Tiny Pecan Pies

I was planning on doing a normal, full-sized Pecan Pie.  Shall we say, a contemporary pie?  But that's boring.  Everyone knows that things become more exciting when they are shrunk down and concentrated.  Thus, the Tiny Pecan Pie comes to you.  Enjoy.  

Things to know:

You're really only looking to melt the butter with the sugar and syrup.  You really don't want to let the filing boil for longer than a few seconds.  Otherwise it will lump together into a candy-mass when you try to temper it in with the eggs.

Remember to temper slowly, a little at a time.  You don't want to scramble those eggs. 

Try to work the dough as little as possible.  If it doesn't seem to be coming together, handle it like biscuit dough.  Don't knead, just fold.  Fold the dough into a tri-fold, then roll it out a little.  Then fold it again.  After a few folds, it should come together well.  This is how you want to handle the scraps of dough after you're done cutting the small rounds for the crust.  

This recipe will also work for a full pie!  Just FYI.  The recipe for the crust will actually make 2 full-sized pie crusts.  Usually I separate the dough into 2 discs, but for this recipe I rolled the dough out into one big sheet, cut out my rounds, then gathered up the scraps and wadded them into a disc.  They will become another pie later.  

Recipe: 

The Filling:

• 3 eggs
• 100 grams Brown Sugar
• 50 grams White Sugar
• 100 grams Golden Syrup (or Corn Syrup)
• 4 - 6 oz Pecan Halves
• ½ tsp Kosher Salt
• ¼ tsp Vanilla
• 2 oz Bourbon

The Crust (makes 2 full pie crusts, maybe 30 small rounds)

• 10.5 oz Flour
• 4 oz Butter
• 2 oz Shortening
• 1 tsp Kosher Salt
• 8 - 10 tbsp Buttermilk

In a small saucepan heat the butter, brown sugar, white sugar, golden syrup, and salt until they just come together.  Right when the mixture comes to a boil, take it off the heat immediately and whisk vigorously.  Beat 3 eggs and temper in the hot filling, pouring slowly as to not scramble the eggs.  Whisk in the bourbon and vanilla extract and set that aside.  

Toast your Pecan halves and add them directly into your pie shells.  Pour over the filling and give the pan a little shake.  You'll want the liquid to come up to about 1/4 of an inch below the top of the crust.  Don't worry if you think you've over-filled, odds are that you probably didn't.  If you did happen to over-fill though, don't worry.  There shouldn't be any spills.  

For tiny pies, bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.  For a normal pie it's a little more complex.  You'll want to pre-bake your pie shell in a 400 degree oven for 10 minutes.  Just put your shell in your pie plate and cover it with some parchment paper.  Weigh the paper down with dried beans or pie weights.  After 10 minutes, remove the weights and bake again for 10 minutes.  After you've pre-baked your crust, you're all set to finish off your pecan pie.  Just add your pecans and pour over your filling as usual.  Finish baking in a 400 degree oven for another 25 - 30 minutes.  

As for the pie crust recipe?  Well... it's getting pretty late and I'm very tired.  Looks like you'll have to get that recipe from my Triple Berry Pie video.