Grams Made Southern Pecan Pie

With Thanksgiving quickly approaching, I've been making my shopping list. If I don't get called to work tomorrow, I'll be going to the grocery store early in the day. Hopefully, some people will still be working and it won't be overly crowded. I can always hope, right.

I'll be doing my baking on Tuesday evening. We're going to my sister Bylinda's home in Seguin for Thanksgivng Day. She's doing the turkey, dressing, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, homemade dinner rolls, and macaroni and cheese. Knowing Bylinda as I do, I know she's making a couple of desserts too. I'm taking broccoli rice casserole, deviled eggs and pecan pie. Katy will bring her mile-high apple pie and Nick is bringing honey-baked ham. Travis is making home-made cranberry sauce.

Just a personal note here ... I'm so proud that my children always go to family dinners with a dish in hand. So many of the younger family members just show up and eat. Grandad and I worked hard to instill this responsibility in our kids and it's so rewarding to see them follow through on things that we taught them.

It's always been interesting to me how family members seem to get assigned to bring certain things to family gatherings. In our family at least, once you make a dish, you own it. I got this pecan pie recipe from a co-worker more than 30 years ago. Ever since the first year I made it, I am always assigned to bring pecan pie. Everyone in the family considers this the best pecan pie they've ever eaten. One year I tried a different recipe and my family was not happy about it. The next year I went back to this old reliable recipe.

In the South, pecan pie is as important to Thanksgiving as pumpkin pie. Most cooks use pecan halves in their pies. I chop the pecans because they stay tender and the pie is easier to cut. I have also discovered that the pie filling does not set if I use a metal pie plate. Be sure to use a glass or Pyrex pie plate for best results.

1 prepared pie crust (I use Pillsbury All-Ready)
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup margarine
3 eggs, beaten
1 cup chopped pecans
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 teaspoon salt

Place prepared pie crust in pie plate and flute the edges.

Blend sugar, syrup and margarine in saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture comes to a boil. Blend hot mixture slowly into beaten eggs. Stir in vanilla extract and salt. Pour into pie shell. Top with pecans.

Cover the edge of the pie crust with aluminum foil to prevent over-browning. Remove it after 20 minutes. Bake at 375º for 30 minutes.

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