A rich, fudgy chocolate filling studded with toasted pecans in a golden pastry case, the Southern American pecan pie made even more irresistible with the addition of deep dark chocolate.
About This Recipe
Chocolate pecan pie is the indulgent evolution of the already indulgent pecan pie, the dark chocolate adding a bittersweet depth to the caramel-like corn syrup filling that makes the combination considerably more complex and satisfying than the original. It is a pie for people who find standard pecan pie almost too sweet, the chocolate providing the bitter counterpoint that allows the caramel richness of the filling to taste genuinely interesting rather than one-dimensional.
The filling is made from a combination of dark corn syrup or golden syrup, eggs, sugar, melted dark chocolate, and butter, which produces a filling that is liquid when poured and sets during baking to a soft, almost fudge-like consistency with a slightly firm surface and a yielding, chocolatey interior. The pecans, toasted briefly before use, are arranged on the surface of the filling before baking and sink partially into the filling as it cooks, producing the characteristic pecan-studded top that defines the appearance of this pie.
The pastry for pecan pie must be genuinely blind baked before filling. The filling is liquid enough that it would make the bottom pastry soggy if poured into an unbaked shell. A properly blind baked base, golden and crisp, provides the structural foundation that allows the soft, rich filling to set without making the pastry beneath wet or underdone.
History and Origins
Pecan pie is deeply associated with the American South, where native pecan trees provided an abundant local nut that became central to regional baking traditions. The earliest printed pecan pie recipes appeared in the early 20th century. The Karo corn syrup company, whose product became the standard binder for pecan pie filling, promoted the recipe on their labels from the 1930s and significantly expanded its popularity. The chocolate version emerged as a natural evolution in home baking.
Why It Is Good For You
Pecans are one of the most antioxidant-rich tree nuts, providing ellagic acid, vitamin E, and beta-sitosterol with cholesterol-lowering properties. Dark chocolate provides flavanols with cardiovascular benefits. A small slice provides meaningful quantities of both
Chocolate Pecan Pie
8
servings20
minutes50
minutes4480
kcalIngredients
•tFor pastry: 200g plain flour, 100g cold butter, 2 tbsp icing sugar, 2 to 3 tbsp ice water
•t200g pecan halves
•t150g dark chocolate 70 percent chopped
•t3 large eggs
•t200g golden syrup or dark corn syrup
•t100g brown sugar
•t60g unsalted butter melted
•t1 tsp vanilla extract
•t0.5 tsp salt
Directions
- Make and blind bake pastry in a 23cm tin at 190C for 15 minutes weighted then 5 minutes unweighted. Cool.
- Toast pecans in a dry pan for 4 minutes until fragrant. Cool.
- Melt chocolate and butter together. Cool for 5 minutes.
- Whisk eggs, golden syrup, brown sugar, vanilla and salt together.
- Stir melted chocolate mixture into egg mixture.
- Preheat oven to 170C. Pour filling into cooled pastry case.
- Arrange toasted pecans over the filling surface.
- Bake for 40 to 45 minutes until edges are set and centre has a slight wobble. Cool completely before slicing.
Notes
- The filling must go into a fully blind baked and cooled pastry case. Raw pastry plus this liquid filling produces a soggy, underdone base.
Cool completely before slicing. Hot pecan pie filling is liquid. Minimum 2 hours cooling, overnight is better.
The centre should still wobble slightly when the pie is removed from the oven. It will firm as it cools.
Toast the pecans. Raw pecans have a slightly green, grassy flavour that toasting removes entirely
Make Ahead Tips
The blind baked pastry case keeps at room temperature for 24 hours. The baked pie keeps at room temperature for 3 days and actually improves on day two. Refrigerate for up to 5 days.
Storage and Serving
Store at room temperature covered for up to 3 days. Refrigerate for up to 5 days. Serve at room temperature or slightly warm with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. Freeze for up to 3 months. Slice cleanly with a sharp knife dipped in hot water.
Variations and Substitutions
Add a tablespoon of bourbon or rum to the filling for an adult version. Replace dark chocolate with milk chocolate for a sweeter, less intense filling. Add 100g of dark chocolate chips to the filling alongside the pecans. Replace pecans with walnuts for a different but equally excellent nut pie.
