This turtle pecan pie is made with a buttery, flaky pie crust and a gooey, chocolatey, sweet caramel filling with just the right amount of toasted pecans!
This turtle pie is unlike any other pecan pie! Everybody needs a tried and true pecan pie without corn syrup that tastes every bit as good as traditional pecan pie, if not even better!
And let me tell you.. this turtle pie made with salted caramel sauce mixed right in the filling along with a chocolate chunks studded throughout is absolutely incredible. You need this pie on your Thanksgiving table!
For more pie recipes, try Salted Caramel Apple Pie, Balsamic Molasses Pear Galette, Maple Pumpkin Hand Pies, and Black Bottom Pumpkin Custard Pie.
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Why you'll love this turtle pie
- Flaky, Buttery Pie Crust: My go-to all butter pie dough that creates an ultra flaky, tender crust that's perfect with any pie filling.
- Gooey Caramel Filling: This rich salted caramel sauce is mixed right in the filling! Its thick, sweet consistency is what allows the corn syrup and some of the sugar to be replaced.
- Chocolate & Pecans: Melty chocolate chunks and chopped pecans layered in this gooey caramel filling is to die for!
Ingredient Notes
Ingredient quantities are listed in the recipe card below. Here you'll find notes on why I chose certain ingredients, as well as ingredient substitutions.
- Flour: Weigh your flour! Homemade pie dough is very simple, so long as everything is measured precisely!
- Salt: Use kosher salt, not table salt.
- Butter: Since there are so few ingredients in pie dough, it gets all of its flavor from the butter, so be sure to use high-quality unsalted butter.
- Ice Water: Pie must be cold at all times, so it's important that the water is iced!
- Salted Caramel Sauce: You could use store-bought or make this recipe!
- Brown Sugar: Since caramel sauce is primarily sugar, there's no need to add too much brown sugar to the filling.
- Eggs: You'll need three eggs at room temperature.
- Chocolate: Use your favorite semi-sweet chocolate chips or chunks!
- Pecans: Roughly chop the pecans for the filling, and pick out the perfect pecan halves to arrange on the top!
Kitchen Equipment
- Kitchen Scale
- Mixing Bowls
- Plastic Wrap
- Rolling Pin
- 9" pie dish
- Baking Sheet
Step by Step Instructions
This might be one of the easiest homemade pie recipes! Once you nail the homemade pie crust and homemade caramel sauce, the rest of this recipe is just a simple bowl & whisk batter. So so easy. The most important part of this recipe is chilling the pie every time it's touched. This will ensure is doesn't shrink or lose it's crimp when it's baked!
Be sure to read below for notes on how to prepare each element ahead of time!
STEP 1: Make the pie dough: A day or two before, make the pie dough and chill overnight. For more detailed step by step instructions, see this 3 Ingredient Pie Crust Recipe.
STEP 2: Make the filling: In a medium bowl, whisk together the caramel sauce, flour, brown sugar, salt, eggs, and vanilla until fully combined.
STEP 3: Assemble the pie: Roll out the pie dough and transfer to the pie dish, ensuring it is nestled up against the sides and corners. Fold the edges of the pie over and crimp the edges as desired. Spread the chopped pecans and chocolate chunks into an even layer into the pie dough.
STEP 4: Assemble the pie: Pour the filling over the chopped pecans and chocolate.
STEP 5: Assemble the pie: Arrange the pecan halves on top, and place back in the fridge one last time for about 10 minutes to ensure the crimp holds its shape in the oven.
STEP 6: Bake the pie: Place the pie on the hot baking sheet in the oven and bake for about 40-45 minutes until the edges are golden and the filling appears set. Allow the pie to set for at least two hours or overnight.
Expert Baking Tips
- For more detailed step by step instructions on how to make homemade pie dough, see this post.
- If you have vodka on hand, you can add a tablespoon or two to the pie dough before the water. You'll end up adding less water, so still pay close attention to the hydration level. Vodka does not develop the gluten as much, which makes it perfect for hydrating pie dough and creating a super tender pie crust!
- The most important thing with making pie crust is to always keep the dough cold at all steps. So use ice cold water and cold butter, and any time you touch the dough you should put it back in the fridge for at least 20 minutes.
- If making homemade caramel, I recommend making at least an hour before (or up to a week before) making the apple pie filling to give it time to cool down and thicken up.
FAQ
Cut cold cubed butter into the flour until quarter sized pieces are left. Roll the chilled pie dough out into a rough rectangle, then fold it into quarters. Chill for a few minutes, then repeat. This series of rolling and folding creates layers and layers of butter and dough. When the pie dough is baked, the butter creates steam and pushes the layers of dough upwards, creating an ultra flaky, buttery crust!
Of course! But if you have the time, I encourage you try homemade. It's so much better than store-bought, and it is surprisingly easy to make!
Absolutely! But I highly recommend this foolproof salted caramel sauce 🙂 Homemade caramel is surprisingly easy to make, but if you've never made it before the post is packed with tips & tricks to walk you through it!
Make Ahead Tips
You can make the pie dough up to 3 days ahead of time stored in the fridge or up to 3 months ahead of time if stored in the freezer. If it's stored in the freezer, be sure to thaw it out in the fridge overnight before using.
The caramel sauce can be made up to a week ahead of time stored in the fridge.
The day the pie is assembled, it must be baked! I highly recommend baking it the day before serving, as it needs a few hours to cool and set. This gives the filling enough time to set so you can get clean cut pie slices!
Storage Tips
Store leftover pie slices covered at room temperature or in the fridge for 2-3 days.
Baking in Grams
All of the recipes on this blog are carefully developed to create incredibly delicious baked goods that you can easily recreate in your own kitchen with success. The only way this is possible is to standardize the way ingredients are measured - by weight. Volume measurements are extremely inaccurate and leave room for significant errors. Not all measuring cups are made equally, so your one cup of flour will be different from my one cup of flour. By providing precise measurements in grams (aside from minor ingredients, which are given in tsp/tbsp), I can ensure that you can make the recipe accurately and with less cleanup! All you need is this kitchen scale.
If this still isn't enough to convince you, I have provided volume measurements in the recipe card. If you are interested in understanding the conversions, this is the best conversion chart.
But trust me, once you try baking in grams you'll never turn back!
Happy baking! x
Other recipes to try
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Print📖 Recipe
Turtle Pecan Pie
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
- Yield: 9 inch pie 1x
- Category: pie
- Method: baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
This turtle pecan pie is made with a buttery, flaky pie crust and a gooey, chocolatey, sweet caramel filling with just the right amount of toasted pecans!
Ingredients
For the all-butter pie crust:
- Get the ingredients here
For the salted caramel sauce:
- Get the ingredients here
For the turtle pecan pie filling:
- 200g (¾ cup) caramel sauce
- 30g ( ¼ cup) all-purpose flour
- 53g (¼ cup) brown sugar
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 3 eggs, room temp
- 2 tsp vanilla bean paste or extract
- 170g (1 ½ cups) pecans, roughly chopped
- 85g (½ cup) chocolate chunks
- 113g (1 cup) pecan halves, for topping
Instructions
For the all-butter pie crust:
- Get the instructions here
For the salted caramel sauce:
- Get the instructions here
For the turtle pecan pie filling:
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F with a large baking sheet on the lowest rack.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pie dough into a circle about ⅛" in thickness and large enough to fit in the pie dish with some overhang.
- Carefully transfer to the pie dish, ensuring it is nestled up against the sides and corners. Fold the edges of the pie over and gently press to seal. Place in the fridge while the filling is made.
- Chop 170g (1 ½ cups) of pecans and spread into an even layer along with the chocolate chunks into the pie dough.
- Crimp the edges of the pie dough as desired, then place back in the fridge.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the caramel sauce, flour, brown sugar, salt, eggs, and vanilla until fully combined.
- Pour the filling over chopped pecans and chocolate, then arrange the pecan halves on top.
- Place back in the fridge one last time for about 10 minutes to ensure the crimp holds its shape in the oven.
- Place the pie on the hot baking sheet in the oven and bake for about 40-45 minutes until the edges are golden and the filling appears set.
- Allow the pie to set for at least two hours or overnight.
Notes
- For more detailed step by step instructions on how to make homemade pie dough, see this post.
- If you have vodka on hand, you can add a tablespoon or two to the pie dough before the water. You'll end up adding less water, so still pay close attention to the hydration level. Vodka does not develop the gluten as much, which makes it perfect for hydrating pie dough and creating a super tender pie crust!
- The most important thing with making pie crust is to always keep the dough cold at all steps. So use ice cold water and cold butter, and any time you touch the dough you should put it back in the fridge for at least 15-20 minutes.
- If making homemade caramel, I recommend making at least an hour before (or up to a week before) making the apple pie filling to give it time to cool down and thicken up.
Keywords: turtle pie, turtle pecan pie, chocolate caramel pecan pie, pecan pie without cron syrup
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