TWD: My Favorite (Boozy) Pecan Pie

Updated to say: I forgot to mention the first time around that this is my December entry to the You Want Pies with That? blog event. This month we were challenged by June at Sweet Therapy to make a "Holiday Spirit Pie", i.e. an alcohol-insprired pie or tart. Thanks June, I thoroughly enjoyed this rummy pecan pie.

With this week's Tuesday's with Dorie recipe, Pecan Pie, I learned a few new things and confirmed another.

Not being a huge fan of pecans by themselves, I learned that roughly chopping the pecans rather than leaving them whole helps to avoid having a mouthful of nothing but pecans. I also learned that I'm too big a chicken to add chocolate, coffee, and cinnamon to pecan pie... sorry, Dorie!


I confirmed what I thought the first time I made pecan pie, that adding a little dark rum really kicks this dessert up a notch, like up to the stratosphere. I don't think plain old pecan pie will do it for me anymore. A touch of rum goes perfectly with the slightly bitter pecans and the sweet filling. (I discovered the rum/pecan pie connection when I made Wayne Harley Brachman's recipe, which you can find here.)

I reduced the recipe and made it in a single 4" tart shell. I had already baked the shell previously, so it did end up getting quite brown. I used sweet tart dough, which I really liked with the pecan pie filling. About a tablespoon of dark rum for a full recipe is just right.

I think I forgot to mention that this pie was awesome. Not too sweet, like Dorie said.

OK, one more week until the big day, Christmas! Merry Christmas to everyone and we'll see you next week!

Thanks so much to Beth of Someone’s in the Kitchen with Brina for the excellent pick this week. Please check out Beth's site for the recipe, or Dorie Greenspan's book "Baking From my Home to Yours".