Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie Recipe from WildFlour Pastry

Pastry chef Lauren Mitterer is one of the bright talents on the Charleston food scene. In 2009, she opened WildFlour Pastry, a bakeshop where she turns out top-notch turnovers, sweetbreads, savory scones, and wedding cakes. Her creations are inspired as much by her culinary school training as her studio art studies at the University of Virginia. But the desire to have her own place went beyond inspired confections. As she told the Southern Foodways Alliance, her goal was to “be part of the community, and really connect with one another through baking.”

And connected she has. Mitterer is one of the many local talents featured this week at the Charleston Food + Wine festival, which kicked off its 10th year on Wednesday. Last night, Mitterer worked alongside the city’s best chefs and created treats for the sold-out opening night gala. (The inspiration for the event: the Junior League of Charleston’s 1950 cookbook, Charleston Receipts. It remains one of the most successful Junior League cookbooks ever published.) Then on Saturday, Mitterer will take part in another sold-out event, the Southern Betty Brunch, which features North Carolina chefs Ashley Christensen and Vivian Howard, among others.

Every baker down South, whether in the Lowcountry or beyond, needs to have a killer pecan pie recipe. After all, it’s one of the most iconic desserts in the Southern culinary canon. Mitterer amps up her version with a bit of bourbon and some chocolate. In case you want to tackle her recipe this weekend, don’t forget her top tip, which she shares in the video above: Toast the pecans first to bring out the nutty flavors. “That’s when you get that true depth and the full picture of what they offer,” says Mitterer.

You can toast pecans in a 350-degree oven for about five minutes. Toss gently after two minutes. Make sure to keep your eyes open and your nose alert. It’s very easy to burn nuts and you don’t want to waste them. They can go from toasty and delicious to burned and nasty in no time flat.

Happy baking. And if you head to Charleston, make sure WildFlour Pastry is on your itinerary.

WildFlour Pastry’s Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie Recipe 

For the crust:
1/4 cup very cold water
1 1/3 cup flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon sugar
2 3/4 ounces shortening, cubed and very cold
1 1/2 ounces unsalted butter, cubed and very cold
1 egg, reserved for egg wash

For the filling:
3 ounces unsalted butter, melted
¾ cup dark brown sugar
¾ cup light corn syrup
3 eggs
Pinch of salt
2 tablespoons bourbon
¾ cup chocolate chips
2 cups pecan halves

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the first six ingredients in the order they are listed, starting with water in the bowl first. Using a paddle attachment, mix until all ingredients are combined and a nice dough has been formed. Remove dough from the mixer, wrap in clear plastic wrap, and chill in the refrigerator for at least one hour. Once chilled, roll on a well-floured surface into a circle for a 9-inch pie pan. Immediately place in the refrigerator or freezer until completely chilled.

While the pie shell is chilling, melt your butter in a microwave. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the dark brown sugar, light corn syrup, and eggs. Mix together on low speed until combined. With the mixer on, slowly drizzle in melted butter. Once completely incorporated, add the salt and bourbon, and mix to combine.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and set aside. Take the chilled pie shell and with a small pastry brush, gently brush the egg wash along the edges, making sure to coat completely.

Fill your pie shell with the chocolate chips and pecan halves, mixing them in the shell to distribute evenly. Stir the filling and gently pour it into the pie shell until it reaches the bottom of the crust’s edge. Open the oven door and carefully place the pie in the center.

Bake at 325° F for 45 to 60 minutes or until the center is set. (If the edges start to get dark, cover them with aluminum foil half way during baking.) Cool the pie on a rack.

Serve slightly warm or room temperature.

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