Good Eating's favorite 2012 recipes

A look back at 2012 provides a smorgasbord of dishes for Good Eating's annual roundup of favorite recipes. Dig in!

Bourbon pecan pie


Prep: 25 minutes
Cook: 57 minutes
Servings: 8

For our Thanksgiving section, former Good Eating editor Carol Mighton Haddix wrote about a version of that American classic, pecan pie, that cuts the sweetness. Even pecan pie haters among our tasters praised the results, adapted from a recipe by chef Alex Seidel in "Made in America," by Lucy Lean. Seidel serves the pie drizzled with a butterscotch sauce that's thinned with more bourbon, and tops it with vanilla ice cream, but the pie is great on its own too.

1 prepared pie dough for single crust 9-inch pie, see recipe below
2 cups pecan halves
3 large eggs at room temperature
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/2 tablespoon molasses
2 tablespoons bourbon
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, melted
Butterscotch sauce, vanilla ice cream, optional

1. Heat oven to 325 degrees. Roll out and place the pie dough in a 9-inch pie pan. Place pecans on a baking sheet; toast in the oven, stirring once or twice, until they have a little color, about 7 minutes. Set aside enough of the pecans to cover the top of the pie. Coarsely chop remaining pecans.

2. Whisk together the eggs and brown sugar in a medium mixing bowl. Whisk in the corn syrup, molasses, bourbon, vanilla and salt. Whisk in the warm melted butter until mixture is emulsified and smooth. Fold in the chopped pecans.