Caramel Pecan Cream Pie

I’ve got one more pie to round out your table this year and it’s one of my new favorites. This caramel pecan cream pie has a brown sugar graham cracker crust filled with a caramel custard, and then topped with a generous layer of toasted chopped pecans. It’s kind of like a cross between a cream pie and a classic pecan pie and it’s SO good.

This one is a little bit tricky to make because we’re working with caramel here, but it’s so worth it. I can’t wait to show you how to make it!

How to make Caramel Pecan Cream Pie

This pie uses fairly minimal ingredients as a whole, starting off with graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, salt, and butter for the crust.

Start by mixing the crust ingredients together in a bowl until the mixture resembles wet sand and then carefully press the mixture into your pie plate. I like to give this a little time to really form it evenly into the pan and then go around again and press everything down firmly. You can use the bottom of a glass, a measuring cup, or even just your hands to work the crust into the pan before it gets a quick bake in the oven.

For the filling, I highly recommend you measure out all of your ingredients ahead of time and place them near your stove so you can work quickly with the caramel. Start off by toasting your chopped pecans until they are golden and smelling delightful.

From there, it’s time to work on the caramel. We’re starting off by heating up the milk and cream until very hot and setting this aside. Then it’s time to cook the sugar- this is a dry caramel, so we are simply cooking granulated sugar alone in a pot until it’s completely melted and golden brown.

Once this happens, slowly whisk in the hot cream and milk mixture. If your caramel seizes up and clumps around your whisk, don’t panic! You can simply return the pot to the heat and whisk for another five minutes or so and the caramel should dissolve back into the milk mixture.

From there you want to temper your egg yolks with the hot milk mixture, and return everything to the pot to cook until it becomes very thick. Finally, add in your vanilla and salt and whisk to combine.

Run this mixture through a fine mesh sieve to remove any lumps, and then spread it evenly into your prepared pie crust. From there, you want to sprinkle the toasted pecans all over the top. There should be enough to cover the custard completely in an even layer.

Chill the pie for at least two hours before slicing and serving cold. Enjoy!

Tips & Tricks for Caramel Pecan Cream Pie

Here are my tips to help you along the way- working with caramel can be tricky, but I have some notes to help!

• Do I have to use a graham cracker crust? No, you can use a traditional crust if you prefer, but you will need to fully blind bake it before filling the pie.
• Be sure to measure your ingredients before starting on the filling. Working with caramel requires you to move quickly and have your ingredients ready to go. Do this ahead of time to help!
• How do I know when the sugar is cooked enough? It should reach a deep golden brown color and there should be no lumps of sugar remaining the pot- you should have a completely liquid mixture.
• Can I stir the sugar as it melts? Yes, you can, and I recommend you stir it gently to help it melt evenly. You want to avoid having big clumps of sugar up on the sides of your pan.
• What if my caramel clumps up when I whisk in the milk? Not to worry- this happens sometimes! By heating the milk ahead of time, I’m usually able to avoid it, but if your caramel clumps up when you add in the milk, simply return the mixture to medium heat and cook, whisking constantly, for another 5 minutes or so. The caramel should dissolve back into the milk.
• How do I know when the custard is cooked enough? It should be visibly thickened in texture and should coat the back of a wooden spoon easily.
• What if my custard got lumps in it? This happens if the eggs aren’t tempered perfectly, but don’t worry! I recommend passing the mixture through a mesh sieve to remove any lumps- easy peasy!
• Don’t skip the chill time or the pie won’t be set enough to slice into. Ideally I would chill the pie overnight, but be sure to chill for at least two hours.
• I’m at about 5,000 ft. above sea level and I find that most people between about 3,000-7,000 ft. above sea level do not need to make any adjustments to my recipes.

Enjoy!

Print

Caramel Pecan Cream Pie

Servings 8 slices

Ingredients

For the crust:

• 16 graham crackers
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• 1 tbs. dark brown sugar
• 4 tbs. melted butter

For the filling

• 1 1/2 cups chopped pecans
• 1 1/2 cups cream
• 1/2 cup milk
• 3/4 cup plus 2 tbs. sugar
• 5 egg yolks
• 2 tbs. cornstarch
• 1 tbs. vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp. salt

Instructions

For the crust:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and pull out a 9 inch pie plate- this recipe is not for a deep dish pie, so use a regular depth pie plate if possible.
2. Crush the graham crackers into fine crumbs either with a food processor or by crumbling them in a zip lock bag with a rolling pin.
3. In a medium bowl, stir together the graham cracker crumbs, salt, brown sugar and melted butter with a fork until the mixture resembles wet sand the butter is well distributed throughout.
4. Carefully press the mixture into your pie plate, pressing it up the sides of the plate to form a crust.
5. Bake the crust for about 10 minutes, or until it becomes lightly golden on the edges. Set the crust aside to cool.

For the filling:

1. Be sure to have all of your filling ingredients measured and set out so you can move quickly with the caramel custard.
2. In a medium skillet over medium heat, toast your chopped pecans until they are fragrant and lightly golden brown all over. Remove from the heat and set aside.
3. In a medium microwave safe bowl or measuring cup, add your heavy cream and milk together. Microwave this mixture for about 1-2 minutes, or until it is very hot and starting to just bubble. Set this aside while you make the caramel.
4. In a medium heavy bottom saucepan, add 3/4 cup granulated sugar. Heat the sugar over medium heat, gently stirring, until the sugar fully melts and becomes deep golden brown. I find that once the sugar is completely dissolved and there are no lumps remaining, it is already the perfect deep brown color.
5. As soon as the sugar is dissolved completely, slowly whisk in the hot milk and cream mixture. If your caramel seizes up around the whisk, don’t worry! You can simply put the mixture back on medium heat and whisk for about 5 minutes and the caramel should dissolve back into the milk mixture.
6. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, remaining 2 tbs. of sugar, and the cornstarch until well combined and smooth.
7. Carefully and very slowly, whisk in about 1 cup of the hot milk mixture into the egg yolk mixture. Then whisk the yolk mixture back into the pot, and return to the heat.
8. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, for about 5 minutes, or until the mixture becomes very thick and can coat the back of a spoon.
9. Remove from the heat and whisk in the vanilla extract or paste and the salt.
10. Run this mixture through a fine mesh sieve to remove any lumps, and then spread the custard evenly into your prepared pie crust. Sprinkle the toasted pecans all over the top- it should cover the pie in an even layer so there is no custard visible.
11. Cover the pie and chill for at least two hours before serving cold. Enjoy!

Nicole Hampton

Hello and welcome! My name is Nicole, and Dough-eyed is a food blog for people who want to bake for their family and friends in high-altitude areas. Think of me as a friendly voice there with you in the kitchen, here to give you confidence when you’re baking, and to help you with the struggles of baking at high-altitude. Come back every week for new recipes, tips, and advice on high-altitude baking!