INGREDIENTS
For the pastry:
Cake flour
1 cup (250 ml)
a pinch of salt
cold butter
100g
Caster sugar
2T (10ml)
Egg
1
Ice-cold water
4T (20ml)
Lemon juice
1T (5ml)
Lemon zest (optional)
a little
INGREDIENTS
For the filling:
Pecan nuts
130g
Butter
Metled – about 60g
Brown sugar
200 ml (just under a cup)
(treacle sugar if you’re feeling particularly decadent)
Eggs
2 – beaten
Golden Syrup
100ml
Vanilla essence
5ml (1 teaspoon)
PREPARATION
- Sift the flour and salt. Cut the butter into the flour, then rub it in with cold fingertips until it resembles rough breadcrumbs. Add the caster sugar. In a separate bowl, mix together the egg, water, lemon juice and zest. Add to the flour and butter and mix quickly and lightly into a dough (the less you handle it, the better). Wrap in clingwrap and put in the fridge for about 30 mins. Take it out, roll it quickly and lightly into a circle, and use it to line a pie dish. Bake the case at 200 C for about 10 minutes (don’t let the edges brown).
- Take the pastry case out of the oven and arrange the pecans over it in a single dense layer.
- Beat the melted butter, sugar and beaten eggs together until foamy. Continue beating while adding the syrup. Add the vanilla essence.
- Pour the syrup mixture carefully over the nuts (they will float to the top). Bake at 180 C for about 40 minutes. When you take the pie out the oven, it will still look runny – leave it for about 20 minutes to set.Serve with vanilla ice cream.