Pecan Pie (Thanksgiving 2012)

I have a habit of reading the Acknowledgements page inside books.

It's the really personal aspects of it that appeal to me. Fiction or nonfiction, I feel like I'm getting away from the author's "writing voice" and to his or her "speaking voice." The voice that might, for instance, tell Mom how publishing's coming along and how it's a pain in the butt but darn it, this thing will get here before summer. Or chat briefly with the barista who brews their morning/afternoon/dead of night coffee. Or answer a terse "Nope" to the question "Do you need anything?"

Elaborate or concise, emotional or mechanical, acknowledgements are both precious and necessary. This is already the second Thanksgiving I'm celebrating here on this blog, and so I thought it'd be nice to have my own Acknowledgements section for today.

So, without further ado, I'm deeply grateful to:

- God, for all the love, blessings, and grace. I know I'm a handful. More importantly, I know that you know I'm a handful. Every good thing I have I credit back to you, Jesus.
- Mom (and the part of the family I'm on good terms with), for your patience, cuteness, dork factor, and the late nights listening to my rants and concerns.
- 소영집사님, for all the prayers, encouragements, and advice about life. I find it incredible how one person can embody so much empathy and compassion for others.
- My guy friends- the best guys a girl can ever wish for. At least three of you had genuinely complimented me at one time and told me I'm beautiful. It was such an honor. I won't ever forget it.
- Ms. Gaston, for all the enthusiastic Facebook "like"s, the stalwart support, and your never-ending positive energy. You're one of the bravest people I know, because you teach high school students and say you love it. You mighty soul, you.
- Tomi, for letting me bring out my silly/fun/sassy side. I don't show that side of myself to most people. Thanks for not running away when I start making funny faces.
- The staff at Emory College Writing Center! Words can't explain how much I miss my home away from home at Emory. I can't wait to come back and read papers with you again at Callaway.
- and lastly, my readers. I'm deeply appreciative of every chance I have to share something with you. Thanks for dealing with my awkwardness. That means a lot.

With much love,
Rae

Man, am I blessed or what??

The sweetest person I know gave me these freshly picked pecans as a Thanksgiving gift. So of course I had to bake this pie.

I baked with pecans before, yes I did. If you've read my post on Hummingbird cake, then you know all about how pecans+buttercream+cake= pure amazingness. But let me tell ya, fresh pecans just blew. me. away. I get why chefs stress fresh ingredients. When you can get your hands on them, do use them in your cooking and baking. The difference in taste and aroma is outrageous.

I just about swooned, they were so beautiful.

De-shelling them with minimal damage to the nut, however, proved to be a challenge. But I have a stubborn streak, especially when it comes to baking. So I sat my butt down, turned on Hulu, and got to work.

3 1/2 cups of freshly de-shelled pecans later, my right thumb was red and numb and almost bent backwards. But I had all these perfect pecan halves. Yeah!!

Told ya I had a stubborn streak.

See, in real life, though, you don't have to wreak havoc on your poor fingers for the sake of pie.

I don't judge if you get your nuts from Costco.

In fact, that makes you pretty normal. Only crazy, obsessive bakers crack their own nuts for a solid hour and a half.

Ahh, the dreaded pie crust...the more reason why you should check out my tutorial on how to prepare a pie crust.

I put my heart and soul into writing up this tutorial, AND I posted the finished pie as the main model for the ideal pie crust. That's how you know this post is gonna be good.

Seriously, homemade pie crust = major, major respect.

But I'll still love you if you bake this pecan pie with store-bought crust....as long as you share.

Would you believe me if I said pecan pie is really simple to bake?

No cutting and arranging fruits, no boiling custards, no fuss to it whatsoever. Just mix and pour on pie crust...and bake. Yup. That's it, really.

I like this particular recipe, because it calls for lots of pecans. In fact, I had some extra filling left over, so I would recommend that you bake this in a deep 9-inch dish or a 10-inch dish. Technically I can see how you can divide up the filling between two regular 8 or 9 inch pie plates- you'll just end up with thinner pies.

This is love caramelized and set in concentric rows of toasted pecans.

I'm beyond grateful for the gift of food, and for the gift of good company that's with me. I hope you'll undertake your own labor of love as a blessing for someone in your life.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!



Pecan Pie

*makes one 9-inch pie*

Note: I personally ended up with a bit too much filling for a 9-inch pie plate. If you'd like, you can bake this in a 9-inch deep pie pan, or, divide the filling into two pie pans for slightly thinner pies.

Ingredients:

• All purpose flour, for dusting
• 4 cups pecan pie halves, toasted (lightly)
• 4 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1 cup light corn syrup
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted and cooled
• 2 Tbsps pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp salt

Directions:

1. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to a 13-inch round. Fit dough into a 9-inch pie plate (see Note above). Trim dough, leaving a 1-inch overhang. Turn overhand under, flush with rim. Flute edge. Refrigerate or freeze until firm, about 30 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 325 F. Set aside 1 1/4 cups pecan halves; coarsely chop remaining 2 3/4 cups pecans. Stir together eggs, sugar, corn syrup, butter, vanilla, and salt in a medium bowl until well combined. Stir in chopped pecans, and pour mixture into prepared pie shell, spreading evenly. Arrange reserved pecan halves on top in concentric circles until surface is completely covered. 
3. Place pie on a rimmed baking sheet, and bake until filling is just set and crust is golden brown, about 90 minutes. (If nuts are getting too dark, tent pie loosely with foil.) Transfer to a wire rack, and let cool completely before serving. (Pie can be stored at room temperature, loosely covered, up to 1 day.)

Cream Cheese Pie Dough

*makes enough for one 9-inch single crust pie*

Ingredients:

• 2 tsps cold water
• 1 tsp cold cider vinegar
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• 4 ounces cold cream cheese, cut into small pieces

 Directions:

1. Combine water and vinegar in a small bowl.
2. Combine flour and salt in another bowl. Using a pastry blender or your fingers, cut butter and cream cheese into flour mixture until mixture resembles coarse meal, with some larger pieces remaining. (Alternatively, pulse ingredients in a food processor.)
3. Add water mixture to dough in a slow, steady stream, stirring (or pulsing), until mixture just begins to hold together. Turn out onto plastic, and wrap. Press dough into a disk using a rolling pin. Refrigerate until firm, 1 hour or up to 1 day. (Dough can be frozen up to 3 months; thaw in the refrigerator before using.)

 From Martha Stewart's Pies & Tarts