Pumpkin Pecan Pie with Whiskey Butter Sauce

No need to choose from two classic pies, this rustic Pumpkin Pecan Pie is served with a decadent Whiskey Butter Sauce that will be the star of your holiday dinner!

There are several food stars that shine during the holidays. One thing my family can totally agree on is dessert: we have to serve PIE!  And just like the dinner table, I like to serve up an assortment of pies to choose from: pumpkin, pecan, cherry, apple.

We all have our favorites, and we all want to see our favorites being served. I found this recipe for Pumpkin Pecan Pie years ago from Epicurious. What a great way to combine two holiday favorites into one pie.

Why you have to try this recipe

I first shared this pie recipe with you 7-years ago. GASP! Seriously? It was a HUGE hit when I first served it, and this pumpkin pecan pie is STILL a family favorite today.

Homemade pies can be very intimidating to make. I totally get that. Rolling out the dough and pressing it into the pie pan can be tricky. Then you have to crimp and make the crust look pretty.

But with this rustic crust, it’s easy to transfer and press into a springform pan. And the edges? They are not supposed to be perfect or beautiful. The flaws make this pie shine. YES!

The original recipe (which I share below) uses butter for the crust. You can also buy refrigerated pie crust and use that. For the pie featured on top, I used my olive oil pie crust recipe and it worked beautifully because you don’t have to refrigerate it or wait for hours for it to be ready.

When I first made this pumpkin pecan pie, it came out perfectly. The pumpkin pie layer was silky and smooth, and the pecan pie layer made a crisp top. Sometimes when I have made this pie, the pecan filling sinks into the pumpkin portion of the pie. But you know what? It is still one delicious pie.

But the real star of this pumpkin pecan pie is the whiskey butter sauce you drizzle over it. Holy cow, it’s ridiculously good. Is the pie delicious without it? Of course!

If you don’t want the extra calories, don’t drink alcohol or are serving this to kids, you definitely don’t need to make the whiskey butter sauce. But, if you want to add that special touch, then you have to try it!

Ingredients you need

Pie Crust Ingredients: You can make your own pie crust or use premade pie dough. I do not recommend the frozen pie shells as they will not be large or deep enough to hold all of these ingredients.

• All purpose flour salt and cold butter

Pumpkin Filling Ingredients

• Pumpkin purée: You can use homemade or canned pumpkin.
• Egg
• Heavy cream
• Butter
• Pantry staples: Light brown sugar, granulated sugar, vanilla extract, salt, ground cinnamon, allspice, ground nutmeg

Pecan Pie Filling Ingredients

• Eggs
• Butter
• Pantry staples: Granulated sugar, dark corn syrup, Vanilla extract, salt, ground cinnamon, pecans

Whiskey Butter Sauce Ingredients

• Whiskey: Use your favorite whiskey or even bourbon.
• Butter
• Granulated sugar
• Egg
• Heavy cream

Step-by-step directions

1. Start with the pie crust by combining in a flour and salt with cold butter. It is best to use your fingers to squeeze the butter into flour mixture until it resembles coarse cornmeal.

2. Slowly sprinkle some cold water stir it in using a fork. Form the dough into a ball and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

3. For the pumpkin filling, combine the pumpkin purée ingredients in a mixing bowl then set aside.

4. For the pecan filling, combine the pecan pie ingredients in a mixing bowl and set aside.

5. Roll out the chilled pie dough on a lightly floured work surface. Lightly flour the top of the dough and fold it into quarters.

6. Carefully place the dough in a greased 8-inch springform pan and gently unfold. Press the dough firmly into the pan and trim the edges. Chill for 15 minutes.

7. Spoon the pumpkin filling into the pan, spreading evenly to distribute.

8. Gently pour the pecan syrup on top. If your pumpkin purée is a bit watery, you might want to bake the pie at this moment for about 15 minutes before adding the pecan filling. This is not necessary but helps keep two distinct pie layers.

9. Bake at 325ºF until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean, about 1 hour and 45 minutes. Allow pie to cool to room temperature, then release the pie.

10. To prepare the whiskey sauce, use a double boiler to melt the butter. Whisk the sugar and egg together then stir into the melted butter. Thin with a little of the boiling water and cook until mixture thickens.

11. Let it cool then stir in heavy cream and whiskey. Serve by pouring this whiskey butter over each slice of pumpkin pecan pie.

Recipe tips and FAQs

If you want to guarantee two separate and distinct layers, I suggest adding only the pumpkin filling into the pie shell and baking it for 15 minutes, then removing the pie and gently spoon the pecan layer on top.

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Yield: 1 8-inch pie

Pumpkin Pecan Pie with Whiskey Butter Sauce

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No need to choose from two classic pies, this rustic Pumpkin Pecan Pie is served with a decadent Whiskey Butter Sauce that will be the star of your holiday dinner!

Prep Time 1 hour

Cook Time 2 hours

Additional Time 3 hours

Total Time 6 hours

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ½ cup butter (1 stick)
• 3 to 4 TBS cold water
• 1 cup pumpkin purée
• ¼ cup light brown sugar, packed
• 2 TBS granulated sugar
• 1 large egg, beaten until frothy
• 1 TBS heavy cream
• 1 TBS unsalted butter, softened
• 1 TBS vanilla extract
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ⅛ teaspoon allspice
• ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• ¾ cup dark corn syrup
• 2 large eggs
• 1 ½ TBS unsalted butter, melted
• 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ⅛ teaspoon salt
• ⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¾ cup chopped pecans
• 4 TBS unsalted butter (½ stick)
• ⅓ cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• ½ TBS hot water
• ¼ cup heavy cream
• ¼ cup bourbon or whiskey

Instructions

1. Start with the pie crust by combining in a medium-sized bowl flour and ¼ teaspoon salt.
2. Using your fingers, mix in ½ cup butter by squeezing butter into flour mixture until it resembles coarse cornmeal.
3. Sprinkle 4 TBS cold water over the flour mixture in tablespoon increments and stirring continuously with a fork.
4. Form the dough into a ball and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
5. For the pumpkin filling, combine pumpkin purée, brown sugar, 2 TBS granulated sugar, 1 egg, 1 TBS heavy cream, 1 TBS vanilla extract, ¼ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon cinnamon, ⅛ teaspoon allspice and ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg.
6. For the pecan syrup, whisk together ¾ cup granulated sugar, corn syrup, 2 eggs, 1 ½ TBS butter, 2 teaspoon vanilla extract, ⅛ teaspoon salt, ⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon and pecans in a medium-sized bowl.
7. Preheat the oven to 325°F.
8. Grease an 8-inch springform cake pan.
9. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured work surface to 3/16 inch and very lightly flour the top of the dough and fold it into quarters.
10. Carefully place the dough in the greased cake pan. Press firmly in place and trim the edges.
11. Chill for 15 minutes.
12. Spoon the pumpkin filling into the pan, spreading evenly to distribute.
13. Gently pour the pecan syrup on top.
14. Bake until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean, about 1 hour and 45 minutes.
15. Allow pie to cool to room temperature, then release the pie.
16. In a double boiler set over gently simmering water, melt 4 TBS butter.
17. In a small bowl whisk ⅓ cup granulated sugar and 1 egg until blended.
18. Stir the egg mixture into the melted butter.
19. Using the hot water in your double boiler, stir in ½ TBS hot water.
20. Stir until the mixture coats the back of a spoon, about 7 minutes. Remove from the double boiler and let cool to room temperature.
21. Stir in ¼ cup heavy cream and whiskey.
22. Pour whiskey-butter over each slice of pumpkin-pecan pie.

Notes

Serve alone, with the whiskey butter sauce, topped with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

12

Serving Size:

1 slice
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 452Total Fat: 23gSaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 106mgSodium: 242mgCarbohydrates: 55gFiber: 2gSugar: 41gProtein: 5g

PS If you try this recipe, why not leave a star rating in the recipe card right below and/or a review in the comment section further down the page? I always appreciate your feedback.

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