This recipe comes from a French pastry chef's blog, Olivia Patisse, and is a lighter version of the American Pecan Pie—less sweet, with more pecans. A winter essential and perfect for Thanksgiving gatherings!
Ingredients for a Pecan Pie (18cm diameter tart ring):
Crust:
- 140g butter
- 75g powdered sugar
- 2g salt
- 25g almond powder
- 1 egg
- 250g all-purpose flour (T55)
Filling:
- 40g softened butter
- 65g brown sugar
- A pinch of salt
- 80g maple syrup
- 2 eggs
- 90g roughly chopped pecans
- Approximately 125g pecan halves for the top
1. Crust (Pierre Hermé's recipe):
- Begin by mixing softened (not melted) butter with powdered sugar and salt. Add almond powder, then the egg, ensuring thorough blending.
- Measure the dough and cut it in half since you don't want your crust to be too thick, and you have enough dough to make two crusts (you can freeze the second one or make another pie). Wrap the dough in plastic film and refrigerate overnight to firm it up. An alternative method is to wrap the dough in plastic foil and roll it out progressively by extending the size of the plastic foil where the dough is trapped (you can place it in the fridge for 5 minutes every time you roll out the dough until you reach the desired size).
2. Rolling Out:
- Roll out the dough to a thickness of 3 mm, line a 18 cm tart ring with it, and pre-bake the crust for about 15 minutes at 180°C until it is barely golden. Let it cool while preparing the maple syrup filling.
3. Maple Syrup Filling:
- Cream together softened butter and brown sugar. Add salt, maple syrup, and eggs (if the mixture curdles, it's okay).
- Stir in the chopped pecans.
4. Assembly:
- Pour the filling into the pre-baked crust and arrange pecan halves on top.
5. Baking:
- Bake the pecan pie at 380°F for the first 15 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 330°C and continue baking for an additional 15 minutes.
6. Cooling and Finishing:
- Allow the pecan pie to cool slightly, remove it from the tart ring, and let it cool completely.
- Glaze the pie with maple sirup for a glossy and irresistibly delicious finish. Bon appétit!