Cracker Barrel Chocolate Pecan Pie

🥘 Ingredients

• Eggs - Room-temperature, beaten eggs will mix quickly and help the pie bake in the noted time. You can also see my egg substitutes.
• Sugar - White granulated sugar is used in this recipe. See my sugar substitutes if you need to find the best alternatives.
• Corn Syrup - Use either light or dark corn syrup to make the filling.
• Salt - Just a bit of salt to offset the sweetness and highlight the ingredient flavors.
• Vanilla - Pure vanilla extract adds the right touch of flavor to highlight the chocolate. You can use extract, vanilla bean paste, or any of my vanilla extract substitutes.
• Butter or Margarine - Melted margarine can be used for this copycat recipe, but butter is better, in my opinion.
• Pecans - I'm using whole pecans to best match the appearance of this popular dessert. Substituting walnuts for pecans is another option if you are ok with having a different flavor and texture profile than Cracker Barrel's pecan pies.
• Chocolate Chips - I use semi-sweet chocolate chips for the closest flavor match to the original Cracker Barrel pie. You can, of course, use milk chocolate or dark chocolate morsels or chunks.
• Pie Dough - Enough dough for a 9-inch pie. Use my butter pie crust, best pie dough, one of my pie crust alternatives, or a store-bought pie shell.

🔪How To Make A Homemade Cracker Barrel Chocolate Pecan Pie

Make your pie crust, or grab a refrigerated pie shell to get started. You'll need measuring utensils, a mixing bowl, a whisk, a spatula, and a pie pan.

I slice this pie into 8 generous dessert servings.

Mix The Filling

Preheat. Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C/Gas Mark 4).

Combine eggs and sugar. Combine the 3 large beaten, room-temperature eggs with ½ cup (100 grams) of sugar in a medium-sized mixing bowl.

Finish the filling. Add 1 cup (236.59 milliliters) of light corn syrup, ½ teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract, and ¼ cup (56.75 grams) of melted margarine or butter, and then mix until the filling is well combined.

Assemble The Pie

Shape the pie crust. Fill your pie pan with the bottom pie crust and crimp the edges as desired.

Add pecans and chocolate. Sprinkle the 1 cup (99 grams) of pecans and 3 tablespoons of semi-sweet chocolate chips into your unbaked 9-inch pie crust.

Fill the pie crust. Pour the filling mixture over the pecans and chocolate chips.

Bake & Serve

Bake. Place in the middle of your oven's center rack and bake at 350°F (175°C/Gas Mark 4) for 50-60 minutes or until the pie filling is only slightly jiggly.

Cool. Remove the pie from the oven, place it on a wire cooling rack, and let it cool completely before slicing and serving.

💭 Tips & Notes

• Appearance change. The pecans will rise to the top while baking.
• Preventing browned edges. If the edges of your pie crust begin to brown too much, you can cover them with a strip of foil or pie shield and finish baking.
• Judging doneness. Don’t be afraid to let the pie cook for the full hour. You’ll know it’s done when it only slightly jiggles when shaken. You can also use a thermometer to check the internal temperature, which should be 200°F (93°C).
• Best presentation. I prefer to allow this pie to cool fully, maybe even chill it for an hour, before slicing and serving. This allows the pie enough time to be fully set so you don't serve a runny pie slice.

🥡 Storing

While this pie could be covered and kept at room temperature for up to 3 days, it sets up best when chilled in the fridge. It can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Freezing

Freeze this pie by letting it cool completely and wrapping it tightly in both plastic wrap and heavy-duty aluminum foil to prevent freezer burn. Freeze for up to 3 months and let it thaw in the fridge before serving.

My complete guide to freezing pecan pie will help you to freeze this satisfying pie for serving later. This is one of my favorite make-ahead pies for preparing in advance of the holidays.

📖 Recipe Card