Every Thanksgiving, my family always has the following pies on the sideboard: pecan, lemon chess or buttermilk pie, pumpkin and cherry. My favorites seem to change depending on my mood, but in my big Texas heart, the pecan pie has a special little glow room all to its’ self.
The main difference that one should take note of in this recipe is that in order for a pecan pie to gluten free, we have to make a few major changes. Dark brown syrup has caramel color and is therefore NOT gluten free, so adjustments have to be made; in order to get the flavor just right, it takes a bit more tweaking than one would think. But you don’t need to worry about all that. I’ve gone ahead and done the lab work for you so you can just jump into the kitchen and have fun
What You’ll Need To Make This Pie?
Pate Brisée
- 1 bag gluten free flour blend
- 2 sticks unsalted cultured butter, diced
- 2 whole eggs
In the bowl of your stand mixer with the paddle attachment, combine all the dry ingredients and stir until well combined. Add the diced butter and mix until the dough looks like damp cornmeal. Add the eggs and mix on medium high until the dough pulls in on itself. Transfer to a counter dusted with glutinous rice flour. knead just until smooth. Form into a ball, cut in half and gently shape each half into a 6-7”disk. Wrap each disk in saran wrap and refrigerate for at least 2-3 hours or overnight.
The Filling
- 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
- 3 whole eggs
- ½ cup castor sugar (superfine sugar)
- ½ cup dark brown sugar (fresh, moist)
- 1 cup light corn syrup
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup pecan pieces
- ¾ cup whole pecan halves
Place the butter into the bowl of your stand mixer with the whisk attachment and allow to sit until very soft. Add the castor sugar, dark brown sugar, and light corn syrup. Mix until very smooth. Add the eggs and whip until you can no longer see the albumen or the yolks. Then whip on high for 30 seconds. Remove the bowl from the stand and fold in the salt, vanilla, and pecan pieces.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator and allow to sit for 15 minutes before rolling out both of the disks. Line six 3 ½” pie or tart molds with the dough, trimming the overhang, but leaving ½ inch so you can crimp in a decorative pattern.
Fill the molds with the pecan filling and then lay the whole pecans over the mixture in a neat, decorative pattern.
Brush the crust with an egg wash of 1 whole egg and a pinch of salt.
Place the pecan pies on a jellyroll sheet and bake at 350°F for 30-40 minutes on the middle rack in the oven and the pies are puffed up.
Allow to cool completely before serving so the pie can set; the pecans will resettle as it cools.
Serves 6