This maple pecan pie is the perfect pie to serve at Thanksgiving – with a sweet shortcrust pastry, maple pecan pie filling that doesn’t use any corn syrup, and a salted maple vanilla whipped cream.
This post may contain affiliate links, please read the privacy policy for details. //
maple pecan pie
Hello hello! ☺︎ Today we’re making a super easy and super delicious maple pecan pie. It starts out with a sweet shortcrust pastry, which is a little different from your regular pie crust but it’s just as easy to make — along with your regular flour, sugar, salt, and butter, it’s also made with an egg yolk and sour cream for extra tenderness. It all comes together in a food processor which makes it super easy. Then, moving on to the filling, which is of course, the star of the show. It’s made with a tooonnnn of pecans and maple syrup instead of corn syrup, which is way better because you also get maple flavor instead of the no flavor that you get from corn syrup. And then, it’s all topped off with a salted maple vanilla whipped cream for extra deliciousness.
This pie is also the perfect make-ahead dessert because it has to chill to set up for a couple of hours or up to overnight. So let’s get into it! ☺︎
expert baking tips
Weigh your ingredients:
My recipes are all written in grams because it is the most accurate way to bake. When you use a kitchen scale, you ensure that your baked goods turn out as close to the written recipe as possible. Plus, the cleanup is way easier when using a scale! I will provide standard cup measurements but please note that I have not tested the recipe using cup measurements and therefore can not guarantee your recipe will come out how mine did. Here is my favorite kitchen scale.
keep the dough and ingredients cold
I know, I know – I’m always saying you need room-temperature ingredients. But with pie dough (and scones), it’s the opposite! The trick to getting those flaky layers and butter pockets is to keep the dough cold. If you notice the butter getting too warm at any point while making the dough, just pop the dough into the freezer for 5-10 minutes to harden it up again.
how to cut butter into the pie crust
There are multiple different ways that you can incorporate butter into your pie crust. I find it’s easiest to cube up the butter and then smush it into the flour with my fingers until the pieces are fairly tiny. You can also use a pastry blender, or two forks to kind of cut the butter up into the flour. If you wanted to prep the night before, you could use a cheese grater to grate the stick of butter and then freeze it until you’re ready to make the pie crust.
bake the pie on another pan
I recommend placing your pie or tart pan on another small cookie sheet or baking sheet to make it easier to put it in the oven and to remove it from the oven.
A note on oven temperature:
Ovens vary and fluctuate in temperature and might not always actually be at the temperature they claim to be at. If you love to bake like I do, I highly recommend getting an oven thermometer. They are super helpful for letting you know when your oven might be lying to you! I use this one.
ingredients for maple pecan pie
SWEET SHORTCRUST PASTRY:
- All-purpose flour: for structure.
- Baking powder: to help the dough rise a bit.
- Salt: for flavor.
- Powdered sugar: for sweetness. Powdered sugar also has finer granules than granulated sugar and contains corn starch, giving us a more tender, soft pastry.
- Unsalted butter: for flavor and tenderness.
- Egg yolk: to help bind the pastry together — don’t fret because we will use up the extra egg white in the meringue!
- Sour cream: I recommend full-fat sour cream, but low-fat or even greek yogurt would work here as well.
maple pecan pie filling:
- Unsalted butter: for richness and flavor. You can use salted butter here instead, just be sure to omit the extra salt from the topping.
- Light brown sugar: for sweetening and for flavor.
- Maple syrup: pure maple syrup helps bind the pecan filling together and lends some great maple flavor, make sure you are using 100% pure maple syrup.
- Salt: for balancing and bringing out the flavor of the pecan pie topping.
- Vanilla: for flavor.
- Egg: helps with binding the pecan pie topping together and ensuring that it bakes up as a solid layer.
- Chopped pecans: the star of the show, really!
salted maple vanilla whipped cream:
- Heavy whipping cream: the base of the whipped cream.
- Maple syrup: for sweetness and flavor, make sure you are using 100% pure maple syrup.
- Vanilla bean paste: for flavor. I use vanilla bean paste because I just love to see the little speckles in the cream, but vanilla extract works perfectly here too.
- Kosher salt flakes: for flavor. If you’re using regular table salt, cut the amount in half.
how to make maple pecan pie
Here are some process photos of making this maple pecan pie. The full recipe can be found at the end of this blog post!
maple pecan pie recipe q&a
how should I store maple pecan pie?
You’ll want to store your extra maple pecan pie in an airtight container in the fridge, where it will keep well for up to 3 days.
can I double this recipe?
Of course! Just double all the ingredients and divide them between two 8″ tart pans.
do I need to use a tart pan?
You can make this in an 8″ pie pan, just note that you won’t have enough crust for it to completely go up the sides. You could also make this in an 8×4″ loaf pan for banoffee pie slices. I would recommend removing the crust from the pan after baking it and assembling the pie outside of the loaf pan so it’s easier to slice and serve.
tools and ingredients:
You can find all my favorite tools and ingredients that I use on my Amazon Storefront page, here!
other recipes you might enjoy:
did you make this recipe?
I’d love to see and know your thoughts! please leave a comment and review below, and tag me on instagram @freshbeanbakery. #freshbeanbakery
Maple Pecan Pie
Ingredients
Sweet Shortcrust Pastry
- 90 g all-purpose flour (¾ c.)
- ¼ tsp. baking powder
- ¼ tsp. salt
- 30 g powdered sugar (¼ c.)
- 50 g unsalted butter cold, cubed (3 ½ tbsp.)
- 1 egg yolk
- 10 g sour cream (2 tsp.)
Maple Pecan Pie
- 28 g unsalted butter (2 tbsp.)
- 50 g dark brown sugar (¼ c.)
- 85 g pure maple syrup (¼ c.)
- ⅛ tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. vanilla bean paste
- 1 egg room temperature
- 140 g chopped pecans (1 ¼ c.)
Salted Maple Vanilla Whipped Cream
- 180 g heavy whipping cream (6 oz.)
- 30 g pure maple syrup (1 ½ tbsp.)
- 2 tsp. vanilla bean paste
- 1/4 tsp. flaky sea salt*
Instructions
Sweet Shortcrust Pastry
- Add the flour, baking powder, salt, and powdered sugar into a food processor. Cut the cold butter into cubes, then add it into the food processor.
- Pulse the mixture a few times until the butter is broken up into smaller chunks.
- Add the egg yolk and sour cream into the food processor, and blend until the ingredients become one cohesive dough.
- Remove the dough from the food processor, form it into a ball, and transfer it to a floured work surface.
- Sprinkle flour on top of the dough ball, then roll it out into a 9" circle. If the dough starts sticking to the rolling pin, add more flour to the top of the dough.
- Butter an 8" tart pan or a shallow 8" pie dish. Transfer the dough to the tart pan and crimp the edges.
- Poke holes in the bottom of the crust with a fork, then transfer the crust to the freezer and let it chill for 15 minutes. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 375℉ / 190℃.
- Once the crust has chilled, crumple up a piece of parchment paper and gently lay it on top of the pie crust. Fill the parchment with rice or pie weights, gently pressing it into the crimps on the crust as needed.
- Bake the crust for 10-15 minutes, until it starts to turn golden brown. Once the crust is done baking, reduce the temperature to 350℉ / 175℃.
Maple Pecan Pie
- In a medium sized microwave safe bowl, melt the butter. Add in the sugar, syrup, salt, vanilla, and egg. Whisk until well combined, then whisk in the pecans.
- Remove the parchment and pie weights from the crust, then pour the pecan pie filling into the crust, gently moving the pecans around as needed to form an even layer.
- Bake the pie for 25-30 minutes, until the filling only slightly wobbles in the center.
- Allow the pie to come to room temperature, then cover it and place it in the fridge to set for at least 4 hours, up to overnight. Once you're ready to serve the pie, make the maple whipped cream.
Salted Maple Vanilla Whipped Cream
- Add the heavy whipping cream, maple syrup, vanilla, and salt to a medium sized mixing bowl. Use a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment to beat the whipped cream until stiff peaks form.
- Transfer the whipped cream to a piping bag fitted with your tip of choice, and pipe the whipped cream along the edge of the pie. Slice, serve, and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Please note that the nutrition facts are only an estimate and may vary based on different brands of ingredients and any substitutions made.