I’m trying to nail down this year’s Thanksgiving menu and finding it difficult to choose between two favorite pecan pies: The one I discovered a few years ago or the one I’ve been making since I was 14.
At least I’ve narrowed it down to 2.
What these two pies have in common is that the pecans get stir-fried in melted butter. As the pecans toast in the pan, the butter melts and browns. Meanwhile, the pecans soak up the flavor of the butter.
The first pie is great for people who like pecans, but don’t care for traditional pecan pie’s strong dark corn syrup flavor. It has great flavor and always sets up nicely. The cream tones down ths sugar, so don’t try to leave that out or the pie might be sweeter than you like.
The Best Pecan Pie Yet
1 9 inch deep dish unbaked pie shell
1 1/2 cups pecan halves
4 tablespoons room temperature unsalted butter, cut up
3 large eggs
1 cup light corn syrup or Karo “brown sugar” corn syrup (both work equally well)
3/4 cup packed dark or light brown sugar
2 tablespoons whipping cream
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
Preheat oven to 350 F. Place pecans in a large skillet or saute pan and turn heat to medium high. Cook pecans for 2 minutes, stirring often. Reduce heat to medium, add butter to skillet with pecans, and “stir-fry” butter and pecans until butter melts and and just barely starts to browns – take care not to burn. This should only take about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
In medium bowl, whisk together eggs, corn syrup, brown sugar, cream, vanilla and salt. Remember just to whisk — don’t beat or add too much air to the mixture. Stir in melted butter/pecan mixture then pour filling into unbaked crust.
To catch any drippings, set a rimmed cookie sheet on the lower rack of the oven. Set the pie on the middle rack and bake for 45-50 minutes or until top is golden brown and appears set. The pie should still be slightly jiggly in center. Let cool completely at room temperature. Transfer to refrigerator to chill. I make it a day ahead, chill overnight, then bring to room temperature and slice.
This pie also freezes quite well.
The second pie is the one I’ve been making since I was 14. The dark syrup gives it more of a traditional Southern flavor, but it’s still not too strong.
I posted it a while back and got a few good reviews from other bakers, so hopefully you’ll take that as an endorsement if you are looking for a good pie recipe.
Old Favorite Browned Butter Pecan Pie
1 ½ cups pecan halves
1 (4 oz) stick butter (regular or unsalted)
3 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1 cup dark corn syrup (or use ½ dark plus ½ light)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 unbaked pie shell – use homemade or refrigerated
Lay 1 cup of the pecan halves on a cookie sheet and bake at 400 for about 6-8 minutes or until toasted. Let cool, then chop so that you have 1 cup chopped toasted pecans and about a half cup of pecan halves (these will be the border).
Melt the butter in saucepan set over medium heat and cook it just until it starts to brown. Remove from heat and let it cool for about 10 minutes.
Whisk the eggs lightly in a large mixing bowl. Whisk in the sugar, corn syrup, vanilla and salt. Pour in the semi-cooled browned butter.
Put the chopped pecans in the unbaked pie shell and pour the filling over the top. Use the remaining 1/2 cup pecan halves to make a border. Bake at 400 for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 325 degrees F. and bake for another 35-45 minutes** or until the sides are set but the center (about a 3 inch circle in the middle) is still jiggly. Remove from oven. Pie will set as it cools. Let it cool at room temperature for a few hours. Store in refrigerator until ready to serve. You can keep it at room temperature, but it won’t be as stiff.
Note: Deep dish pies usually bake 400 for 10 minutes and 325 for 45 minutes while smaller pie tins usually take the original amount of 400 for 10 minutes and 325 for 35 minutes.
{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }
Yum and yum! I want to make both, but I already have too many desserts lined up for Thanksgiving and there is just the 4 of us.
I love pecan pies! They are so sinful and delicious
Anna, do you only bake the 1 cup of pecans and not the 1/2 cup? Thanks!
They both look beautiful. I have always preferred the light corn syrup to the dark too!
Oooohhh! I’m gonna try browning the pecans in the butter this year. However, I’d be hard pressed to give up my favorite PP recipe, which I adapted from a recipe I found in the San Antonio Junior League cookbook “Flavors” when I was in my late teens or early 20s. It’s called LaNelle’s Pecan Pie. I tried to find the recipe online just now and wasn’t successful, but I did find (I kid you not…) LaNelle’s online obituary from last fall and it mentioned her wonderful pecan pies!!! Her recipe has pancake syrup which is unusual. I substitute about 1/8 c. bourbon for some of the syrup, add far more pecans than the recipe calls for, and the result is fabulous.
You know my vote…..browned butter!!!! I have not tasted any better PPie.
Ram, yes. I leave the 1/2 cup that gets laid across the top untoasted. My reasoning for this was that the heat from the oven should be enough to toast the nuts on top, while the ones underneath (the 1 cup) would need to be toasted separately because they don’t get the same direct heat as the ones on top. I’m not sure it makes a different in the end, but my worry was the ones on top would get too brown if they’d been toasted twice.
Claudia, I would love to see that recipe!
Gloria, thanks again for the great reviews on the pie.
love the 2nd one. browned butter has that great nutty-like taste. i put cheddar in my crust when making apple or pecan pies (no surprise there right lol)
This is a project I can totally get behind. How do you feel about adding chocolate chips?
Yum…hard for me to decide as well. I’ve never made a pp like any of the two recipes.
CLAUDIA – please share the recipe for LaNell’s Pecan Pie. Thanks!!!
Que ricoo se ve! gracias por la receta!
Hi Anna! Krista here. long time no comment
Had no internet 
Anywhooo. I think I’ll make the first one, Nerd wants to try PP again after a few years, but he’s scared about the crazy sweetness. 
xoxo
Don’t know if you are out there, but if you are I need help!! I think I browned my butter too much just now and I think it clarified? There is brown sludge and clear butter. Can I use it anyway or would you start over?
Anna, I just emailed you the recipe for LaNelle’s Pecan Pie. Can you please forward it to Judy B.?
Made your brown butter pecan pie for the holiday. Used a bit more pecans plus a handful of double dark chocolate chips in a home made butter crust. Found out at last minute that we didn’t have enough corn syrup so improvised using one third of the corn syrup quantity molasses, one third real maple syrup and one third light corn syrup. Was nervous about how it would turn out but it was swoon-wonderful. The bitter chocolate chips and molasses tamed the sweetness. The maple was very subtle. Best pecan pie I’ve ever had. Thanks for a new Thanksgiving family tradition!
Made the first pecan pie! Kyle still isn’t a fan (he says it’s too rich) but I thought it was to die for! The buttered pecans are genius!! Brought the rest over to share with the family I nanny for!
xoxo
Hello again, Anna! These are the recipes that introduced me to your site, and I am really looking forward to trying them. I LOVE brown butter but would never have thought to include it in a pecan pie! Fascinated to see how that will taste. I am also, however, on a mission to find all of the “best” pecan pie recipes I can, for a recipe comparison of my own, and so I am wondering if you would mind either posting here or emailing me Caudia’s recipe for the LaNelle’s Pecan Pie she mentions (if it is ok with her, of course). I’ve googled it but neither she nor anyone else has yet posted it on the web. I would be SO grateful!! Thanks so much, again, for your entertaining site and wonderful recipes. I’ll be stopping by often!