Easy Pecan Pie with Holly Decorations

Pie making can be intimidating . . . what with the crust, filling, chilling, baking, and burning . . . well, hopefully not burning :)

But it doesn’t have to be.

If you’re wanting to get into pie making, this Easy Pecan Pie is a perfect place to start!

The filling is super simple: Just eggs, flour, brown sugar, corn syrup (or maple syrup), vanilla extract, butter, and pecans. You’ll need three large eggs; for those, we love our Nellie’s Free Range eggs – eggs from hens raised on farms with the highest standards of kind and humane animal treatment. It’s so nice to have a product that we can feel good about using :)

Once you have all your ingredients, just plop everything into a bowl and stir. Could not be easier, right?

Of course you’ll need a pie crust – either homemade or store-bought – that fits in a 9-inch pie plate. (For best results, keep the crust frozen until you’re ready to use it.)

Then pour the filling into the crust . . .

And pop it into the oven!

If you want to get fancy, you can decorate the pie with “painted” crust cut outs and fresh cranberries.

To decorate, simply roll out a second pie crust, and use a holly-leaf shaped cutter to cut out leaves. Aim for around 22 leaves to be sure you have enough.

Then paint the leaves with green food coloring – my kids especially enjoy this part!

For the berries, you can cut out circles of dough and paint them red, or use fresh cranberries, like we did. The colors bake up so pretty – can’t wait to set this one on our dessert table!

Think you might give it a try? Step-by-step instructions below!

Easy Pecan Pie with Holly Decorations

Serves 8

Ingredients:

• 1 (14.1-ounce) package refrigerated pie dough, or your favorite recipe (enough to make a top and bottom crust)

• 3 large Nellie’s Free Range Eggs

• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour*

• 1 cup packed light brown sugar

• 1/2 cup light corn syrup (or maple syrup)

• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

• 2 cups pecan halves and pieces

• Fresh cranberries, for garnish

Special Equipment: holly leaf-shaped cookie cutter, clean paint brushes, green and red food coloring

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 425F. Gently press 1 pie crust into a 9-inch pie plate, and place in freezer for about 30 minutes while making the filling.

2. Place eggs, flour, brown sugar, corn syrup, and vanilla in a large bowl. Add melted butter. Stir until well combined. Add pecans and stir again to combine.

3. Remove pie crust from freezer. Pour filling into pie crust. Place pie on a baking sheet and lay a piece of foil on top of the pie (this will prevent the crust from burning).

4. Bake the pie at 425F for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350F and bake for 20 minutes.

5. While pie is baking, cut out 20 to 25 holly leaf decorations from second pie crust. Paint the leaves with green food coloring.

6. After initial 35 minutes of baking, remove pie from oven. Set foil aside. Add cutout decorations to the top of the pie, which will now be solid enough to hold the cutouts. Return pie to oven. Bake pie, uncovered, at 350F for 20 to 30 minutes more.

7. Cool for at least 2 hours before serving. Garnish with fresh cranberries in the center of the pie. Serve and enjoy!

*For a gluten-free version, omit flour from filling and use gluten-free crusts.