MINI PECAN PIES

 I remember my mom making heavenly mini pecan pies that were perfect to just pop in your mouth for a quick treat.  This year for Thanksgiving I decided to try and find the perfect recipe for them because I couldn’t find her recipe.  I made 3 different recipes, and these were by far our favorites and actually the easiest because of the crust.  I also made one recipe with chocolate chips added, and it was enjoyable to have options and of course an excuse to have more than one at a time!   Next time I will use this basic recipe and just add chocolate chips instead of doing a separate recipe for the chocolate ones.  Have to admit though the basic pecan ones were definitely the favorites.

2 Pillsbury pie crusts

¾ c. white sugar

1 c. Karo

¾ t. vanilla

1/3 c. melted butter

3 eggs, beaten

1 heaping c. finely diced pecans*

½ c. mini semi sweet chocolate chips, optional*

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Grease 3 mini muffin tins.  Roll out the pie crust and cut with a circle cookie cutter, biscuit cutter, or small glass that is about 3” in diameter.  Press the pie crust circles into the muffin tin.  (You will need to roll out the scraps after the first ones are cut in order to get 18 out of each pie crust.)

In a medium mixing bowl stir together the sugars, syrup, vanilla, butter, and eggs.  Add about a teaspoon of pecans* to each pie cup.  Fill the cup with the filling almost to the top but not so much that the filling will flow over the top of the crust.  The pecans will float to the top.  Bake for 22-25 minutes, until golden brown.  Remove from the oven and using a spoon gently remove them from the tin onto a wire rack.  They come out easier when they are hot, especially if any of the filling accidentally overflowed onto the tin.  Cool completely and store in an airtight container.  The recipe makes about 36 mini pies.** 

*If making chocolate pecan pies reduce the amount of pecans to about ½ c. and add the pecans and chocolate chips at the same time.  Basically cover the bottom of the pie cup with pecans and then chocolate chips.  

**I had some filling leftover but not enough crust for more mini pies.  I sprayed a small oven-safe dish and tore up the remaining scraps of pie crust and put them in the bottom of the dish; chopped a few more pecans into the filling and poured it over the crust and baked it at 325 degrees about 30-35 minutes.  Voila a small pecan "cobbler" for the 3 of us tonight.  Can't waste any of the goodness!