palm of your hand and it not be uncomfortable. If it's still too hot to do that, it's too hot to cut!

►The pie is done when a knife inserted into the center comes out fairly clean. The filling will still seem a bit jiggly as a whole, but that's normal and remember, it will continue cooking a bit even after removed, so you  don't want to overcook it!

Source: http://deepsouthdish.com

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©Deep South Dish

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Posted by on December 18, 2009


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33 comments:

Donna-FFW said...

Absolutely temptingly delicious pie. And such a breeze to make. Perfect choice Mary!

Crazy About Cakes said...

It sounds like I need to move to the south! I love Pecans, and your pecan pie looks amazing. Thanks for the fun post.

~Lynette

A Year on the Grill said...

I love pecans... my favorite nut.

This is such a wonderful sounding recipe... time for me to make a pecan pie!

Katherine Aucoin said...

This looks sinfully delicious!

Anonymous said...

Jim-49 said
Mary,Mary,I stop to get a cup of coffee,having to bake 2 cakes,and you put,such a pretty,lovely pie up!! That "Pecan pie or pecan anything is my weakest point.I will try to ignore it,but sooner or later,I will have to make it,this week end.Looks lovely,so Lovely!!

Pam said...

I would love a slice of that right about now!

Catherine said...

Scrumptious! This looks so delicious, I love Pecan Pie! :)

Deeba PAB said...

That pie is calling my name...it's gorgeous! Happy holidays Mary!

Kristen said...

What a beautiful example of a delicious pie. YUM!!

Deana said...

Delish. Just like my grandma makes! Thanks.

Lynda said...

A perfect pecan pie, Mary! I love this pie and make it often this time of year...no other pie can replace it!

Penny said...

Beautiful looking pie. With all of the excess of the season, this is a perfect pie to make.

Anali said...

That pie looks so good! I love pecan pie. Never made one and I'm not quite sure why. I need to give it a try. Happy Holidays to you and Happy SITS Saturday Sharefest!
: )

MoonNStarMommy said...

Happy Saturday SITSta.. I love your blog, I've added you and your button :) Yay! I have a chef in the family and we're always on the look out for new recipes!

Julie said...

My mom was the pecan pie queen when I was growing up (coulda had something to do with those pecan trees in the yard!) I never cared for them much then, but now I'd be tickled to have one. Yours looks just delicious :)

Mya said...

So how do ~you~ pronounce pecan? :) I say 'pe-con' or 'peh-con' LOL
Do people really place the pecans to look nice and neat? That's something I never thought of..but then again..I never would.

Karilyn said...

Mary,

Thank you for posting such wonderful recipes! I have tried others of yours in the past, which is exactly why I came here FIRST to look for a special recipe to take to my grandchildren on Gramma's Surprise Visit last weekend. My daughter loved it, the grandkids (I call them "My Perfects") had seconds, and the love-of-my-life was very happy with it too! (OH! I even got a piece!!)

Just wanted to let you know how great it turned out for me too - the longest thing was cracking all those pecans (I pronounce it "pe-cahns", not "pe-CANS" like some people do) - I'm thinking paying a little bit more for a bag of already shelled pecans would be very worth it!

Thank you again, I just wanted to let you know you added so much to our family's Valentine's Day weekend~ I appreciate so much your wonderful page with such great recipes you share! (I have met people before who keep their best recipes to themselves, you share yours, God bless you!)

inola said...

I made your recipe yesterday came out great. I used this crust instead of the freezer type.

•6 ounces cream cheese
•1 cup butter
•2 cups all-purpose flour

In a medium mixing bowl cream together cream cheese and 1 cup butter until light and fluffy. Blend in flour, 1/2 cup at a time forming a smooth dough.

Thank You!

Mary at Deep South Dish said...

You're welcome inola! Nice crust - bet that was pretty good.

Lindsey Lou Who and familia said...

I won a pie contest today at church using your recipe!!!!! : ) thank you oh and i had to cook it for like an hour and ten minutes because I live in a high altitude city!!

Lindsey Lou Who and familia said...

oh and toasted the pecans

Mary at Deep South Dish said...

Oh Lindsey that's awesome!! Congrats!!

Tina said...

This is exactly the same recipe I use, minus the flour! It's a winner, for sure!

inola said...

I was wondering what Nut could I use instead of pecan in a pecan pie. A few of my family members don't like pecans. :/

Mary at Deep South Dish said...

The filling is designed for pecans - now that said, walnuts might work. Haven't every varied the nut on this pie.

Anonymous said...

Hello Mary,

I am so anxious to cook this pie for Thanksgiving. It will be my first pie so this probably is a dumb question but Im doing store purchased crust. Should it be a fresh verses a frozen crust?

Thank You

Mary at Deep South Dish said...

Either is fine but I recommend Pillsbury versus generic brands for this important holiday!! Happy Thanksgiving!!

Granny Cat said...

I'm gonna try it, AGAIN. My favorite is "Pecan Pie". I TRY to cook all the time but can NOT cook a Pecan Pie. For some reason, it is always runny. I bet it's because I over beat it. I'm gonna try it "One More Time". If this is it, I can't thank you enough!!! Thanks again, Pam

Mary at Deep South Dish said...

Pam let me know how it turns out!

Anonymous said...

My husband loves this pie. Being a southern girl I love to cook, but unfortunately my mother did not. Being a new housewife invited to the thanksgiving dinner of a family of fine southern cooks, I was terrified. Five years ago they told me to bring desert... Thinking, I'm sure that it was the only thing I couldn't mess up. Five years later my husband, brother, & MOTHER IN LAW ( :) haha ) ask for this pie by name. Thanks for teaching me what my mama didn't.

Mary at Deep South Dish said...

I LOVE IT!! Happy Thanksgiving to you!

Kathy M said...

I have used this recipe forever. I use 1/2 cup light and 1/2 cup dark Karo. Delish!

Mary at Deep South Dish said...

Thanks Kathy - great variation!

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