maple pecan pie

When deciding what to bring to Thanksgiving this year I went immediately to this pie. Mostly because I was curious about substituting brown rice syrup for corn syrup. But then, with all else going on in my life... Turkey Raffles, SLT meetings, PTA meetings... I forgot to secure the syrup and couldn't find it at my local place.  I almost said, What the heck, and used corn syrup... but then I thought, Why not maple syrup? I have a ton of it in my fridge.

It worked out great - and added that wonderful maple flavor. Nice when things work out.

We had the good fortune to spend our Thanksgiving day upstate with friends in a winter wonderland - so majestic and stunning. Good food, good people, what more can a person ask for?

I hope you Thanksgiving was just a wonderful.


Maple Pecan Pie
Makes one 9 inch pie, adapted from A Cozy Kitchen

Ingredients

• One 9-inch pie crust (I used Mark Bittman's Flaky Crust and substituted in white whole wheat flour)
• 1 1/4 cups light brown sugar
• 1/2 vanilla extract
• 3/4 stick unsalted butter, cut into cubes
• 3/4 cup maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 large eggs
• 2 cups pecan pieces, lightly toasted 

Instructions

1. Melt the cubes of butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Mix the sugar, vanilla in abowl. Add melted butter. Add maple syrup, eggs and salt. Beat until smooth.
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Add the pecans to the prepared pie shell. Pour the filling into the pie crust. Brush the edges of the pie crust with egg wash and transfer to a baking sheet. Place the baking sheet/and pie in the oven to bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until the center has set (it may rise slightly) and the crust is golden brown. Be sure to check on it periodically throughout the baking process—if at any time the crust gets too brown, you can place a piece of foil over it to protect it from browning more.
3. Completely cool before serving. Garnish with vanilla ice cream.