Recipe: Maple-Nut Pie & Pie Crust Recipe

A little slice of Canadian goodness for you :)  If you like sweet rich pies, then this is for you - and me!  The pie has a creamy texture stuffed with nuts.  It's so rich that a tiny slice will satisfy.

I got this Maple-Nut Pie recipe from Better Homes and Gardens, September 2008 issue.  But first, I didn't have any refridgerated pie crusts so I had to make one from scratch - eeeek!  This is why I try not to buy convenience foods, as it forces me to figure out how to make them. 

So, with an anxious bead of sweat on my brow, I went to Martha Stewart's site and found this recipe for Pate Brise (Pie Dough).  I lugged my bulky food processor out of storage and crossed my fingers that I'd make it correctly this time (I've bombed quite a few pie crusts already).  Ta da!  It actually turned out beautifully!

This pie crust was so sucessful that I think I'll make a bunch of them this week and freeze them.  Then I'll have my own "convenience pie dough" and won't have to buy any more.  Genious!

MAPLE-NUT PIE
from Better Homes and Gardens, September 2008

1 Recipe Single-Crust Pie Pastry, or 1 rolled refrigerated unbaked piecrust (1/2 of a 15-oz. pkg.)

1-1/2 cups pure maple syrup
3 eggs
6 Tbsp. butter, softened
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 cups coarsely chopped walnuts, toasted
1 Tbsp. vanilla
2 Tbsp. light rum (optional) (I didn't do this)
1/4 tsp. freshly ground nutmeg
Rum raisin or vanilla ice cream (I didn't do this)

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Prepare pastry and line 9-inch pie plate. Prick bottom and sides of pastry with fork. Line pastry with double thickness of foil. Bake 8 minutes. Remove foil. Bake 5 minutes more or until crust is lightly browned cool. Reduce oven to 350 degrees F.

In saucepan bring maple syrup to boiling. Reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 10 to 12 minutes or until reduced to 1 cup.

In medium bowl beat eggs with electric mixer on medium to high speed until thick and lemon colored, about 5 minutes.

The cooked maple syrup gets hard FAST!  Do the final steps quickly.

In large bowl beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add granulated and brown sugar; beat to combine. Beat in reduced syrup and eggs (careful as syrup gets hard in a flash & may harm your mixer!). Fold in walnuts, vanilla, rum, and nutmeg. Pour into prebaked crust.

Those are huge globs of the maple syrup mix but melted when baked.  Whew!

Bake pie on baking sheet in lower third of oven 35 minutes or until set around edges; cool. Serve with ice cream. Makes 10 servings.

For a printable version of this recipe go here.

Enjoy!  Sarah

Happily submited to Anti-Procrastination Tuesdays over at New Nostalgia (I love this blog) as I FINALLY figured out how to make my own pie crusts.  No more store-bought convenience pie crusts for me :)


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