Maple Bourbon Pecan Pie

In the past I've hewed closely to the pumpkin pie tradition at Thanksgiving, but this year embraced change and baked my first-ever pecan pie.  I can't deny that finding a recipe which calls for a splash of bourbon made me that much more excited to give it a spin.  And, from Cooking Light, no less!

Getting started.

Just a tablespoon for flavor, I swear.  There may or may not have been a whisky taste test later in the day.

Finished result -- not half bad for a first try!

Maple Bourbon Pecan Pie

Originally found in Cooking Light's Thanksgiving 2011 issue; also available online here. 

1 refrigerated pie dough, rolled out to fit a 9" pan

cooking spray

3/4 cup pecan halves

1/4 cup finely chopped pecans

1/2 cup maple syrup

1/2 cup dark corn syrup 

3 tablespoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons butter, melted

2 tablespoons bourbon

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

2 large egg whites, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Fit dough into 9" pie plate coated with cooking spray, draping excess dough over the edges.  Fold the edges under and flute, or cross-hatch with a fork.  Chill in the freezer while you prepare the filling, about 15 minutes.

Combine pecans and all remaining ingredients in a medium bowl, stirring well to combine.  Pour into prepared crust and bake for about 40 minutes at 350 degrees or until the center of the pie is nearly set.  Cool on wire rack and inhale! 

Cooking light recommends serving with vanilla ice cream, which I imagine would be amazing, but we used good old fashioned homemade whipped cream, which went with the sugary-sweet pecan goodness perfectly!