Pecan Pie with Spiked Cream
Brown rice syrup is a sweetener with a soft, delicate flavor. It is sold in jars in the baking section of large supermarkets or health-food stores. You can substitute dark corn syrup in its place. You can make and freeze the unbaked crust up to a week ahead; bake the pie up to a day in advance, and refrigerate. Remove it from the refrigerator about an hour before you plan to serve it.
Crust:
1 cup all-purpose flour, divided
3 tablespoons ice water
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons vegetable shortening
Filling:
1 cup brown rice syrup or dark corn syrup
1/4 cup maple syrup
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 large egg white
1/2 cup pecan halves
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Topping:
2/3 cup frozen fat-free whipped topping, thawed
1 tablespoon bourbon
Preheat oven to 350. To prepare crust, lightly spoon 1 cup flour into a dry
measuring cup, and level with a knife. Combine 1/4 cup flour, ice water, and
lemon juice, stirring with a whisk until well blended to form a slurry.
Combine remaining 3/4 cup flour, powdered sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a
large bowl; cut in shortening with a pastry blender or 2 knives until
mixture resembles coarse meal. Add slurry; toss with a fork until flour
mixture is moist.
Gently press mixture into a 4-inch circle on 2 sheets of overlapping
heavy-duty plastic wrap; cover with 2 additional sheets of overlapping
plastic wrap. Roll dough, still covered, into a 12-inch circle. Freeze dough
10 minutes or until plastic wrap can easily be removed.
Remove dough from freezer. Remove top 2 sheets of plastic wrap; let the
dough stand 1 minute or until pliable. Fit dough, plastic wrap side up, into
a 9-inch pie plate, allowing dough to extend over edge. Remove remaining
plastic wrap. Press dough into bottom and up sides of pie plate. Fold edges
under; flute. Bake at 350 for 8 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.
To prepare filling, place syrup and next 5 ingredients (through egg white)
in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended. Stir
in pecans and vanilla. Pour filling into prepared crust. Bake at 350 for 50
minutes or until edges puff and center is set (shield edges of piecrust with
foil if crust gets too brown). Cool on a wire rack.
To prepare the topping, combine the whipped topping and bourbon until
blended. Serve with pie.
Yield 10 servings