Last night, we served pecan pie at the end of our Christmas Eve dinner, but it wasn’t your usual pecan pie. This one had peppermint bark nested at the bottom of the crust. The idea was to combine all the elements of a holiday assortment in one dessert.
To do so, I melted dark chocolate and added crushed peppermint candy canes, then smeared the pie crust with a thin layer of the peppermint bark. To complete the dessert, we offered eggnog to those who wanted a drink and peppermint ice cream to the others.
1. Info for Peppermint Bark Pecan Pie Recipe
- Cook Time: unavailable
- Total Time: unavailable
- Servings: 6
- Calories: unavailable
2. Ingredients for Peppermint Bark Pecan Pie Recipe
- 1 13-inch round pie crust (see tips for recipe)
- 3 eggs, at room temperature
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, reserve about ½ tablespoon for peppermint bark
- 5 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2½ cups pecans, halved
- 1 large candy cane
- 5 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
3. Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- For the pecan pie shell:
- Dust a flat surface with a bit of flour. Place the pie crust and roll it out into a 13-inch dough round.
- Transfer to a round, non-stick, loose-bottomed, (9-inch) tart mold. Following the curve of the mold, crimp the dough against the edge and cut a little excess above the edge (the dough will shrink a bit while it bakes). Line the dough with parchment paper and top with ceramic pie weights (or dried beans). Bake for 18 minutes. Remove the pie weights and discard the parchment paper. then let sit for at least 10 minutes to cool.
- For the peppermint bark bottom:
- Place the candy cane in a large zip-top bag. Seal the bag and coarsely crush the candy using a hammer or meat pounder. Set aside.
- Heat a pot filled with hot water (at a gentle simmer) topped with a piece of cloth so the bowl does not move, and place a stainless-steel bowl filled with the semi-sweet chocolate chips on top. Make sure the bowl circumference is larger than the pot, so there isn’t any splatter of water in the chocolate chips. Slowly melt, stirring frequently. Turn off the heat. Add about ½ tablespoon butter and the crushed candy cane. Stir until combined.
- Spread the peppermint bark inside the pie shell. Set aside. Let set.
- How to roast pecans: Reserve about 100 pecan halves (2 cups pecans) and roast the rest of the nuts. To release all the flavor and oil of the pecans, I like to roast them in the oven for about 10 minutes at 325°F before chopping them. Let them cool and chop them finely.
- For the pecan filling: Using an electric mixer, whisk the eggs with granulated sugar until you get a pale, yellow foam. Add salt. In another bowl, cream the butter with the brown sugar. Add molasses and corn syrup. Combine the egg mixture with the creamed butter. Pour the filling into a saucepan. Cook over low heat (simmer) for about 8 minutes, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thickened. Turn off the heat. Add the chopped pecans.
- Assembly time: Fill the pie shell with the warm pecan filling. Decorate with the remaining halved pecans, forming a pretty design. Loosely cover the mold with a sheet of aluminum foil to prevent the pie shells from burning and bake for 22 minutes at 350°F.
- Serve the pecan pie at room temperature with a scoop of peppermint ice cream or eggnog.
- Bon appétit!
4. Tips and advices:
- You can use any sugar pie shells; I like the addition of nut mill to the dough. Check the dough recipe for the maple pecan fig tart. I think it’s best to make the pecan pie dough a day in advance. Store it in the refrigerator overnight. The dough will be easier to roll and won’t be crumbly.
- Cooking the pecan filling ahead decreases the baking time significantly.
