Black Bottom Bourbon Pecan Pie brings a little drama to the table with a chocolate crust and a bourbon spiked pecan filling~ it’s guaranteed to turn heads!
Black Bottom Bourbon Pecan Pie is pecan pie for the adults
I’m not typically a pie for dessert type of person, so when I do get down with the rolling pin and pie crust thing, it’s usually because I’ve found something pretty special to motivate me. In this case it was a dark chocolate crust, a semi sweet black bottom, and some bourbon, spiffing up a pecan pie in all the right ways. I love the colors and textures in this pie…the pecans get super crisped, and the filling is the silkiest pecan pie filling I’ve ever had. The little bit of bourbon lingers in every bite, and that chocolate crust just adds drama.
A chocolate pie crust makes this recipe extra special
The crust is a showstopper all by itself, and it proved no more difficult to make than a regular crust, just a little messier is all. I think it adds a fun touch.
The black bottom is a layer of semi sweet chocolate chips.
I expected them to create an even layer of chocolate at the bottom of the pie, but they ended up migrating here and there during the cooking…no worries though, it all gets mixed up in your mouth eventually anyway 🙂
The pecans do cost a bit, and you need almost 10 oz for this pie. If you want to decorate the top with the halves, they are the priciest of all. You could, I guess, use chopped nuts and skip the arranging, but it won’t be nearly as good looking.
I don’t promise it will cut neatly and cleanly, in fact you’ll end up with lots of deep chocolate crumbs, shards of crisp pecans, and sticky filling everywhere…but I DO promise it will be fabulously delicious.
This chocolate pecan pie begs for a scoop of vanilla ice cream
Serve vanilla ice cream or whipped cream alongside your slice of pie, it’s practically mandatory.
Love pecans?
- Pecan Praline Pumpkin Cake
- Chewy Toffee Pecan Bars
- Maple Pecan Pound Cake
- Perfect Pecan Sandies
- Maple Frangipane Pecan Pie
- Pecan Buttermilk Fudge
Black Bottom Bourbon Pecan Pie
Equipment
- 9 inch pie plate
Ingredients
dark chocolate crust
pie
- 1/4 cup bourbon
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 cup light corn syrup
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- approximately 10 oz pecan halves
- 1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips, or 6 ounces
Instructions
- Set oven to 350F
- First make the crust. Put the flour, sugar, cocoa and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse a few times to combine.
- Break up the shortening and butter into smaller pieces and drop into the bowl. Pulse maybe 10 times more until the mixture is crumbly and the butter and shortening are well distributed.
- While the machine is running, drizzle in the ice water, and stop just when the dough comes together. Stop the machine and feel the dough, if it comes together when pressed between your fingers, it’s ready.
- Turn the dough out on a lightly floured surface and bring together with your hands into a flat disk. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Roll the dough out on a floured (in this case I used more cocoa) surface. Fit the dough into your 9" pie pan and trim the edges. Put the crust back in the refrigerator while you prepare the filling.
- For the filling, whisk together the bourbon and the cornstarch in a mixing bowl. Whisk in the eggs, and then the corn syrup and sugar.
- Chop enough of the pecans to make 1 cup.
- Stir in the melted butter and the chopped pecans.
- Take the pie crust out of the fridge and cover the bottom with the chocolate chips.
- Pour the filling over the chips. Arrange the remaining pecan halves over the entire top of the pie.
- Bake for about an hour until bubbling and puffed on top. TIP: I usually lay a piece of foil loosely over the top to prevent too much browning…I think the pecans look better when they aren’t dark brown. Let the pie cool on a rack before cutting.
Notes
and the pie was adapted from Saveur
Nutrition
I’ve been making this pie every holiday season for 6 years! It’s become a family favorite and friends have even asked me to bake it for their family gatherings!!
Thanks so much, this is an older recipe and I think it’s due for a remake, yum!
Hi! Can you add 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract to the recipe? Thanks in advance!
Yes, sure!
Great recipe!
My husband and I have been together for 7 years. I found this recipe on a fluke, and made it the first Thanksgiving we spent together. It was so good, it’s still a tradition. 6 years on from that initial year. I would tell ppl who say “it’s loose” to not be fooled by the nuts and browning, and foil it up and leave it for another solid 10m. It’s my favorite pie for sure. Thanks so much for sharing it!
I’m making the black bottom chocolate pecan pie but I don’t want to use the bourbon do I still need to add cornstarch or is that just strictly because of the bourbon can I omit or leave out the cornstarch altogether anybody please help
The cornstarch is for thickening, so don’t skip that Scott.
I love the recipe, however, after following the recipe exactly it was still runny in the middle. I noticed that someone else also had this problem. Do you have a solution?
It sounds like it needed a little extra cooking, April. Ovens are notoriously unreliable as to temperature, so next time try cooking a little longer. It can be slightly wobbly in the middle, but not super loose.
I have found that if I want a pie to have a layer of chocolate on the bottom I melt the chocolate chips and pour it into the pie shell and place in the freezer just long enough to set the chocolate so if doesn’t end up floating into my pie mix.
Thanks Joanne, I’ll try that!