Monday, January 4, 2016

Date Pecan Pie

coverMy husband Scott LOVES pecan pie!  He loves all dessert really – he doesn’t discriminate when it comes to sweets, but there is something about pecan pie for him…ha ha, let’s be honest, it’s all the sugar…and that yummy pecan flavor of course. Traditional pecan pie is basically sugar, butter, pecans, and eggs.  The two main sugars used are corn syrup and brown cane sugar.  So it’s not a stretch to modify the recipe and swap out the sugars, for example, instead use honey, maple syrup, coconut sugar, coconut nectar, etc.  I wanted to make a pecan pie recipe that was similar to an original recipe but with my own special twist and dates came to mind.  I made this pie over the weekend for family visiting.  Ah ha!  The perfect opportunity to snag some recipe testers.  And I’m so happy to report that everyone really liked it!  I was afraid it would be too “datey” or too sweet or not “pecany” enough.  But everyone genuinely liked it.  And Scott LOVED it.  He was very excited about it.  Yay. I used this original recipe as an inspiration.  

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Date Pecan Pie
 
Author:
Ingredients
  • 10 ounces of pitted and soaked Medjool dates
  • 2 cups pecans
  • 3 eggs
  • 4 tablespoons coconut oil (room temp or melted)
  • 1 cup coconut sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 batch Megan's gluten free crust
Instructions
  1. Pit and soak dates for at least 4 hours.
  2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  3. When dates are done soaking, drain them and add to a blender.
  4. To the blender also add the coconut sugar, eggs, coconut oil, vanilla, and salt.
  5. Blend on high until everything is mixed well.
  6. Add the pecans to the mixture and incorporate by hand.
  7. Pour mixture into raw pie crust.
  8. Bake for 35 - 40 minutes (check at 35). You are checking for any burning on the edges.
  9. Remove from oven and garnish with a new extra pecans. Allow to cool before serving.
Notes
-Feel free to add less coconut sugar. This recipe will still taste great with just ½ cup of coconut sugar.
-Because dates come in so many different sizes, it's impossible to give you a number of dates to use. It's best to pit the dates and weight them out for accuracy. You need 10 ounces worth.
-I believe this recipe would work well with any sweetener, so if you don't have coconut sugar, you could use honey, maple syrup, coconut nectar, brown rice syrup, etc. You could probably just use dates and it would be great. So adjust the sugar to your liking and personal needs.
-I've also made Megan's pecan pie (with maple syrup as the star sugar) and it's also really good! It's a great pecan pie option if you don't like dates.
-Add ¼ cup cacao powder for a chocolaty twist!


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The recipe shared on the following link parties:  Allergy Free Wednesday, Savoring Saturdays, 

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Posted by Amber at

Labels: dessert, fall treats, gluten free, holidays, thanksgiving desserts.

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