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Ooey-gooey, crunchy, sticky and sweet, Classic Southern Pecan Pie is one of my all-time favorite desserts! Perfect for Thanksgiving, BBQ’s, Pi Day or any day in between!

a pecan pie in a white baking dish with a slice removed and place on a white plate in back forks and pie server resting to the sides and a striped towel in the middle

It’s Pi Day! Happy March 14th everybody! This is one of my favorite unofficial holidays of the year because it’s celebrated with my favorite form of dessert – PIE!

A few years back we were invited to a pie party with a bunch of friends where everybody brought a pie to share. Judging was involved and there were pie related prizes (like pie guards or a pastry scraper, that sort of thing) and it was so much fun! Way more fun than we had anticipated.

So the next year, when we were living in a new house in a new city and still didn’t know many people yet, we decided we would just have to start hosting a Pi Day Pie Party ourselves, and we’ve been doing it ever since.

a freshly baked pecan pie next to a striped towel and two forks

It’s one of our favorite get-togethers because it’s so low key and everybody loves it. And everybody gets to try lots and lots of different types of pies. Last year we had over a dozen pies. It’s a skip dinner, just eat dessert kind of a night and categories for prizes are usually “best crust”, “best filling”, and “most likely to bring about world peace”, which is the overall winner category.

The first year we hosted, my friend Christina brought her Blueberry Sour Cream Custard pie and it won the world peace award. It’s SO good and has become something of a legend among our acquaintances and my go-to Easter dessert. It was even one of the earliest recipes I posted about on the blog, which is saying something about it in its own right!

a pecan pie with a slice removed and placed on a stack of white plates with forks scattered around

But today I wanted to post about a pie that is near and dear to my heart – a classic southern pecan pie!

Oh man, I love this pie. It’s one of my dad’s favorites (besides apple, but it seems like that is everybody’s favorite, isn’t it?) and I think about that every time I make it because he and I are the ones in our family who cannot resist pecan pie. Especially with a scoop of vanilla ice cream melting over a big slice of it.

a close view of a pecan pie missing a slice

You do not have to be Southern to appreciate the buttery, caramel, toffee-like filling that is packed with chopped pecan pieces or the flaky, crumbly crust. I get a kick out of arranging whole pecans over the top of the pie in concentric circles, but you can chop all the nuts if you feel like it.

Learn how to make pie crust and make a homemade crust from scratch, or just pick up a refrigerated, pre-made unbaked crust from the store. Either way, you need this pie in your life! I have a video tutorial on my YouTube channel that shows how to make a pie crust that you might find helpful.

I like to think that my pecan pie has just the right amount of sweetness so that it doesn’t become so sweet that you lose the actual hero of the pie which is the pecan flavor, which has a sweetness all its own anyway.

a pecan pie next to a white and gray striped kitchen towel

And oh heavens, the way this pie makes your kitchen smell is just amazing. All the pecans and butter and sugar baking together create the most unbelievable aroma you can imagine and your whole house will smell so good! It’s why I have a super hard time waiting for the pie to cool completely before cutting into it.

I don’t care whether you pronounce it peh-cahn or pee-can, either way this pie is delicious and definitely a worthy offering for your Pi Day party or Thanksgiving table. And being a traditionally Southern dish, it is the perfect thing to serve with BBQ.

a pecan pie baked and next to a striped towel with a stack of white plates and eating utensils sits in the background
a striped towel running diagonally around them

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Ooey-gooey, crunchy, sticky and sweet, Classic Southern Pecan Pie is one of my all-time favorite desserts! Perfect for Thanksgiving, BBQ's, Pi Day or any day in between!
Yield: 12 slices

Classic Southern Pecan Pie

Ooey-gooey, crunchy, sticky and sweet, Classic Southern Pecan Pie is one of my all-time favorite desserts!  Perfect for Thanksgiving, BBQ's, Pi Day or any day in between!

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 50 minutes
Total Time 1 hour

Ingredients

Filling

  • 1 cup dark brown sugar
  • 1 cup corn syrup
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 3 eggs, beaten
  • 1/4 cup butter, melted
  • 2 cups chopped pecans
  • 3/4 cup whole pecans

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Prepare pie crust. Roll it out and line a pie dish with it.
  3. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar, corn syrup, cornstarch, vanilla, salt, cinnamon and butter.
  4. Pour chopped pecans into the unbaked pie crust. Pour the egg mixture over the chopped pecans, which will rise to the surface. Gently lay the whole pecans around the top of the pie in a decorative pattern (or chop them all up and do the whole pie with chopped pecans if you don't want to bother with making it look fancy.
  5. Bake the pie for 50-60 minutes, or until just set but slightly wobbly in the center still. Cool completely before slicing.

Notes

I always use this pie crust recipe when making pies. It turns out amazing every time!

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

12
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 436Saturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 51mgSodium: 323mgCarbohydrates: 50gFiber: 2gSugar: 40gProtein: 4g
© Amy Nash, House of Nash Eats
Cuisine: American / Category: Dessert