Pecan Pie Recipe

This particular concoction is mighty scrumptious. Pecans, chocolate and a good dash of Tennessee Sour Mash add up to caramelized, cacao nutty goodness.

With so many different things going on in the kitchen this week, I give myself the guilty pleasure of purchasing piecrust. It cuts down on prep time and floury messes, or rather, my propensity to having flour fly throughout the kitchen while I'm trying to multitask for the big event.

This recipe works delightfully well with even standard chocolate chips, but do yourself a favor and get some 60-70% Dark Cacao. The larger the cacao content, the better it plays off the whiskey-caramelized pecans. And stick with whiskey; I've tried other liquors with mostly unsatisfactory results.

You can also add a dollop of homemade whipped cream to each slice, for an added treat.

Recipe: Chocolate Pecan Pie with a Dash of Jack

Ingredients:

    * 1 stick unsalted butter
    * 3 ounces dark chocolate (60-70% Cacao)
    * 1 cup sugar
    * 2 eggs
    * 1.5 tablespoons Jack Daniels
    * 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
    * ¼ teaspoon salt
    * 1 cup coarsely chopped pecans (unsalted)
    * 1 frozen 9-inch pie crust

Method:

Heat oven to 325F.

In a small saucepan, over low heat, stir butter and chocolate until melted. Allow to cool. Whisk sugar and eggs in bowl, then whisk in chocolate mixture. Add whiskey, vanilla and salt. Finally, stir in pecans.

Spoon filling into pie crust and bake at 325F for approximately 30 minutes. Check to make sure the edges of the crust become puffy and golden, the filling becomes deeply browned and the center firms. Transfer to wire rack to cool.

This can be made a couple of days in advance.