Pecan Pie

For me, pecan pie is more about when it’s eaten than the pie itself, or even the recipe.  I’m somewhat famous for my pecan pie, but to be completely honest, I just use the Joy of Cooking recipe, except that I use scotch or bourbon instead of vanilla or rum.  Makes for a yummier pie.

I think the reason that I’m famous for my pecan pie is that it comes out on rib night. We’ve already discussed rib night a bit on this blog: when we shared our BBQ sauce recipe.

We had rib night last night, in honour of my brother-in-law Mikey, who’s in town for the first time in four years. Jim really wanted to do it up for his brother. Friday night was spent brining the ribs and making his world-famous BBQ sauce in anticipation of the big event. You know you have to brine the ribs, don’t you? Well, we do in our house at least. You take a bunch of baby back ribs, and immerse them in a mixture of beer, water, salt (a lot of salt), pepper, onions and garlic. Make sure they’re fully immersed, or else turn them a lot. Brine overnight at least.

Saturday dawned hot and sunny. Some of the crew went out golfing first; I had a wonderful day in the park with my sissy and my nieces. Then we moved it to the back yard and I put up a kiddie pool, which we all waded in.

fun in the park

At some point, I wandered inside and baked four pecan pies. In case you’re wondering, the Joy of Cooking recipe fills two store-bought deep-dish pie shells. I guess they’re not as deep as the homemade version – and unlike Deanna and Ian, I was not making my own on a hot, sunny Saturday.

Golfers started showing up around 5:00-ish. Then Jim had to steam the ribs before barbequeing them.  You know that too, don’t you?  Pour a beer and some water into a shallow pan or two, just to cover the bottom of the pan. Add in some thick slices of lemon and onion, and some chunks of garlic. Place the ribs on top of the whole mess (in one layer – very important) and then cover with tin foil. Steam in a 300° oven for 2 hours, or until the meat starts to pull away from the bone. Then barbeque over low heat, basting liberally with BBQ sauce, until nicely caramelized. Then serve.

Jimmy on the Q

So, there were ribs, coleslaw and some grilled corn on the cob, and the inevitable trip to the store for ice cream, and then pecan pie. It was a day of family and friends and happy chatter.

Of course I’m famous for my pecan pie.

~ Eva

P.S. Full credit to J of C, here’s the recipe:

Pecan Pie
Brush 2 deep-dish pie shells with 1 large egg yolk. Bake according to recipe or package directions.
Preheat oven to 375°F and place rack in the middle of the oven.

Whisk:
4 large eggs
1 C (packed) dark brown sugar
3/4 C golden corn syrup
1/3 C melted butter
1 T scotch or bourbon
1/2 tsp salt

Stir in 2 C whole pecans.
Pour the filling into the pie shells and bake until the edges of the pie are firm and the centre seems set but “jiggly” (40-45 minutes).
Cool on a raised rack at least 1 hour before serving.