I am usually not a dessert person.

P1030417

I’ll indulge in bowl of ice cream on the hottest day of the summer or a slice of birthday cake when I am forced to celebrate that annual rite of passage, but in general, I’ll stick to pizza and pasta if I want to carbo load.  But, once a year, I roll out some dough (store bought or homemade, take your pick) and create some family favorites…PIES.

These flaky, fruity, custard, nutty treats have graced my Thanksgiving table for decades.  They are now the most requested addition to our holiday menu.  I try to change up a few flavor palates each year, just for variety: blueberry pie instead of cherry pie; pumpkin pie in, apple pie out.  You get the picture.  But, the two non-negotiable pies that are Turkey Day mainstays are Chocolate Pecan Pie and Sweet Potato Pie.

When I was in my early 20’s, I bought a blue and white checked notebook with the words “Favorite Recipes” on the cover.  All these years later, it has become the Holy Grail of the best recipes I have.  Chocolate Pecan Pie is on page six.  I honestly don’t know where I got this recipe.  These days, page six has yellowed with age, and sticks together with the back of page five, but when my youthful penmanship on the page with the ingredients greets me each Thanksgiving, it feels like I am getting together with an old friend.  Serve it warm with a little vanilla ice cream, and you’ll skip over the turkey and trimmings, and head straight for dessert.

The origin of the Sweet Potato Pie is known and treasured.  The recipe comes from “Vineyard Seasons,” a cookbook by Susan Branch, that I bought on Martha’s Vineyard in the late 1980’s.  With its gorgeous drawings and whimsical stories about food, it is my favorite cookbook.  A combination of sweet and tangy, crunchy and smooth, this is THE recipe that Thanksgiving guests ask for at the end of the meal.  Although most people think of this as a dessert, I actually like it as a substitute for the candied yams or sweet potato casserole that are often served with the main course. So this holiday season, forget about the cakes and the cookies.  Serve up a few slices of heaven.  PIE!

CHOCOLATE PECAN PIE
1 9-inch pie crust, unbaked
3 oz. good quality dark chocolate
2 Tbsp. butter
3 eggs
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup dark corn syrup
1 1/2 cups pecan halves

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Melt chocolate and butter together in a pan over hot water.
Put aside and let it cool down, but not harden.
Beat together eggs, sugar, syrup and chocolate/butter mixture.
Fold in pecan halves.
Pour into pie shell and bake for 40 minutes (depending on oven) just until it sets.

SWEET POTATO PIE

Topping:
3 Tbsp. butter, melted
2/3 cup pecans, finely chopped
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup flour
Combine all ingredients together until crumbly. Set aside.
Filling:
1 9-inch pie shell, unbaked
1/2 cup chopped pecans
2 cups  cooked sweet potatoes
6 Tbsp. butter, softened
1/4 cup heavy cream
3 eggs, beaten
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp.cinnamon
1/2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg

Preheat over to 475 degrees.
Prick the entire bottom of the pie shell with the tines of a fork.
Spread pecans over the pie shell.
Bake for 5 minutes. Cool.
Lower heat to 300 degrees.
In a large mixing bowl, mash together remaining ingredients until well blended and smooth.
Pour into pie shell.
Sprinkle the Topping entirely over top of pie.
Place the pie on a cookie sheet and bake at 300 degrees for 25-30 minutes till crumbs are golden brown.

My Favorite Thanksgiving Pies was last modified: November 11th, 2013 by Candy Kosow Gold

Sharing is caring!

Candy Kosow Gold
Candy Kosow Gold

A life long Newton resident, (and die hard Red Sox fan) Candy Gold has worked in Media and the Arts for more than 30 years. She worked as a radio news reporter for 12 years, and has worked as a freelance newspaper writer for 15 years. She has covered every type of story, from politics and government to feature stories and Arts and Entertainment reviews. Her Arts and Entertainment reporting and love of theatre led to her work as a Director for community theatre since 1996. She has spent five years directing the children’s spring musical at the JCC in Newton. Candy served on the Board of Trustees at the Wang Center for Performing Arts in Boston for 20 years. She is currently on the Board of Advisors at the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge. She has always been actively involved in supporting the Arts in Newton, Boston and New York City. In 2010, she was involved in Producing “Driving Miss Daisy” with James Earl Jones and Vanessa Redgrave on Broadway. The play was so successful, that it transferred to London in Fall/2011. This year, Candy is Producing “End if the Rainbow” on Broadway. The play, about the last few months of Judy Garland’s life, was nominated for 3 Tony Awards. Candy’s other passion is food and cooking. Two years ago, she began producing her own local cable show on NewTV called “Neighborhood Cooking with Candy Gold.” The cooking/interview show can be seen on a dozen community cable stations in the Greater Boston area. Candy won Producer of the Year at last year’s local Cable Awards. This year, she won, Show of the Year. In June/2011, she won a cooking competition on Food Network. She also won a local baking competition in Fall/2011 called the Yummy Awards. The show is currently being sponsored by Whole Foods Supermarket. Candy lives in Newton with her husband, Martin Waters. Her 23 year old daughter, Carly, attended college at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City and her 19 year old son, David, attends Landmark College in Putney, VT.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.