Cathy's Pecan Pie

From Yankee Magazine — November 2011

Pies and Pastries Recipes

Preparation Time: 20 minutes

Start to Finish Time: 1.2 hours

Yield: 8-10 servings

Frank McClelland's sister, Cathy Kelly, makes this pie not just at Thanksgiving, but also for birthdays and for her husband, Tim's, annual office bake sale. There, her six pies sell out in seconds. "Our grandmother always made a pecan pie," Cathy says. "I tweaked it with brown sugar, butter, and vanilla."

• Flour (for work surface)
• Single-Crust Pastry Dough (see accompanying recipe, right)
• 8 ounces pecan halves
• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup firmly packed light-brown sugar
• 1 cup light corn syrup
• 2 tablespoons salted butter, melted
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• Whipped cream (optional)

Preheat oven to 350°. On a well-floured surface, roll Single-Crust Pastry Dough out to a 12-inch circle, working from the center and turning dough as you go to prevent sticking. Transfer to a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate, tuck dough into corners, and drape extra over sides. Arrange pecans in a single layer in bottom of shell.

In a medium-size bowl, whisk together eggs, sugar, brown sugar, corn syrup, melted butter, and vanilla extract. Pour mixture over pecans (they'll float to the top). Crimp piecrust.

Bake until filling is set and top is nicely browned, about 1 hour. Pie will puff up as it cooks but will settle as it cools. Serve warm or at room temperature, with whipped cream if you like.

Single-Crust Pastry Dough

• 2-1/4 cups pastry flour or all-purpose flour, plus extra for work surface
• 1/4 teaspoon table salt
• 12 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into cubes
• 6-8 tablespoons cold milk
• 1 large egg

In a medium-size bowl, whisk together flour and salt. Sprinkle butter over flour mixture and use your fingers to work it in (rub your thumb against your fingertips, smearing butter as you do). Stop when mixture looks like coarse cornmeal, with some larger bits of butter remaining.

Stir 6 tablespoons milk with egg. Sprinkle on top of flour/butter mixture and stir with a fork until dough begins to come together. If needed, add more milk, a tablespoon at a time. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead three times, or just enough to make a cohesive dough--don't overmix! Gather into a ball, press into a disk, and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate 30 minutes.

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