Smoked Candied Pecan Pie

If you’re a fan of watching reruns of the show Parks and Recreation like I am, you may recall an episode in which Andy Dwyer (played by Chris Pratt) was giving advice to Tom by saying, “‘When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.’ I read that one on a can of lemonade. I like to think that it applies to life.”  While I’m not going to go that deep in thought on you, I like to think when life gives you pecans, you make pecan pie.

The Best Way to Eat Pecans

As you may recall, I have a recipe for smoked candied pecans here on the website. It’s my second favorite way to eat pecans. My #1 favorite way is to take those smoked candied pecans and make a pecan pie!

To make this pie, take a medium-sized mixing bowl and combining a cup of brown sugar and 1/4 cup sugar. Next add 1.5 teaspoon vanilla, 1/2 teaspoon corn starch, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 3/4 cup light corn syrup. Also, mix in a stick of melted butter and three beaten eggs.

Next comes a unique ingredient: orange zest. Only grate in a half teaspoon. That small amount will bring the perfect, subtle diverse flavor. When grating the orange, it is important to know you get the best zest from the immediate surface of the peel. Beyond that surface, the peel starts to get more tart. So if you want some tart to the pie, then keep grating in the same spot. Mix altogether in mixing bowl.

Getting the Pecan Pie Together

Now that you’re at the point where we put it all together. Start by lightly greasing a pie tin or pie pan. Line the pie crust in the pie tin and put half of the smoked candied pecans in. Pour your mixture from the mixing bowl in next and then evenly sprinkle the remaining pecans on top.

Wrap the top of the pie in aluminum foil and put on the preheated grill at 350 degrees over indirect heat. For smoke flavor, go with hickory wood. After 30 minutes, remove foil from top and keep on grill for another 25 minutes. You can tell it’s done when you tap the side of the pie and it has a little jiggle to it. If this is the case, remove and let rest until pie is cooled to room temp.

This pie is great for holidays, weekends, late nights, basically anytime! Eat up and make sure to share with friends, family. Or not.

Smoked Candied Pecan Pie

Yield: 8 Slices

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 55 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes

Can pecan pie possibly get any better? YES! By using smoked candied pecans! With the help of sugar, butter, and a kiss of hickory smoke, this smoked candied pecan pie is exactly what your family and friends want for dessert!

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Ingredients

• 1 Cup brown sugar
• 1/4 Cup granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 teaspoon corn starch
• 1/2 teaspoon orange zest
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 Cup light corn syrup
• 1/2 cup butter (aka- 1 stick), melted
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1 1/2 Cups smoked candied pecans
• 1 pie crust

Instructions

1. Preheat grill to 350 degrees over indrect heat, using hickory wood. Take a medium mixing bowl and put in brown sugar, granulated sugar, vanilla, corn starch, orange zest, salt, light corn syrup, melted butter, and three eggs. Stir ingredients together.

2. Lightly grease a pie pan and put your rolled out pie crust in. Make sure pie crust conforms to the pie tin. Take half of pecans and sprinkle onto pie crust in pie pan. Pour ingredients from mixing bowl into pie pan, then evenly sprinkle remaining pecans on top.

3. Cover pie in foil and put on the grill. After 30 minutes, remove foil and cook for another 25 minutes. Remove from grill and let cool to room temperature before serving.

Notes

When zesting the orange, start at one spot and zest lightly on the surface, spiraling around the orange. The reason for this is you get the best zest from the outmost part of the peel. Going further into the peel in one spot makes the zest more tart.

Corn startch helps thicken the pie’s consistency.

When baking the pie, you can tell it is done by giving the side of the pie tin a tap and watching how it moves. If it sloshes around, it needs more time. If it jiggles just a little bit, then it’s done.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 8 servings Serving Size: 1 slice
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 400Total Fat: 27gSaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 106mgSodium: 320mgCarbohydrates: 63gFiber: 4gSugar: 30gProtein: 6g

Nutrition information isn’t always accurate.