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Every year we go to bat with our favorite pies in the KCRW radio sponsored pie contest which is held on the UCLA campus. This last weekend we brought our very best pecan pie and she won third in the nut category! This pie is really made by my sweetie pie and he asked me to help with the look and design. We were lining up pecans and cutting out pastry leaves into the wee hours of the night! The result, an award winning pie 🙂

If you want to make a great pie, my sweetie pie is the man to ask! He comes from a long line of pie makers. His grandma used to bake pies professionally in a bakery and she learned secrets from a trained French chef. Those pie wisdoms have been passed down and now he’s carrying the torch, or should I say oven. Anyway, pie jokes aside, he’s won a few times with his pie, so yes… this man knows his pie.

For the contest, you actually have to bake 2 pies. One goes to the judges and the other gets cut up and passed out to the public. We usually bake three pies and pick the best two from the bunch. You’ll find that the more you bake pie, the better you get at it. It’s definitely one of those “practice makes perfect” kind of deals. One of the reasons we compete every year is it forces us to think about how to improve. It’s also a very fun day of interacting with other bakers and pie enthusiasts. Everyone’s in a happy pie place and sharing tips and recipe improvements. You also get to eat pie which is the real reason I go 😉

It’s a good idea to try other pies and ask people what they use for ingredients. The gal standing next to us this year won Best in Show with her Honey Cinnamon Pie, and she used a new method to make the crust. It’s very similar to the food processor pie dough method I shared in the last post. Sometimes with just a few hints and tips from others, you can make huge strides with your recipe.

My sweetie pie makes his crust by hand. He cuts the butter in and adds the water a little at a time. For this pecan pie, he even adds a nutty almond meal flour that makes the crust incredibly flaky and flavorful. It compliments the pecan pie perfectly. The best part of the competition is getting to hand out pieces of your pie to the public and ask them for their suggestions. We received a few great ideas this year and may give those a whirl through this Fall as we bake pies for family! This is a part of the art of baking and even photography if you are a food blogger… constantly find ways to improve. And practicing your art will make you better!

Here’s the award winning pecan pie recipe! Hope you enjoy!

Award Winning Bourbon Pecan Pie with Almond Crust

This year we entered a Bourbon Pecan Pie with Almond Crust into the KCRW Pie Contest and it won third place in the nut category. Learn how to make this yummy pecan pie from scratch and get tips about entering pie contests from Sweetie Pie and Cupcakes!

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Prep Time 1

Cook Time 1

Total Time 4

Servings: 8 people

Course: Dessert, Party Food

Cuisine: American

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

1/2 cup Brown Sugar
1/2 cup Maple Syrup
1/2 cup Karo Corn Syrup
2 Tbsp Butter We use Kerrygold Salted Butter
2 Large Eggs
2 Tbsp Jim Bean Bourbon
1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
1 cup Chopped Pecans
1 cup Halved Pecans
2 Tbsp Butter to roast pecans We use Kerrygold Salted Butter
1 cup Almond Flour for pie crust
1 1/2 cup All-Purpose Flour for pie crust
1 tsp Sugar for pie crust
1/2 tsp Salt for pie crust
16 Tbsp Butter for pie crust One block of Kerrygold Salted Butter
2 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar for pie crust Chilled
5-6 Tbsp Ice Water for pie crust Chilled
1 Egg mixed with 2 Tbsp Water for pie crust For Egg Wash
1 tsp Sugar for pie crust decoration

Method

Chop butter into 1 inch chunks and freeze. Chill 2 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar and a cup of water in ice.
Combine Almond Flour, All-purpose flour, sugar and salt in a bowl. Add chunks of butter and chop in with a pastry cutter or knife leaving large chunks of butter.
Add apple cider vinegar to flour butter mixture. Chop in the apple cider vinegar until just combined.
Add a tablespoon of ice cold water at a time, about 5-6 tablespoons total until the dough is forming into a ball. Do not over mix, just combine until dry ingredients are coming together.
Separate the dough, one with 3/4 of the dough (this one will be your pie crust) and one with 1/4 of the dough (this one will be for making cut outs for the edge). Flatten them into 5-6 inch round discs. Wrap in plastic wrap or wax paper and refrigerate for over 2 hours. Prepare the pecan mixtures while the dough sets up in the fridge.
Set oven to 250 degrees F. Add the 1 cup of chopped and 1 cup of halved pecan on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Dot with 2 tablespoons of butter. Roast 7-10 minutes max. Keep an eye on them so they don't burn.
While the pecans cool, create the sugar caramel type mixture over the stove. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a sauce pan. Add 1/2 cup brown sugar. Add 1/2 cup maple syrup. Add 1/2 cup corn syrup and heat until bubbly. Remove from heat and allow to fully cool. It should taste like caramel.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the 2 eggs, 2 tablespoons of Bourbon, and 1 tsp Vanilla.
Grease a 9" pie plate with butter. Flour a work surface and a rolling pin. Roll out the larger pie dough first. Use ice cold water around the edges to fix any parts that break. Also, keep adding flour underneath the dough so it doesn't stick. Turn the dough a quarter turn as you expand it out to about 13-14" wide. Use the pie plate as a guide to make sure the dough is large enough.
Either roll in onto the rolling pin and release it into your 9" pie plate, or use a plastic sheet to scrape the dough up and slide it into the pie plate. Refrigerate the pie dough plate while you roll out the other dough and cut the designs for the edge of the pie crust. Use a leaf design or braid/twist the dough. Wait to place the design onto the edge for last.
Combine the egg mixture with the syrup mixture and lightly whisk together. Add the chopped pecans to this mixture (leaving out the halved pecan; we'll use them for the top once the mixture is poured in).
Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Pour the mixture into the pie dough plate. Place the halved pecans around the edge of the dough first. Then add the next row and the next row until you reach the center. Then simply fill in the center with a few pecans. Decorate the edge of the pie with the leaf cutouts or your braid/twist design.
Combine 1 egg 2 tablespoons of water to make an egg wash. Add egg wash with a paper towel or pastry brush. Sprinkle sugar on the decorated edge.
Place the pie on a baking sheet and place on center rack of oven. Bake at 350 degrees for about an hour. After the first 15-20 minutes, place a pie ring onto the edge to keep it from burning. You want to allow the edge to just start to turn a golden brown. Also, allow the pie to bake fully. The crust should turn a deep golden brown and if you use a clear pyrex pie plate, you can check underneath the pie to make sure it is starting to turn golden.
Remove the pie and allow it to cool. This pie can be stored with foil on top or in a container for a few days. Sometimes pie crust will moisten if covered while warm and it's okay to let it sit out in open air to cool. If you refrigerate the pie and you want the crisp flaky crust again, place the pieces in a toaster oven and heat for a few minutes. Microwaving the pie will make it soggy. As a note, you can also bake a full pie in a really good toaster oven. Look for one that's big enough to bake pie!