Pecan Valley Pecans

1 9-inch pie shell; unbaked
3 eggs
1½ cups Pecan Valley Pecan Halves
1 cup maple syrup
¼ cup unsalted butter or margarine
1 cup whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon sea salt

1. Preheat oven to 375ºF. Spread the nuts evenly over pie shell.
2. In a large mixing bowl mix together butter or margarine, vanilla, and flour. Beat the eggs well, and blend into the flour mixture. Add salt, maple syrup, and cream. Pour filling over the nuts in the pie shell. Make sure the nuts are covered, so they will not burn.
3. Bake in a preheated oven for 50 to 60 minutes, or until knife inserted in center come out clean. Let cool at least 15 minutes before serving.

1 9-inch pie shell; unbaked
1 9-inch pastry crust; unbaked
6 cups apples; thinly sliced; peel
⅔ cups Pecan Valley Pecan Pieces
½ cup cinnamon red hot candies
⅓ cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
⅓ cup all-purpose flour

1. Preheat oven to 375ºF.
2. In large bowl, toss together apples, pecans, candies, ⅓ cup sugar and flour.
3. Pour into pie shell. Break or crumble the other pie crust into very small pieces.
4. Toss with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Sprinkle over apples.
5. Bake in a preheated oven for 55 to 60 minutes or until candies melt and bubble through the crumbled crust.
6. Cool completely before serving.

2 9-inch pie crusts; unbaked
4 McIntosh apples; peeled and cored; thin sliced (1 pound)
½ cup Pecan Valley Pecan Pieces
¼ cup granulated sugar
¼ pound caramels; course chopped
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
¼ cup milk
Milk; for top
Granulated sugar; for top

1. Preheat oven to 375ºF. Ease 1 round of pastry into a 9-inch pan.
2. In a large bowl, toss together apples, pecans, sugar, caramels, flour and milk. Spoon mixture into pie shell.
3. Top with the remaining pastry. Fold the edge of the top pastry under the bottom pastry. Pinch together and flute the edge with a fork. Cut several slits in the top so the steam can escape during baking. Brush top with milk and sprinkle with sugar.
4. Bake in a preheated oven for about 45 minutes until crust is golden brown. Pie is best served slightly warm.

1 9-inch pie shell; unbaked
1 cup Pecan Valley Pecan Pieces
1 6-ounce package semi-sweet chocolate pieces
½ cup caramel ice cream topping
1 8-ounce package cream cheese; softened
1 8-ounce carton dairy sour cream
½ cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 eggs
Unsweetened cocoa powder; optional

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF.
2. Sprinkle pecans evenly in unbaked pastry shell; sprinkle with chocolate pieces and drizzle with caramel topping. Set aside.
3. In a medium mixing bowl combine cream cheese, sour cream, sugar and vanilla; beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add eggs, beating on low speed just until combined. Pour over caramel topping in crust.
4. Bake in a preheated oven for about 45 minutes or until center appears set. Cool on a wire rack. Cover and chill for at least 1 hour before serving. Sift cocoa powder over pie, if desired.

Toffee
2 cups dark brown sugar, firmly packed
⅛ teaspoon sea salt
¼ cup unsalted butter or margarine
2 tablespoons boiling water
1 tablespoon cider vinegar

1. Grease a jellyroll pan with Butter Flavor Crisco.
2. Combine brown sugar, salt, butter, boiling water and vinegar in large saucepan. Stir until well blended. Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil. Cover and boil 2 to 3 minutes. Uncover and brush brown sugar crystals with wet pastry brush. Boil slowly without stirring until mixture reaches hard-crack stage, 295º to 310º on candy thermometer. Stir gently without touching sides of saucepan. Pour into pan, spreading if necessary. Cool to room temperature.
3. Break into squares, and then break up enough squares to make 3 tablespoons small bits or pieces. Cover and store remainder of candy for eating.

Crust
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon sea salt
¾ cups Butter Flavored Crisco
5 tablespoons (or more) ice water
1 tablespoon whipping cream

1. Preheat oven to 400ºF.
2. Combine flour and salt in medium-size bowl. Cut in Crisco until all flour is blended to form pea-sized chunks. Sprinkle with ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time. Toss lightly with fork until dough will form a ball. Divide dough in half. Press between hands to form a couple of 5- to 6 inch “pancakes”.
3. Roll dough for bottom crust into circle between sheets of plastic wrap. Peel off top sheet. Trim pastry 1 inch larger than upside-down 9-inch pie plate. Fit into pie plate. Press to fit. Remove other sheet of plastic wrap. Freeze. Roll second “pancake” same as for crust. Freeze 15 minutes.
4. Cut out 26 to 28 leaf shapes and 3 larger maple-leaf shapes from rolled pastry. Arrange leaves in overlapping and slightly curved pattern on baking sheet. Brush with whipping cream. Moisten tips of small leaves with ice water. Press around edge of crust in overlapping fashion. Brush with cream.
5. Bake leaves at 400ºF 10 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Pie Filling
¾ cups granulated sugar
½ teaspoon sea salt
1 cup dark corn syrup
3 eggs
2 tablespoons butter-flavored pancake-waffle syrup
2 tablespoons unsalted butter or margarine; melted
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 tablespoon un-sulfured molasses
2 cups Pecan Valley Pecan Pieces

1. Preheat oven to 400ºF.
2. In a large mixing bowl combine granulated sugar, salt, corn syrup, eggs, syrup, melted butter, vanilla and molasses. Beat with whisk until blended. Stir in nuts. Pour into unbaked pie shell.
3. Bake in a preheated oven for 10 minutes.
4. Reduce temperature to 350 degrees.
5. Bake pie 25 to 35 minutes, or until filling is firm when pie is shaken gently. Cover edge to keep from over browning.

Caramel Sauce
⅔ cups granulated sugar
⅓ cup water
½ cup plus 1 tablespoon whipping cream
¼ cup unsalted butter or margarine

1. Combine granulated sugar and water in small saucepan. Cook and stir over low heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat to medium. Boil without stirring 11 minutes until mixture is deep amber color, brushing down sugar crystals from sides of pan with wet pastry brush. Remove from heat. Stir in whipping cream; mixture will bubble up. Add butter, stirring until smooth. Cook and stir over low heat about 3 minutes or until color deepens and sauce thickens slightly.
2. Spoon ½ cup over warm pie. Cool 1 hour. Sprinkle top with toffee bits. Place leaf decoration to 1 side of pie. Refrigerate 4 hours before serving. Refrigerate leftovers. Makes 9-inch pie
3. Cover and refrigerate remaining sauce for Ice Cream topping.

2 9-inch pie crusts; unbaked
6 cups apples; peeled and sliced
¾ cups granulated sugar
¼ cup all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon sea salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter or margarine
⅓ cup caramel ice ceam topping
3 tablespoons Pecan Valley Pecan Pieces

1. Preheat oven to 425ºF.
2. In large bowl, combine apples, sugar, flour and salt. Toss lightly. Spoon apple mixture into pie-crust lined pan. Dot with butter. Top with second crust and flute. Cut slits in several places.
3. Bake in a preheated oven for 45 minutes or until apples are tender. Remove pie from oven; immediately drizzle Ice Cream topping over the pie and sprinkle with pecans

1 9-inch pie shell; unbaked
36 Kraft caramels
¼ cup water
¼ cup margarine
¾ cups granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon vanilla
3 each eggs, beaten
1 cup Pecan Valley Pecan Halves

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF.
2. Melt caramels with water and margarine in a saucepan over low heat. Stir occasionally until smooth.
3. In a large mixing bowl combine sugar, salt and eggs. Gradually add caramel sauce; mix well. Stir in pecan halves and pour into pastry shell.
4. Bake in a preheated oven for 40 minutes. Pie filling will appear soft, but becomes firm as it cools.

1 9-inch pie shell; baked
1 cup granulated sugar, divided
¼ cup cornstarch
⅛ teaspoon sea salt
2 cups milk
3 eggs, separated
3 tablespoons unsalted butter or margarine
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup Pecan Valley Pecan Pieces
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
3 tablespoons granulated sugar

1. Preheat oven to 400ºF.
2. Sprinkle ½ cup sugar in a heavy skillet; place over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until sugar melts and syrup is light golden brown. Combine remaining ½ cup sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a heavy saucepan-gradually stir in milk. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thickened and bubbly.
3. Beak egg yolks; gradually stir about one-fourth of hot mixture into yolks, and add to remaining hot mixture, stirring constantly. Cook stirring constantly, until thickened.
4. Stir in the caramelized sugar; cook, stirring constantly, until sugar melts. Remove from heat; stir in butter, vanilla and chopped pecans. Pour into a baked pastry shell.
5. Combine egg whites (at room temperature) and cream of tartar; beat at high speed of an electric mixer until foamy. Gradually add 3 tablespoons sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until stiff peaks form. Spread meringue over hot filling, sealing to edge of pastry.
6. Bake in a preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool completely before serving.

1¾ cups all-purpose flour
¼ cup granulated sugar
½ cup salted butter; chilled
2 large egg yolks
3 tablespoons ice water
1 cup dark corn syrup
½ cup plus 3 tablespoons salted butter
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons maple syrup
¼ teaspoon sea salt
2 large eggs; lightly beaten
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2½ cups Pecan Valley Pecan Pieces
Whipped Cream

1. Preheat oven to 300ºF.
2. Using food processor fitted with metal blade. Combine flour, sugar and butter. Process until dough resembles coarse meal. Add egg yolks and water. Process until a ball begins to form. Shape dough into a disk. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator 1 hour or until firm.
3. Combine corn syrup, butter, sugar, maple syrup, and salt in double broiler. Bring to a boil over medium heat and stir often. Then remove cookies to a wire rack and cool to room temperature. From heat and cool to room temperature. Once cool, add eggs and vanilla. Stir until smooth. Set syrup aside until ready to use.
4. Spray vegetable oil cooking spray on 8 to 9-inch tart pan with removable bottom. On floured board using floured rolling pin, roll out dough to 10-inch circle, ¼ inch thick. Place pastry in pan. Lightly press into bottom and sides. Roll off excess dough from top edge with a rolling pin.
5. Fill pastry shell with pecans. Pour filling over nuts.
6. Bake in a preheated oven for 90 minutes or until golden brown. Let pie cool, and then remove sides of pan.
7. Serve sliced with Whipped Cream garnish.

1 9-inch pie shell; unbaked
½ cup butterscotch chips
1 cup Pecan Valley Pecan Pieces
¼ cup unsalted butter; melted
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup white corn syrup
2 eggs

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF.
2. Scatter butterscotch chips and pecan pieces into pie shell.
3. Beat together butter, sugar, corn syrup and eggs in a medium sized bowl.
4. Pour over nuts and butterscotch chips.
5. Bake in a preheated oven for 45 to 50 minutes or until golden brown. If pie browns too quickly, cover with aluminum foil after 20 minutes.
6. Cool completely on wire rack.