Maple Cinnamon Pecan Pie

/

In honor of my dad's birthday week, I am sharing my recipe for one of the great loves of his life: pecan pie. 

I am grateful to my father for passing on his love of pecan pie to me (my waistline isn't grateful, but that's another story). My mom, however, has never been a fan of pecan pie, and, therefore, did not have a recipe to pass down to me. Over the years, I have tested variations on different recipes I've found in cook books and online. At some point in my trials, I decided to try adding some maple syrup and cinnamon, and that was the pie that took the cake.

If you or someone you love is a fan of pecan pie, this is a recipe you must try! I will be making one this weekend to take to my family's Easter celebration.

What you will need:

  • 1 stick butter

  • 1 cup sugar

  • 1 cup light corn syrup

  • 3 tablespoons maple syrup

  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

  • 3 eggs, beaten

  • 1 and 1/2 cups pecans, chopped

  • 1 unbaked 9-inch pie crust (I use store-bought crust because I like shortcuts, but feel free to be a superstar and make your own)

  • Vanilla ice cream (optional, but highly recommended)

What to do:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

  2. Prepare pie crust by shaping it into a greased pie pan. Set aside.

  3. Melt butter in a saucepan over low heat. As soon as the butter is completely melted, add sugar, corn syrup, maple syrup, and cinnamon to the saucepan and stir until well-mixed.

  4. Remove the pan from heat and slowly add in the eggs while stirring to prevent the eggs from scrambling. Add chopped pecans and mix well.

  5. Pour mixture into your prepped pie crust and crimp edges (make it look pretty, but not too pretty - you don't want people to think you just picked this pie up at the grocery store!).

  6. Bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour (until the pie is firm when shaken).

  7. Cool before serving (preferably with a heaping scoop of vanilla ice cream).

Whatever you do, don't accidentally drop the unbaked pie all over the open oven door and floor as you are trying to put it in the oven. It makes one GIANT mess for your husband to clean up. You know, based on a friend's experience.