Pumpkin Chocolate Pecan Pie

It seemed like a marriage made in heaven. Not just pecan. Not just chocolate. These two make for an excellent pie; but what really attracted me to this recipe was the addition of the pumpkin. Could it be done?

Yes. And wonderfully so, especially with the addition of a tiny bit of maple flavor.

As I wrote about in an earlier post, I happened upon the original recipe for this pie while cleaning up my documents on my laptop. Found somewhere while browsing the Internet a decade or more ago, I decided to try it. The original recipe was okay, but it definitely needed more chocolate and some spices. 

After several iterations over the holidays, I am now satisfied with my altered recipe. I tried to find the original recipe on the Internet, but without success. So, with credit to the unknown author of the original recipe, here is my altered version of Pumpkin Chocolate Pecan Pie:

Chocolate Pumpkin Pecan Pie

1     cup chopped pecans
3/4  cup mini chocolate chips
1     tsp vanilla
1     cup canned organic pumpkin
4     tbsp melted butter
1/2  cup sugars (7 tbsp white sugar, 1 tbsp granulated maple sugar)
1/2  tsp Saigon cinnamon
1/2  tsp nutmeg
1     cup syrups (7/8 cup dark corn syrup, 1/8 cup maple syrup)
3     eggs
1     9-inch unbaked pie crust/shell

Preheat oven to 350. Meanwhile, beat eggs well. Mix in the syrups, sugars, butter, pumpkin and vanilla on low until well-blended. Arrange 1 cup pecans and 3/4 cup mini chocolate chips in the bottom of the pie shell. Slowly pour egg mixture over them. Bake for one hour or until knife inserted 1 inch from edge (not center) comes out clean. Let cool completely before serving to allow the filling to set up. After cooling, consider putting the pie in the fridge for a few hours to complete the setting-up process. If desired, when serving, top with a bit of whipped cream, a few chocolate chips and a sprinkling of chopped pecans.

This pie might appear to be over-the-top sweet, but the pumpkin adds not only flavor but a moderating influence over the sugars and syrups. It also makes the pie lighter than a standard pecan pie. I received a number of compliments about the pie over the holidays, and everyone agreed that it is a much "lighter" pie than pecan.

Now, about the maple flavoring. I had experimented with the substitution of the bit of maple syrup for some of the corn syrup and was pleased with the result. That emboldened me to also substitute a bit of granulated maple sugar for the white sugar. I was a little concerned that the two together might make for too strong of a maple flavor in the pie, but it was perfect. Just enough to add a bit of additional flavor to the pie.

Mark bought this for me as a Christmas stocking stuffer.

I was prompted to add the maple sugar because of an experience we had over Thanksgiving while staying at a B&B in Fort Langley, British Columbia. The owner served a lovely fresh fruit salad to us every morning as the "starter" at breakfast. The fruit was topped with a generous dollop of delicious Greek yogurt, and that in turn was topped on a couple of occasions with a bit of granulated maple sugar sprinkled on top of the yogurt. Delicious.

Marilyn's Fruit Salad

So, there you have it. It's an easy pie to make and - as long as you like pumpkin, pecans and chocolate - is sure to become a holiday favorite.