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When it comes to the holidays, there are two categories of dishes: the ones we make in the name of tradition, and those we look forward to all year. I think it’s safe to safe my pecan pie falls in the latter category. My family never had particularly strong Thanksgiving traditions (save for my mom’s cranberry bread), so when we joined my boyfriend and his family’s big gathering a few years back, it was all new to me. I remember asking his family what dessert I could bring, and the answer was a resounding, unified “Pecan pie!”\n<\/p>\n
That was five years ago, and it’s become an annual tradition\u2014nay, requirement\u2014ever since. And when I tell you the pecan pie is the first thing to disappear from a (very crowded) dessert table year after year, I mean it. The pie has garnered many devoted fans, with many saying it’s the best pecan pie they’ve ever had. So what’s my secret? Two or three simple ingredients you probably already have.\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n Here’s the thing about pecan pie that always turned me off: it’s extremely sweet. It’s basically a caramelized sugar pie with some nuts mixed in. All that sugar needs balance in the form of bitter or tart flavors. My tried-and-true pecan pie recipe hails from Jerome Grant<\/a>, a James Beard-nominated chef and the inaugural executive chef inside the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture restaurant, Sweet Home Caf\u00e9.\n<\/p>\n Allrecipes\/Qi Ai<\/p>\n <\/span> It’s a pretty classic pecan pie recipe with one crucial addition: aged Kentucky bourbon. Similar to our top-rated Bourbon Pecan Pie, the recipe uses a hefty pour (about five tablespoons or a heaping 1\/4 cup) or Kentucky bourbon to add a smoky, caramel flavor with a little fruity bitterness that cuts through all the sugar. Note: the alcohol doesn’t completely cook off\u2014according to the USDA<\/a>, about 25 percent remains after one hour of baking\u2014so this is not the pie for teetotalers. However, if you do partake, it’s about the best dang pecan pie you’ll ever try.\n<\/p>\n If you don’t want to add bourbon, then don’t skip out on my other secret ingredient. Bittersweet or semisweet chocolate provide the same fruity, bitter balance that pecan pie needs, while adding rich depth of flavor. I like to add a layer of bittersweet chocolate after par-baking the crust but before pouring in the filling, but you can also just mix semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips into the filling. I wouldn’t use milk chocolate, as it will be too sweet to counter the sugary pie filling.\n<\/p>\n And finally, the secret to a can’t-show-up-without-it pecan pie is salt. A pinch of Kosher salt in the filling will go a long way, but a generous sprinkle of flaky salt on top of the baked pie goes even further. That way the salt is the first thing to hit your palate, and you really get the essence of salty-sweet, ooey gooey goodness that will keep you, and your guests, coming back for bite after bite.\n<\/p>\n Get the recipe: <\/strong>Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie<\/p>\n<\/div>\n When it comes to the holidays, there are two categories of dishes: the ones we make in the name of tradition, and those we look forward to all year. I think it’s safe to safe my pecan pie falls in the latter category. My family never had particularly strong Thanksgiving […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":599,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-598","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-kitchen-tips"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/598","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=598"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/598\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/599"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=598"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=598"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=598"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}} My Secrets for the Best Pecan Pie <\/span> <\/h2>\n
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