UPSIDE-DOWN PECAN PIE

Upside-Down Pecan Pie image

This confection is for the pecan-pie fan who prefers nuts and caramel to the traditional butterscotch filling. Serve it warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Provided by Martha Stewart

Categories Food & Cooking Dessert & Treats Recipes Pie & Tarts Recipes

Yield Makes one 10-inch pie

Number Of Ingredients 8

Ingredients

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
1/2 cup honey
1 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
4 cups pecan halves (about 1 pound)
3/4 cup heavy cream
All-purpose flour, for dusting
1/2 recipe Pate Brisee for Upside-Down Pecan Pie

Steps:

In a 10-inch cast-iron skillet over medium heat, combine butter, honey, and sugars. Bring to a boil; let boil for 4 minutes. Add pecans and heavy cream, and boil 3 minutes more. Remove from heat, and set aside. Let stand about 30 minutes to cool. Using a wooden spoon, gently mound pecans and caramel slightly in center of skillet, leaving a gap between pecans and edge of skillet.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.with rack in the top third. On a clean, lightly floured work surface, roll out one disk of prepared chilled pastry to approximately a 7/8-inch-thick, 13-inch-diameter circle. Place the pastry over the skillet, carefully tucking the dough down against the edge of the skillet and around the edges of the mound of pecans. Trim the excess dough.
Place two rimmed baking sheets, one on top of the other, underneath the skillet to catch any drips while the pie bakes and to provide insulation for the caramel. Place skillet in the oven, and bake pie until the dough is just turning golden brown, about 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees, and continue baking until the pastry is cooked through and the caramel is bubbling up around the edges of the skillet, about 30 minutes more.
Remove the pie from the oven, and let cool about 20 minutes. Carefully invert the pie onto a parchment-lined tray or baking sheet (the pie is easy to transfer to serving plate once it has been inverted). Be careful inverting pie; the caramel is very hot. If the pie does not release easily from skillet, heat the skillet over medium heat for about 30 seconds. Serve warm.