This chocolate pecan pie is going to be the star of your holiday dessert table this season! We’re sweetening pecan pie with maple syrup rather than corn syrup and adding some chocolate chips to the mix!
When it comes to making pie, I have two major criteria:
- it must be amazingly delicious
- it must be ridiculously easy
And guess what? This pecan pie is definitely those two things. Excuse me, I mean, this chocolate pecan pie. Because why make a pecan pie without the chocolate?
This picture here is proof of number 1 – you can just tell it’s going to be a darn good piece of pie:
This is the pie for those of you intimated by making pie. I promise you, this pecan pie is a really simple recipe.
Pecan pie made with maple syrup
It’s true; there’s no corn syrup in this pecan pie recipe but trust me when I say that this pie is still incredibly decadent. You won’t miss a thing.
Rather than use corn syrup, my recipe calls for a combination of maple syrup and brown sugar (or coconut sugar).
My recipe also calls for pecans, butter, eggs, and chocolate chips. And we can’t forget the vanilla extract, which adds great flavor and aroma.
I also suggest adding a couple of teaspoons of cornstarch to help thicken the filling. When I first shared this recipe on the blog, I did not include cornstarch in the ingredients list, but I’ve realized that I prefer this pie when the filling is a bit more set, and cornstarch helps to do that. Since we use maple syrup, which is thinner and less viscous than corn syrup, we need something to help thicken it up a bit, and corn starch does the trick.
Homemade Pie Crust vs. Store-bought:
My homemade pie crust is very easy to make. There’s no need to roll out any dough; just make the crust in a food processor and press it into a pie pan. My pie crust happens to be gluten-free, grain-free and nut-free, making it perfect for any guests with allergies.
That said, storebought pie crust works just as well. I’ve made this pecan pie using the frozen (gluten-free) pie crusts from Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, and Wegmans, and they’re all great. One thing to know when using a storebought crust: it may seem like all of the maple sauce won’t fit in the crust, but it will. Just be patient and pour slowly, wait for it to settle, then continue pouring.
I once made this chocolate pecan pie for a Friendsgiving party, and it went faster than pumpkin pie, which I think is pretty telling. This past Thanksgiving, we skipped pumpkin pie altogether and made this pecan pie instead. It’s always a hit with my family (especially my husband, who loves pecan pie).
I can’t wait to hear what you and your friends/family think of this chocolate pecan pie!
Ingredients
- Homemade Pie Crust gluten-free paleo nut-free crust OR Store-Bought Crust
Pecan Pie Filling:
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- 1 cup 200 grams light brown sugar or coconut sugar
- 1 cup maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ stick butter melted
- ½ to 1 cup whole pecans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Pour the chopped pecans and chocolate chips into the pie crust and spread them out evenly.
- Make the maple sauce. In a large bowl, whisk eggs together until well combined. Then, whisk in brown sugar, maple syrup, cornstarch, vanilla extract, salt. While continuing to whisk, slowly pour the melted butter into the sauce (any bits of cornstarch will melt into the sauce after you mix in the butter).
- Pour mixture into the pie crust over the pecans and chocolate chips (if you are using a store-bought pie crust, you will wonder if you can fit all of the sauce into the crust. The answer is yes, you can - just pour it slowly and let it settle before pouring the rest in).
- Top the pie with whole pecans.
- Bake. Place the pie in the oven on the middle rack and bake for 45 minutes or until the top is slightly browned and looks set. You will know the pie is done when you see it puffed up in the oven (the pie will flatten out once you take it out of the oven and it cools).
- Let the pie cool completely on a wire rack before serving. It will continue to set as it cools.
Notes
- Keep an eye on the pie while it is baking to make sure the crust does not burn. You can loosely tent the pie with foil if needed.
Joanne says
Made for Thanksgiving and was a hit. Wondering if it would work in 9×12″ pan as bars. Thanks for great recipe and instructions!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Joanne, I’m so glad to hear that! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out 🙂
Ginger says
Can you freeze this pie?
Karin says
I am allergic to corn. Have you ever tried making this with arrowroot or tapioca starch, Ashley?
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Karin, I have – it doesn’t hold up quite as well but it’s still tasty! Let me know what you think if you try.
Roopa Shah says
I made pie for Thanksgiving 😀
It came out really good. I followed recipe except I used flex seeds eggs. It worked really well. I used Pillsbury frozen crust.
I still have question if I can make pie with out chocolate chips?
Thanks for the great recipe !
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Roopa, that’s great to hear! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out using flax eggs 🙂 I’m sure it’ll be great even without the chocolate chips!
Roopa Shah says
Hi
Which pie crust do you prefer?
I wanted to make pie without chocolate chips. Do I replace with any things? Or add more pecan or walnut?
Jessica says
Precisely followed the instructions — I made pie soup 🙁 Recipe sounds amazing, but didn’t solidify.
My Heart Beets says
Jessica, I’m sorry – that’s such a bummer! Did you use cornstarch? I’m surprised it didn’t solidify… did you try baking longer? Sometimes oven temps can be different.
Sophie says
Do you have a favorite Paleo friendly chocolate chip?
My Heart Beets says
Hi Sophie, I’ve been meaning to try Hu Gems, I’ve heard they are good! I normally use enjoy life or equal exchange but those call for cane sugar.
Bianca says
The pie came out great. I did make a couple of mods based on what I know about baking pie.
1. I had to use a second egg in the crust since it wasn’t coming together with just one. I also par baked it for 15 min and brushed the bottom with egg. The filling is very liquid and I didn’t want to take the chance of having a soggy crust.
2. I used some King Arthur ClearJel in the filling to make sure it sets properly based on another reviewer’s comment. I also mixed the chopped pecans and chocolate chip with the filling before putting it in the pie crust.
I am not sure what the purpose was of laying the pecans and chocolate on the crust, but it worked out great this way too.
The pie is delicious and I’ll definitely make it again.
My Heart Beets says
Bianca, I’m glad you liked it! Thank you for sharing 🙂
Don says
Tried to make this Christmas Eve, and was unable to get it to solidify. ☹️ Still tasted good, though.
My Heart Beets says
Aw man, maybe try baking it a little longer if you make it again? Oven temps and altitudes can affect bake times
Don says
I actually did give it an additional 5-10 minutes when it jiggled when I tried to take it out of the oven the first time.