| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 1 hr 25 min |
| Prep: | 20 min |
| Inactive: | 15 min |
| Cook: | 50 min |
| Yield: | 8 servings |
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup solid shortening (recommended: Crisco)
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons ice water
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 4 eggs, lightly beaten
- 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- I cup light corn syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons melted butter
- 2 cups lightly toasted mixed nuts (1/2 cup pecan halves, 1/3 cup coarsely chopped macadamias, 1/3 cup slivered almonds, 1/2 cup cashew halves?split, 1/3 cup chopped hazelnuts)
Instructions
- To prepare crust by hand:
- In a narrow bowl, combine flour, salt and shortening. Using 2 knives scissors-style, cut fat into flour until only small pea-size bits of shortening remain.
- Sprinkle water over flour mixture as you toss with a fork. Don’t keep stirring. Turn only about 8 to 10 times. Continue with Step 3 below.
- Or prepare crust using a food processor:
- Chill flour, shortening, butter, water.
- Measure flour into work bowl. Add salt and pulse 3 times.
- Add shortening. Pulse 6 times. Add butter that has been cup up into chunks. Pulse 4 times.
- Add water 1 tablespoon at a time. Pulse after each addition.
- Pour out of bowl onto plastic wrap. Create a 5-inch disk and flatten. Refrigerate.
- After about 15 minutes in the refrigerator, remove your disc. Place a piece of plastic wrap or parchment paper on the counter. Flour it. Cover the disk with another piece of wrap or parchment. Roll out from the center, until disk is about 11 inches in diameter. Remove top wrap, flour the surface lightly and drape crust over rolling pin. Center over pie plate and put it in. Smooth into 9 1/2-inch pie pan. Remove wrap. Trim edge to about 1/2 inch around outside of pan.
- Fold edge under and flute using thumb and forefingers to make a stand up edge. Refrigerate until ready to fill.
- To prepare filling and topping:
- Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Coarsely chop macadamias and almonds, put all nuts (separate large nuts from chopped) on cookie sheet and toast 5 to 6 minutes. Cool. Put hazelnuts into a kitchen towel and rub together to remove skins. Chop hazelnuts.
- Combine filling ingredients. Mix well. Sprinkle chopped nuts on bottom of crust. Arrange pecan halves, slivered almonds and cashews in attractive pattern on bottom of unfilled crust. Pour filling into pan deflecting on back of a spoon. Larger nuts will rise up to top. Cover edge of crust with foil.
- Bake for 45 minutes to 50 minutes. Test with a stainless steel knife in center. When it comes out clean, it’s done. Cool completely on wire rack. Serve after cooling or wrap in heavy foil and refrigerate until next day to serve.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 8 servings |
| Calories | 640 |
| Total Fat | 37 g |
| Saturated Fat | 11 g |
| Carbohydrates | 73 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 4 g |
| Sugar | 52 g |
| Protein | 10 g |
| Cholesterol | 103 mg |
| Sodium | 210 mg |
Reviews
I’ve made this pie several times since seeing it win First Prize. It can be a little tedious measuring and chopping the nuts (and especially shelling the hazelnuts, which my dear husband does gladly). But the result is worth it. This pie gets rave reviews whenever I serve it, and I’ve even baked it, froze it and shipped it to relatives. Trust me, this is the BEST nut pie I’ve ever made.
The flavor was lacking from my mother’s traditional pecan pie but it was tasty nonetheless. I may try substituting some molasses into the corn syrup…
This pie was a hit with my family for Thanksgiving. It set up perfectly and wasn’t too sweet. We usually have pecan pie, but the different varieties of nuts added more crunch.