Easy pecan nut pie

Tender pecan nuts and a nutty, buttery, golden syrup flavoured filling, all encased in a crispy flaky pastry case, make this easy pecan nut pie one of the best I have ever tasted. Why not try it for yourself - it's so easy to make.

Jump to:

• What is a pecan nut pie?
• What ingredients do you need?
• Make the pecan pie crust
• Make the pecan pie filling
• Assemble and bake
• Storing and freezing a pecan nut pie
• Save for later
• Related recipes
• 📋The recipe

What is a pecan nut pie?

A pecan nut pie is a sweet dessert pie, packed with pecan nuts, with a deliciously sticky filling flavoured with golden syrup and butter. It is all encased in a buttery flaky pastry shell.

Traditionally made and eaten during festivals or celebrations, like Christmas and Thanksgiving, pecan nut pies can (and should!) be eaten throughout the year.

This easy recipe for pecan nut pie is made without corn syrup. Instead, I like to use golden syrup, which provides a delicious caramel taste. However, if you prefer, you could use corn syrup or even maple syrup.

For the pie crust, I prefer to make my own pastry, and I've included a recipe for the pastry that I use for my coconut jam tarts but you could use store-bought shortcrust pastry if you prefer.

What ingredients do you need?

This recipe makes one 9-inch tart. You can get the exact quantities and full instructions for making a pecan nut pie on the printable recipe card at the end of this post.

Eggs - you will need the yolks and the whites.

Pecan nuts - chopped nuts for the filling, and whole pecan halves for decoration.

Brown sugar - I used demerara sugar, but you could use muscovado or dark brown sugar for an even richer caramel taste.

Cream - used to give richness to the filling. I use single cream, but you could use double cream too. Don't be tempted to cut calories by swapping the cream with milk - the filling will not set if you do this.

Golden syrup - for the caramel flavour.

Flour - used to help thicken the filling. You don't need much, one teaspoon is sufficient.

Vanilla essence - for flavour

Butter - for a rich buttery taste. Please do not substitute this with baking margarine.

Shortcrust or flaky pastry - you can buy a roll of ready-made shortcrust pastry, or follow the instructions further down in this post and make your own pastry. If you do make your own pastry, please note that you will only need half of the pastry for this pie. You can keep the other half of the pastry in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, and use it to make something else. (Ingredients for the pastry are not shown in the above image).

Make the pecan pie crust

If you are using store-bought pastry you can skip this step.

For the pastry, you will need flour, butter, egg yolks, salt and water.

There is no need to blind-bake this pastry before adding the filling.

• Measure the flour into a mixing bowl and add the salt. Then cut the butter into cubes and add to the flour (image 1 above).
• Using your fingertips, rub the butter into the flour until all the flour has been coated with butter and the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs (image 2 above). When rubbing in, lift the butter and flour above the bowl and allow it to fall back. This helps aerate the mixture.
• Add the egg yolks and water (image 3 above).  You can use the egg whites to make a meringue topping for this lemon meringue pie.
• Use a flat knife to cut the eggs and water through the flour mixture until it starts to come together (image 4 above). Start with 4 tablespoons of water and if you need more add the extra tablespoon. The amount of liquid you need depends on the size of the egg yolks.
• Now use your hands to gently press the pastry together into a flat disk (image 5 above). Do not knead. Use just enough pressure to make the dough come together.
• Place the pastry into a plastic bag, or cover it with clingfilm (image 6 above), and place it in the refrigerator to rest for at least half an hour, while you prepare the filling.

Make the pecan pie filling

This will take about 10 minutes to prepare and mix. If you have a hand mixer it will make it easier to cream the butter and sugar together. If not, you can use a wooden spoon and plenty of elbow grease.

• Start by chopping one cup of pecan nuts into small pieces. These will be used for the filling. Keep the remaining nuts whole. These will be used to decorate the top of the pie.
• Cut the butter into small cubes and allow to come to room temperature. This will make it easier to blend with the sugar.
• Place the brown sugar, flour and cubed butter in a mixing bowl (image 1 above) and beat with a wooden spoon (or an electric hand mixer) until smooth and creamy (image 2 above). The sugar will not dissolve entirely. This is perfectly fine. Just ensure there are no lumps of butter left in the mixture, and it is very well blended.
• Break the eggs into the mixture, one at a time, and blend well after each addition (image 3 above). It will look as though the mixture has curdled but don't worry. It is supposed to look like this.
• Mix in the golden syrup, cream and vanilla essence, then stir in the pecan nuts.
• Note - this is a very runny mixture, but don't worry, it will set as it bakes.

Assemble and bake

• Grease a 9" pie dish with a little butter, taking care to cover both the base and the sides.
• Roll out the pastry to approximately one-eighth of an inch thickness, and use it to line the greased pie dish.
• If you have made the pastry according to the recipe above, you only need to use half the pastry. You can keep the remainder in the fridge for up to 3 days, or freeze it and store it in the freezer for up to six months.

• Pour the filling into the prepared pastry case (image 1 above) and arrange whole pecan nuts on top (image 2 above).
• Bake in a medium-hot oven (180C / 360F) for 30 minutes. Keep your eye on it. If the pastry seems to be browning too quickly, cover the dish with a layer of aluminium foil (tin foil).
• The filling will rise up as it bakes but will settle and flatten as the pie cools.
• Allow the pie to cool completely before cutting into slices and serving, as this will give the filling time to set.
• You can serve this pecan nut pie plain, or for extra decadence add a scoop of ice cream or whipped cream.

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Storing and freezing a pecan nut pie

This pie freezes well, but you will have to freeze it in the pie dish so the pie doesn't break in the freezer.

To freeze, allow to cool completely. Wrap the pie and dish in a layer of aluminium foil, followed by a double layer of plastic wrap (clingfilm).

You can store the pie in the freezer for up to six months.

To serve, transfer the frozen pie to the refrigerator and allow it to defrost. Then let the pie come to room temperature before serving.

You can also make this pecan pie in advance and store it covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Save for later

Why not pin this pecan nut pie recipe to one of your Pinterest boards so you can make it later? Just click the image below.

Alternatively, you can save the recipe by clicking on the floating heart icon on the right-hand side of the screen.

Alternatively, you can save the recipe by clicking on the floating heart icon on the right-hand side of the screen.

Related recipes

If you enjoyed this recipe for my easy pecan nut pie, you may enjoy these other easy cake recipes:

You can find these and many more delicious recipes on my cake, biscuit and dessert recipes page.

📋The recipe

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