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Brown Butter Bourbon Pecan Pie with Bourbon Whipped Cream

 

brown butter bourbon pecan pie with bourbon whipped cream pin

Traditional pecan pie gets a flavor makeover with the addition of brown butter and bourbon! The resulting gooey, sweet, and flavorful pecan pie is anything but traditional!

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Omgosh, you guys. When I was talking about all the brown butter recipes I have coming up, I wasn’t even exaggerating. I started editing pictures and was jotting down a list of all the recipes I have ready for fall, and I just kept writing “brown butter” over and over. I almost couldn’t believe how much I got carried away.

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This is not bad news. Anything but. Who doesn’t want 8,000 more brown butter recipes in their collection? Still, I could’ve diversified a little more!

I guess I just feel like if you are melting butter for a recipe anyway, you might as well brown it! Anybody else?

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And while we’re on the subject of ingredients with which I become overly-infatuated with and binge on, this pie also has bourbon! Wait that came out wrong. I don’t binge on bourbon. By itself. I mean I have, but not recently. Okay, I never have. Unless it’s in a dessert, I hate bourbon. Though I have binged on other liquors, but thankfully those days are long gone. We’re getting very off topic here.

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Back to the subject at hand: bourbon in baked goods. It’s delightful! Bourbon in almost any other setting = intolerable swill. But in baked goods, like this perfect pecan pie, it adds richness, depth, and caramel-like flavors. It just gives an extra level of richness and warmth that you don’t get without it.

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Brown butter… well, I could go on and on, but it has a pretty similar effect as the bourbon, but still different too. The brown butter also adds richness, depth, and nutty, caramel-like flavors, but the flavors are still different from the bourbon. They have different essences, so while they lend similar characteristics to the recipe, the underlying flavors are different. Hmmmm, how do I explain this? Just try the pie. K?

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It’s ooey, gooey, sweet, and full of buttery pecans, sugar, and corn syrup. You get all the favorite things you love about traditional pecan pie, but with deeper and richer flavors. With a dollop of fresh homemade whipped cream, spiked with a teensy bit of bourbon, well, this particular pie is quite sensational.

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4.8 from 5 votes
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Brown Butter Bourbon Pecan Pie

An unconventional pecan pie that starts with a brown butter and bourbon base!
Course Dessert - pie
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings 8 slices
Author Sarah @ The Gold Lining Girl

Ingredients

For pie:

  • 1 - 9- inch unbaked prepared pie crust
  • 1/2 c. unsalted butter
  • 1 1/3 c. dark corn syrup
  • 1 c. sugar
  • 4 large eggs
  • 3 tbsp. bourbon
  • 2 tsp. vanilla
  • 2 c. pecan halves

For whipped cream:

  • 1 1/2 c. heavy cream
  • 3 tbsp. powdered sugar
  • 1-2 tbsp. bourbon

Instructions

For pie:

  1. Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring frequently, until golden brown. It will develop brown flecks and a nutty fragrance. (About 6-8 minutes.)
  2. Add the dark corn syrup and sugar, cooking for an additional 1-2 minutes, or until the sugar is dissolved.
  3. Remove from heat and cool for 10-15 minutes, or until the mixture is close to room temperature.
  4. Whisk in the eggs, bourbon, and vanilla.
  5. Fold in the pecan halves.
  6. Pour the mixture into the unbaked pie shell.
  7. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes, or until the center of the pie puffs, and the filling is set.

  8. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. It helps to chill the pie in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours before cutting. Even if you serve the pie at room temperature, an hour or so in the fridge helps it to firm up.

For whipped cream:

  1. Combine heavy cream and powdered sugar in a large mixing bowl.
  2. Beat until the mixture just reaches stiff peaks, about 5-6 minutes.
  3. Beat in the bourbon. Serve with the pie!

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Brown Butter Bourbon Pecan Pie pin

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Lovely comments

  3. I am totally pinning this! I actually used browned butter for the first time for my sour cream pumpkin cake and it was divine! The frosting was so rich. I am a total Southern gal and I love me some pecan pie…and with bourbon as well. Thank you for sharing!

    Reply

    • Omgosh, I know – brown butter is addictive. I sort of want everything that uses butter to have it be browned first. Lol! Thanks so much, Angeline! 🙂

      Reply


  6. I’ve made this pie three times this season, for different parties.
    It’s been very well-received at each one.

    I’ve got one in the oven now, with 3/4c brown sugar. I also used a cup of corn syrup, and 3 tbsp of molases. I’m expecting this one to be extra nutty/earthy.

    This is wonderful pie.

    Reply

    • That’s wonderful to hear! I’m so glad you like it! Thanks so much for the feedback, and for the adjustments you made. Let me know how it turns out with those tweaks. Happy holidays to you!!! 🙂

      Reply

  7. I’ve been searing for a nice pecan pie to make this Thanksgiving and THIS IS IT!! I might even add a little chocolate to it. Question – you mention brown sugar in the description but not the recipe – is that an error? Just curious! Thanks 🙂

    Reply

    • Yes!! It was an error. Thank you so much for bringing it to my attention. I didn’t end up using brown sugar – I used regular sugar and DARK corn syrup! Chocolate would be amazing in this pie – especially dark chocolate! Please let me know how you like it! 🙂

      Reply


  8. How much would it affect the pie to not let it cool the whole way before adding the egg mixture ? Can’t wait to finish this!!

    Reply

    • Well, the main thing is, if you add the eggs before the corn syrup and sugar mixture cools a bit, they might scramble! You just can’t add eggs to anything that’s super hot or they’ll scramble a bit, know what I mean? Definitely make sure it cools for a few minutes before adding the eggs! I hope you love it!!!

      Reply

  9. I made this pie yesterday up till baking, then froze it. On my way out of town for turkey day and notice it’s thawing out. It’s in a cooler and will be well chilled till we get there. But Will it be a problem when I bake it later today? The flavor is so great on this pie, I’ll be so sad if it doesn’t come thru. Thank You!

    Reply

    • Huh, that’s an interesting way to prep-ahead! It’s a great idea. I’m not sure, but I would think it should be fine. The flavors, if anything, should have had more time together to mingle and mix, and that would be a good thing. I like your make-ahead technique. Let me know how it turns out, and how you like the pie! Happy Thanksgiving!!!

      Reply


  10. I made this pie today with 1/2 brown sugar and 1/2 white sugar and a home made flakey cream cheese crust and I’m dying to cut into it but I have to wait until after dinner tonight. It smells amazing though!

    Reply

    • YAY! I hope you like it! It definitely will be amazing with your homemade crust! I HATE making crusts, but it will make such a difference – yours sounds awesome. 🙂 Make sure to get it chilled in the fridge for a few hours so you can cut it neatly later! Merry Christmas!

      Reply


  11. My pie tasted delicious, but it was very soupy once we cut in to it. I baked it for 45 minutes and it seemed like the filling was set. It only cooled about an hour out of the oven before we cut into it. Does it need to cool completely? Any suggestions?

    Reply

    • Yes, it does help to cool completely, and I find that it helps to chill too…. even if you serve the pie at room temperature, chilling for about an hour seems to help it firm up. Thank you so much for the feedback – I’m going to add notes to the recipe. I’m sorry that it wasn’t set enough! I’m glad that you otherwise liked it. 🙂

      Reply

  12. Im making this 4 days before Thanksgiving. Hoping to cool completely and then freeze. Planning to thaw day before Thanksgiving and serve slightly warmed. Any experience freezing after cooking??

    Reply

    • I do freeze pecan pies sometimes when we have leftovers. I chill them in the fridge first for a few hours to firm them up so that they don’t get squished or crushed when I wrap them. I wrap in a layer of Saran wrap, then a layer of foil – just to keep out any freezer odors! This is usually for longer periods, like a month or two, but I’d still probably do that even if I was freezing for just a few days! I hope you like it, and HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

      Reply

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The Gold Lining Girl
but first, dessert!