“ After he retired from coaching , he spent many hours studying pecan nut production ,” and “ religiously maintained ” the many pecan trees on his property .
“ When Dad was in his 80s , I would get phone calls from people traveling on busy Washington Street saying ‘ Coach is on a ladder high in his pecan tree again . You need to check on him ,’ ” she said . “ All through our lives , Mom and Dad would harvest and process the nuts and give them as gifts to family and friends . Dad experimented with many pecan pie recipes over the years and proudly prepared ‘ his ’ – she emphasized the ‘ his ’ – pies for every holiday .”
His final , perfected recipe is below .
COACHES PECAN PIE 11 / 2 cups brown sugar ¼ cup butter , melted 21 / 2 tablespoons flour 5 large eggs 11 / 3 cups light Karo syrup ¼ cup molasses 11 / 2 teaspoons vanilla 21 / 2-3 cups pecan pieces 2 unbaked 10 inch pie shells
Preheat oven to 350 *. Mix sugar , butter , flour , and eggs on low speed of mixer . Add syrup , molasses and vanilla ; mix well . Put pecans in unbaked pie shells and pour mixture over the nuts . ( They will rise to the top during baking .)
Bake at least 45 minutes or until the pecans are dark .
Let cool for about an hour before cutting and serving .
Jenny Martin – longtime Greenville educator and cook extraordinaire – specializes in pies , having made them through decades for family , friends and festivals . Growing up in Commerce , she vividly remembers gathering pecans with her cousins and siblings in an ancient grove next to her grandmother ’ s house .
“ We would gather awhile , then shell awhile , then play awhile and then shell some more . We had a regular pecan shelling factory going ,” she shares while sitting in her farmhouse kitchen in South Sulphur .
After crafting hundreds of pies , Jenny ’ s instincts in the kitchen make you understand why she was so successful in the classroom . When it comes to making pies , she says , “ You just take what comes and embrace it ”.
JENNY ’ S CHOCOLATE PE-
CAN PIE ½ cup sugar ½ cup dark brown sugar ½ cup Karo corn syrup 3 eggs ¼ cup cream 2 tablespoons salted butter ( softened )
1 teaspoon vanilla 1-2 teaspoons instant coffee 4 oz . dark chocolate ( melted ) ½ cup dark chocolate chips 1½ cups roasted pecans with salt Bake @ 350 * for 45-55 minutes .
This is a deep dish recipe .
Jenny prepares a store bought soft crust by working a pinch of salt into the dough before toasting it for 5-10 minutes in the oven .
“ I like my crust to have a little personality ” she said .
She also pre-roasts ( and cools ) the pecans so they remain crisp in the chocolate . In a medium size bowl , the ingredients are blended as she added each one , until the mixture was ready to pour into the lightly toasted crust . Bake at 350 degrees for 45-55 minutes . The pie is done when the center is fully puffed . The pie will fall as it cools , as all pecan pies do . Happy holiday baking .
GREENVILLE LIFE 16 HOLIDAY 2024