Apple and pecan pies are two of the most well-known desserts in the world. But, let’s face it, one is a little healthier, while the other is a little too sweet.
INGREDIENTS
Crust recipe:
Dusting with all-purpose flour
Easy Pie Dough is a one-recipe recipe.
1 egg yolk (1 big)
14 cup cream
For sprinkling, demerara sugar
To make the apple filling, combine all of the following ingredients in a mixing bowl.
3 1/2 pound tart baking apples (Braeburn,
Jonathan, Jonagold, or Golden Delicious
2 lemons, 4 oz.
2 tbsp. softened unsalted butter
2 tblsp flour
dark brown sugar, 1/3 cup
2 tbsp. sugar granules
1 tsp cinnamon powder
fresh ginger, grated 1/4 TSP
kosher salt (1/4 teaspoon)
allspice powder
1 tsp. nutmeg, grated
To make the Pecan Bourbon Caramel, combine the pecans, bourbon, and caramel sauce in a mixing
1 pound sugar granules
unsalted butter, 1/2 cup (1 stick)
heavy cream, 2/3 cup
1/4 cup corn syrup (light)
2 tblsp sorghum syrup or maple syrup
2 tblsp whiskey (bourbon)
1 tablespoon molasses (blackstrap)
kosher salt (1/2 teaspoon)
2 1/2 cups toasted whole pecans
DIRECTIONS
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit for the crust.. Roll out the pie crust to a 12 inch diameter circle on a lightly floured work surface. Refrigerate for 30 minutes after transferring to a platter and rolling up the overhanging edge. Combine the egg and cream in a mixing bowl. Transfer to a 9-inch pie dish, then trim crust around edge of pie plate with kitchen shears or a paring knife.Brush the edge of the crust with egg wash and demerara sugar, then crimp it (do not brush or sugar bottom of crust or wax paper will stick to it). Line the bottom of the crust with wax paper, fill with dried beans or pie weights, and bake for 15 minutes, or until the edge is brown. Remove the weights and wax paper from the crust and continue baking until the bottom and sides are brown, about 5 minutes more. Allow to cool slightly before serving.
Meanwhile, here’s how you make the apple filling: Starting at the stem and working down, peel apples in a spiral pattern, removing about half of the skin while leaving a stripe of skin on each apple. Apples should be cored and sliced into 1/4-inch slices. Toss apple slices with lemon juice in a large mixing dish..
To make a smooth paste, combine butter and flour in a small basin.
Stir together the butter-flour mixture, brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon, ginger, salt, allspice, and nutmeg with the apples. Scrape apple mixture into a large, wide-bottomed saucepan and cook, stirring periodically, for 20 minutes, or until apples are tender but not falling apart. Allow apples to cool somewhat before scraping into a pie crust that has already been baked.
While the apples cool, combine the granulated sugar, butter, heavy cream, corn syrup, maple syrup, bourbon, molasses, and salt in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and cook, stirring constantly, until the ingredients are entirely incorporated, about 2 minutes. Stop stirring, increase the heat to medium high, and cook for 5 minutes, or until the mixture registers 236°F on a candy thermometer. Allow 3 minutes for the caramel to cool to 190 degrees after turning off the heat. Toss in the toasted pecans, then spread the caramel-pecan mixture over the apples, smoothing and molding it into an equal layer. (Any remaining caramel pecan mixture can be spooned onto a prepared baking sheet and chilled to make turtles if you don’t want to use it all on top of the pie.) Allow pie to cool to room temperature before slicing and serving.