“Nothing rekindles my spirits, gives comfort to my heart and mind,
more than a visit to Mississippi… and to be regaled as I often have
been, with a platter of fried chicken, field peas, collard greens, fresh
corn on the cob, sliced tomatoes with French dressing… and to top
it all off with a wedge of freshly baked pecan pie.”
~ Craig Claiborne, in Southern Food
The key to good pecan pie is to use light Karo syrup. Dark is OK, too, but I prefer the look of the light syrup. And I use whole pecan halves, not chopped up ones.
You can go to this list for a large selection of pecan pie recipes at about.com.
From the Dallas Morning News, January 23, 1898 (via Wikipedia):
Texas Pecan Pie.
Tiaga, Grayson Co., Tex., Jan. 21.—(To The News.)—Knowing that The News is strictly for Texas and for Texas enterprises, and thinking that it might be of interest to many Texas kitchen queens, I herewith inclose you a copy of the recipe for making what I have decided to call in honor of the great Lone Star state, “The Texas Pecan Pie.â€
Having never seen it in any paper or cook book I have read, and failing to find any one who had ever eaten it, I feel justified in claiming to be its originator and the right to christen it.
It is a most delicious pie–an instant favorite with all who have eaten it at my table. It is my desire that it may be added to the long list of delicacies Texas cooks are so greatly noted for preparing, and I want every lady to test its merits and I will be glad if they let me know of their success or failure in making it.
The Texas pecan pie—One cup sugar, one cup sweet milk, one-half cup pecan kernels chopped fine, three eggs, one tablespoonful flour. When cooked spread the well-beaten whites of two eggs on the top, brown and sprinkle a few of the chopped kernels over it. Above is for one pie.
Others claim that the pecan pie originated in New Orleans or that the Karo syrup people made it up or made it popular.
If you have anything to tell the world about pecans or pecan-related subjects, please write a post on your blog and leave a link here. (If you put the name of your post in parentheses after your name, I think people will be more likely to come over to visit.) I’ll be putting all the names of the contributors to Pecan Month, 2006 in a hat at the end of the month and drawing one name to receive a bag of fresh pecans sent straight from Texas to your home. Leave a link for Pecan Month, and go read about all the other folks who are praising God this month for creating pecans.
Whoa! That is TOO MUCH Karo syrup!
You must think I’m “nuts” (har-har!) with yet another pecan recipe… .
No more nuts than I am, and I’m going to make the biscotti.