Sunday, November 22, 2009

Thanksgiving Pie

You don't cook. You don't bake. Nonetheless, if you are invited to Thanksgiving dinner, volunteer to bring a pie. In fact, volunteer to bring a pecan pie. It is absolutely the easiest item to make yourself. And it will delight and amaze your friends. Here's what to do:

Equipment:

Assemble these items. If you don't have them on hand, purchase at a second-hand store, a hardware store, or one of those stores with the word "mart" in the name. The 99 cent measuring spoons work just as well as the expensive spoons from a specialty store. And we will be making more pie in the future, so having these items on hand makes sense.

Pyrex pie plate. Get the big one with the fluted edges. On the back it says "24 cm".

Hand mixer.

A set of measuring cups (for dry ingredients) and a set of measuring spoons.

Pyrex 2-cup measuring cup (for liquid ingredients).

A big spoon.

Rolling pin. If you are buying one, get a French rolling pin with a tapered end if you can, but really any will do for this project. (Example: Ateco 20175 20" French Rolling Pin with Tapered End)


Ingredients:

Pillsbury Pie Crust from the refrigerator section of the store.
1 and 1/2 cups pecan halves or chopped pecans
1/2 cup dark-brown sugar
1 cup dark Karo syrup
4 Tbs. melted, unsalted butter
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. salt
3 eggs

Steps:

Pre-heat oven to 425.
Read the instructions on the Pillsbury Pie Crust package. Bring one pie crust to room temperature pursuant to those instructions.

Take the pie crust out of the package, carefully unroll it and set it on a clean work surface. With the rolling pin, gently roll the dough out a bit. Keep it circular and don't roll the dough so thin that it tears. Just roll a bit, thinking all the while "flaky pie crust." Trust me, thinking good thoughts helps.

Gently fold the crust in half, bottom to top, and then in half again, right to left. Place the wedge of dough in the pie plate and unfold. Make it comfortable and as pretty as you can. Set this aside.

Make the Filling

Beat eggs with a fork until yolks and whites are blended. Add the syrup, sugar, butter and vanilla and blend together will with the electric beater. Stir in the pecans with a spoon. Pour the mixture into the prepared pie shell.

Bake

Bake for 15 minutes. Lower oven temperature to 350 and bake for another 20 minutes. The filling will be set, but still quiver a bit in the middle.

Let the pie cool.

Everyone will love this pie. Have fun, and enjoy!

Recipe adapted from The Fannie Farmer Cookbook.



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