Every year for Thanksgiving, my Mom and I have always made a Chocolate Pecan Pie for dessert together. In the past few years, I've done my best to make a version that's a tad bit healthier. I don't buy candy or sweet treats that have corn syrup in them, so I don't enjoy baking with it either. I try to go by the "everything in moderation" rule for eating, but there are some things that I like to avoid altogether when possible.
This Chocolate Pecan Pie is never going to be something that's good for you, it's a decadent dessert, but with a few tweaks it we can make sure it's not downright terrible for you. You can substitute the eggs for bananas to make it vegan if you'd like (I've done it myself, but honestly prefer the original). You can also skip making your crust and just buy a crust or two if you don't feel like making one (I won't judge, sometimes I do myself), but this homemade whole wheat crust is as healthy as they come. I found the idea for the crust here.
1 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
7 tablespoons very cold unsalted organic butter
Filling Ingredients ≫≫
1/2 stick unsalted butter (or vegan butter) melted
3 Tablespoons whole wheat flour
1 3/4 c cane sugar
1/2 tsp sea salt
6 Tablespoons milk
3 eggs (or 1 1/2 bananas if making it vegan)
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 c pecan pieces (diced and whole)
1 c dark chocolate chips
For crust ≫≫
Mix together whole wheat flour with sea salt in your kitchenmaid mixer (or a medium bowl). Cut in cold butter and on medium speed until a ball starts to form (or mash in using a fork). Add 3-5 Tbsp ice cold water, a tiny bit at a time. After mixing well, mash the dough together with your hands and divide if needed, depending on the size of your pie pan. go ahead and put in pans or cover and set aside or place in fridge.
For filling ≫≫
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Melt the butter and set aside. Mix the flour, sugar and salt. Add the butter, milk, and eggs and beat well. Add vanilla, vinegar, and then the nuts and chocolate chips. It will start to get sticky and hard to mix…this is good!
Put your crust in the baking dish of your choice and fill with pie filling. The last few years I've made this my dish was shallow enough to make two make two pies!
Place in the preheated oven for 10 minutes. Then reduce the temperature to 325°F (160°C) and bake until the center of the pie is set, about 65 minutes.
Enjoy!
♡ Mallorie
Other festive drinks/desserts:
Fall Beer // Pumpkin Muffins with Chocolate Peanut Butter Glaze // Prosecco Float