It’s pie season and every year I have to dig through my photos to find my mom’s recipe for the best pecan pie in the world. I grew up eating pecan pie at Thanksgiving ever since I can remember and my mom and I always loved to talk about pecan pie leading up to Thanksgiving. We would anticipate how yummy it was going to be. I would say “Mom makes the BEST pecan pie” or something of the sorts. And we would always keep an eye on the pie dish at the family gathering and make sure each other got a slice… or got ANOTHER slice. And it just became a little thing we shared.

Since my mom passed away in 2012, I have carried on the tradition of making pecan pie MOST (if not every??) years for Thanksgiving, so I thought it was pie time (my mom would definitely love that pun) that we get this recipe on the blog. So here we go! I hope you enjoy this super simple and delicious recipe: Mom’s Pecan Pie Recipe. Save it so you can make it for your Thanksgiving. Please make sure to serve this pie with some scrumptious whipping cream on top – it’s the only right way.

Pecan Pie Ingredients

• 1 Pie Crust (my mother would approve of just buying a premade pie crust at the store if you need to save on time, but my sister Stephanie’s recipe for homemade pie crust is below as well).
• 3 Eggs
• 1 Cup of light corn syrup
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla
• 1/3 cup of white (regular) sugar
• 1/3 cup of brown sugar
• 3 Tablespoons of melted butter
• 1 pinch of salt
• 2 cups of pecan halves (I usually use a little more than this)

A note from this nutritionist: I have TRIED making this pie without corn syrup. I believe my mom also tried… it’s just not as good if you make it with maple syrup (and the consistency is all wrong) or honey (not the right flavor either). You can follow your heart but honestly this is the best pecan pie you’ll ever have so why try to mess it up? FYI: A large slice of this pie has about 7 grams of protein and 3.2 grams of fiber in it.

How to make Pecan Pie

• Set aside the pecan halves, and the crust. Then add the eggs into a large mixing bowl and beat them, then combine all the other ingredients and ensure that the mixture is smooth, with no lumps of sugar. Set this aside and prepare the pie pan.
• Lay the pie crust into a 9 inch pie pan and use a fork to press down the edges. Trim it so it looks nice. My pie pan is deeper than a typical pie pan so I use more pecans.
• You can add the pecans one of two ways:
  • The easy way: Pour the pecan halves into the pie crust and spread them out evenly. Then pour the wet mixture over the pecans and you’re good to go.
  • The beautiful way: Add about half of the pecans into the pie pan, pour the wet mixture over them, and then one by one lay the pecans in a pattern and gently push them into the wet mixture. Depending on how big your eggs are and how deep your pan is, you may need some extra pecans. I like to lay mine in lines so it is nice and organized, and I put the rounded side of the pecan facing up. You can face them either way but I think the rounded side is more beautiful 🙂

Pie Crust Recipe

I don’t recall ever HELPING my mom make the pie, I just remember eating it. But my sister, Stephanie, definitely helped mom make a lot of pies (specifically Dutch Apple Pie, yum!) and this is the recipe we always use for pecan pie (this is NOT a recipe for apple pie crust though, that is completely different, FYI).

• 1 1/4 cups of Flour
• 1/4 Teaspoon of salt
• 1/2 cup cold butter
• 1/4 cup ice water.

How to make homemade pie crust

This recipe makes the BOTTOM of the pie crust. Pecan pie doesn’t need crust on top.

1. In a bowl, combine the flour and salt, and then cut in the cold butter.
2. Add the water.
3. Mix it until it becomes smooth, then on a lightly floured surface, role it out with a rolling pin.
4. Lay it in the pie pan, trim the edges, and you’re good to go.

If you like this recipe, my mom loved making sweet treats, here are a few others you might like:

• Mom’s Homemade Strawberry Jam Recipe
• Mom’s Chocolate Mousse Recipe

And just for sentimental value, I do have a photo of the recipe handwritten by my mother that I’d like to share here. I always thought her handwriting was so beautiful and it reminds me of her a lot 🙂

To close out, here is picture of Stephanie and I with our pies (this one is a couple years old but we make them every year).