How to make pecan pie filling.

December 12, 2006 4:04 PM

Does anyone have a recipe for pecan pie filling that doesn't involve the pie?

Years ago, I tasted some candy that seemed to be pecan pie filling dipped in chocolate. I want to make that candy. Recipes I've seen for pecan pie mostly involve including the filling in the baking of the entire pie. I've also seen lots of horror stories about trying to introduce the filling into some other milieu such as cookie bars. The filling seems to stick to just about anything when it's baked, forming a nigh-impermeable crust, so it doesn't seem wise to just put it into a pan to bake. Any ideas?

posted by forrest to food & drink (10 comments total)

Don't know if it helps, but I saw pecan pie in a jar (just pour the jar contents in a crust and bake) at a Viking store.
posted by Frank Grimes at 4:34 PM on December 12, 2006

You could try to make pecan pie filling fudge. Following this nicely scientific explanation of how to make fudge you could tweak the recipe to look a lot more like pecan pie (dark corn syrup, no chocolate).

You could also try a pecan pie brittle, softening it to the desired consistency with additions of butter/condensed milk.
posted by rosebengal at 4:51 PM on December 12, 2006

we made a vegan pecan pie over thxgiving, and the filling turned out excellent. even the non-vegans were raving about it.

the basic recipe was: 2.5 cups pecans, .5 cup maple syrup, .25 cup light corn syrup, 2 tbsps tahini, all thrown together in a food processor. you can add cinnamon or chocolate chips if desired.

the filling was pretty solid and baked up well. i'm sure you could bake it on a metal or silicone baking sheet or in little cupcake molds.
posted by gnutron at 4:57 PM on December 12, 2006 [1 favorite]

Was this hard candy, or some kind of gooey-ness very similar in texture as well as taste to pecan pie filling that was dipped in chocolate? I ask because I have a hard time imagining the latter, but the former sounds very much like pecan pralines dipped in chocolate, which my mother (and her sisters) used to make all the time.

(And sorry, I don't have a recipe. There are plenty on the web for pecan pralines, though.)
posted by trip and a half at 7:41 PM on December 12, 2006

Sorry. To be clearer: make the pralines and let them harden, then dip them in melted chocolate and place them on a rack to cool.
posted by trip and a half at 8:10 PM on December 12, 2006

Gooey caramel + pecans + chocolate
That's what it sounds like you want. I'd experiment with the precise temperature to which you heat the filling ingredients, without the pecans. A praline isn't very hot, but those ingredients are not going to be that much like the sugary jelly in pecan pie. Add the pecans after heating (but be sure they're roasted). After cooling the filling, dip as for truffles.

If what I'm saying is hard to follow, read about candy making.
posted by Goofyy at 8:55 PM on December 12, 2006

Something like this ? They are excellent.
posted by nineRED at 7:21 AM on December 13, 2006

You could just bake the filling in lined muffin tins, then dip.
posted by Mr. Gunn at 9:44 AM on December 13, 2006

Gooey caramel + pecans + chocolate = turtles (or "pixies" in some quarters). Google "chocolate pecan turtles" to find recipes, or visit your local candy shop.

But I don't think they're what forrest is seeking, as I can't equate "the material between the pecans in a pecan pie" with caramel.
posted by Rash at 10:35 AM on December 13, 2006

Thanks for the suggestions, all. I'll have to try some of them before I can declare a winner.

trip and a half: it wasn't pralines, it was the taste and consistency of pecan pie. I'm considering just buying a couple of pies and scooping out the insides, except I want the nuts mixed in.

gnutron and Mr. Gunn: I thought of that, but some hits I got from Google described disasters because the baked filling crusts onto everything. It's like the pie crust is simply there as an edible lining. Wotthehell -- I'll give it a shot if nothing else pops up.

nineRED: Central Market has something like those, but they're not quite what I'm looking for. Thanks for the tip, anyway.
posted by forrest at 11:25 AM on December 13, 2006