Cooking Lesson #1109: Holiday Pumpkin-Pecan Pie

…from the Perspectives’  Holiday Kitchen

How you doin’? This pie recipe must have been invented by people who couldn’t make up their minds whether to bake a pumpkin or a pecan pie, so they put the two together and came up with a recipe for Holiday Pumpkin-Pecan Pie. What could be better? It’s as easy as pie!
 
I’ve made attempts to trace the dish's origin but have not found any recipes dated earlier than a pecan custard pie recipe published in Harper's Bazaar in 1886. Pecan pie was made before the invention of corn syrup, and older recipes used darker sugar-based syrup or molasses. The 1929 the Congressional Club Cookbook has a recipe for the pie which used only eggs, milk, sugar and pecans. The makers of Karo syrup significantly contributed to popularizing the dish.
 
The Karo company has claimed that the dish was a 1930s "discovery" of a "new use for corn syrup" by a corporate sales executive's wife. Well-known cookbooks such as Fannie Farmer and The Joy of Cooking did not include this dessert before 1940. Pecan pie came to be closely associated with the culture of the Southern United States in the 1940s and 1950s where pecans were easily grown.
 
As noted, pecans are native to the southern United States. Archaeological evidence found in Texas indicates that Native Americans used pecans more than 8,000 years ago.  The word pecan is a derivative from the early 18th century of an Algonquin word, pakani, referring to a nut.
 
Ingredients 
1-1/2 cups canned or mashed cooked pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1-1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
3 large slightly beaten eggs
1-1/4 cups whole milk
2/3 cup evaporated milk
1-1/2 cups pecan halves
1 9-inch unbaked pastry shell (homemade or store bought)
 
Prep time:  15 minutes
Bake time:  50+ minutes
Yield: 1 Pie (6 to 8 serving)
 
Directions

1. Read the recipe all the way through before starting. Measure all ingredients and have at your side.
2. Preheat an oven to 400°F.
3.  Thoroughly combine the pumpkin, sugar, salt and the spices.
4. Blend in the eggs, milk and evaporated milk.
5. Pour into an unbaked pastry shell (deep dish or have edges crimped high because amount of filling is generous).
6. Arrange the pecan halves carefully on top of filling.
7. Bake for 50 minutes or until knife inserted halfway between center and outside edge comes out clean.
8. Cool or chill the pie before serving.
9. Top with whipped cream to serve.

-------------------------------------------
ChefSecret:  Sprinkle a layer of chocolate chips on the crust before pouring in the pumpkin pie custard and make it a Holiday Pumpkin-Chocolate-Pecan Pie.
-------------------------------------------
Quip of the Day:  Q. Did you hear about the sailor who turned into a pumpkin pie? A. He's a squashbuckling pirate.
-------------------------------------------
Do you have a question or comment? Send your thoughts to [email protected]. All recipes and cooking tips are posted on our website https://www.perspectives-la.com/perspectives-on-food
-------------------------------------------
To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind. Take a breath and count your blessings, and if you have a little extra to share with others, please consider donating to  Feeding America, Tunnel to Towers, Union Rescue Mission and/or American Red Cross.

#Baking #Dessert #Thanksgiving #HolidayPumpkinPecanPie #PumpkinPie #PecanPie #HappyThanksgiving #HolidayRecipes #Thanksgiving Recipes #Recipes2025 #URM #T2T #FeedingAmerica #RedCross #SamaritansPurse #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup  

                                                                                 ©PERSPECTIVES/The Consulting Group, LLC, 2025

---