This pumpkin pecan pie is a mashup of two of fall’s best pie flavors! It starts with a layer of pecan pie which is topped with a pumpkin cream filling!
Am I super lame if I look forward to receiving mail? Nevermind the bills – those I obviously could do without. But I enjoy looking through the coupons and magazines that get sent. This year, we subscribed to a few more magazines than usual. As we were flipping through one of them, my husband got super excited.
You see, he saw this pumpkin pecan pie recipe that stopped him in his tracks. It was gorgeously decorated with whipped cream stars. He immediately asked if I could make this for our Thanksgiving dessert. Of course, I happily agreed. His reply? “Can you make it before Thanksgiving so we can try it out first?” Nice try.
I kept my promise and made this dessert for Thanksgiving. Since it was only the 3 of us, I didn’t need any other sweets. And while I normally don’t eat nuts, I did try a little slice of this just to test it out.
It was a good pie – and a perfect blend of pecan pie and pumpkin pie. What we appreciated most was that it was not overly sweet. Normal pecan pies and loaded with sugar (this one isn’t). And typical pumpkin pies contain sweetened condensed milk (this one doesn’t). The resulting pie is only slightly sweet – maybe not sweet enough – but was still very enjoyable.
So if you’re one who can’t decide which type of pie to make this holiday season, consider this mashup. It’s the best of two worlds!
Pumpkin pecan pie
Ingredients
Pie crust
- 1 and ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 10 Tablespoons unsalted butter cold, and cut into small cubes
- 2-4 Tablespoons ice cold water
Pecan filling
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup water
- ½ cup light corn syrup
- 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
- 2 large eggs
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 and ¼ cups (about 5 ounces) pecan halves toasted
Pumpkin filling
- 1 cup canned pumpkin
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ⅔ cup heavy cream
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
Whipped cream
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 Tablespoon powdered sugar
Instructions
Make the pie crust
- In a food processor (or in a large bowl if using your hands), pulse together the flour and salt. Pulse in the butter until you achieve pea-sized clumps. Slowly drizzle in the ice water until your dough just comes together.
- Shape into a disc, wrap in plastic wrap and allow to chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour. You want your dough to be firm before rolling.
- Place the dough on a lightly dusted surface. Roll into a large circle and place into a standard pie pan. Trim the edges, leaving at least a ½" overhang. Tuck that under and crimp the top. Place back into the refrigerator and chill at least another hour, preferably 2-3 (alternatively, you can freeze for 30-60 minutes).
- Preheat your oven to 375°F. Place pie weights on top of a sheet of aluminum foil and bake your crust for about 25 minutes or until light golden. Allow the crust to chill before filling.
Make the pecan filling
- In a medium saucepan set over medium-high heat, melt the sugar with the water. Allow the mixture to boil. Keep your eye on it, as you don't want this to burn. Keep heating the sugar mixture until it starts to turn an amber color. Swirl the pan for even heating.
- Turn the heat to medium and add in the corn syrup. The mixture will clump, but it will re-melt in a few minutes. Remove from the heat and add in the butter.
- In a medium sized bowl, mix together the eggs, vanilla, and salt. Add the sugar mixture in and stir constantly so the eggs don't scramble. Finally, add the pecans and stir to coat well.
- Transfer the pecans to the pre-baked pie shell. Turn the oven down to 350°F and bake for 15-20 minutes. Allow to cool slightly.
Make the pumpkin filling
- As the pecan layer is cooling, make the pumpkin filling.
- In a small saucepan set over high heat, mix together the pumpkin, vanilla, ginger, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg. Continue whisking until the mixture slightly thickens and darkens in color.
- Remove from the heat and whisk in the heavy cream and sugar. Then beat in the eggs until everything is well combined.
- Pour this on top of the cooled pecan layer and smooth the top. Bake in your preheated oven for 30-40 minutes or until the pumpkin layer is set.
- Remove the pie from the oven and allow to come to room temperature. Then place in the refrigerator and allow to cool at least 4 hours or overnight.
Make the whipped cream
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or in a large bowl if using a handheld mixer, beat the cream and powdered sugar on high speed until you achieve stiff peaks.
- Transfer the whipped cream to a piping bag with an open star tip and pipe stars or rosettes on top of the pie as desired.
- Whipped cream can be made a day ahead and stored in the refrigerator if needed.