Pie Without The Hassle
The holidays are a time for pie. While I love pie, I wouldn’t say I’m the best at making them. I truly believe there’s an artistry to pies especially when it comes to making and designing the pie crust. I’m still working my way up to that level so in the meantime, you’ll find me making this Brown Butter Salted Pecan Pie Sundae. It has all of the components you love about a pecan pie without the hassle of making one. We’re making a homemade brown butter praline sauce, which is drizzled over vanilla ice cream. Then it’s topped with flaky salt and served with cinnamon sugar pie crust chips. So if you’re looking for an easy yet impactful dessert for the holidays, you should definitely bookmark this recipe.
The Easiest Pie Crust
Like any pie recipe, we’ll start with the crust — and this might just be the easiest pie crust recipe you come across. We’re using store-bought pie crust dough and baking it with a cinnamon sugar topping. Preheat the oven to 425℉. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Unroll the pie crust. Brush the top all over with with the egg wash. Then sprinkle on the raw sugar and cinnamon on top in an even layer. Cut the pie crust into 1 x 2½ inch rectangles or any shape similar to that size. Place the pie crust pieces onto the baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes until golden brown and crisp. Set aside to cool
Brown Butter Praline Sauce
To make the brown butter praline sauce we’ll start with browning the butter. Heat a sauce pot over medium heat. Add in the butter and allow it to melt. Continue to cook the butter for 8-10 minutes until it has browned. In the meantime heat a separate pan over medium heat. Add in the chopped pecans and toast for 3-5 minutes until fragrant. Stir occasionally then transfer the pecans into a bowl.
When the butter has browned, mix in the brown sugar and salt then cook for 2-3 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium low and while whisking, slowly pour in the heavy cream in a steady stream. Continue to whisk and cook for another 4-5 minutes. The mixture should be bubbling but not rapidly boiling, so lower the heat as needed while cooking. Remove the pan from heat then mix in the pecans, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Serve the praline sauce on vanilla ice cream with the pie crust chips and top with a sprinkle of flaky salt.
Simple But Impactful
The holidays are truly like the olympics for those of us who like to cook. However, there’s a million dishes cooking and sometimes I can’t even think about having to make one last dish for dessert. That’s why I love recipes like this Brown Butter Salted Pecan Pie Sundae because it’s simple yet impactful. I guarantee people will be just as impressed with this dessert the same way they’d be impressed about a dessert that took 3 hours to make. The contrast between the warm praline sauce and cold ice cream is delicious. As the praline sits and chills on top of the ice cream, it turns into a stretchy caramel consistency. The sauce is sweet, buttery, and nutty, so the flaky salt on top is the perfect savory balance. I think what truly sends it home for me is the pie crust chips. It ties in the pecan pie aspect and they add such a nice texture. You can use it to scoop up bites of the ice cream or even crumble it on top. There truly aren’t enough words to describe how delicious this Brown Butter Pecan Pie Sundae is, so you’ll just have to try it out to see for yourself!
Brown Butter Salted Pecan Pie Sundae
Ingredients
For the Pie Crust Chips:
- 1 Store Bought Pie Crust Dough
- Egg Wash (1 egg beaten with 1 tbsp milk)
- 3 tbsp Raw Sugar
- 1½ tsp Cinnamon
For the Brown Butter Praline Sauce:
- ½ cup Unsalted Butter
- ½ cup Chopped Pecans
- 1 cup Brown Sugar
- ⅛ tsp Kosher Salt
- ½ cup Heavy Cream
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- ¼ tsp Cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp Nutmeg
- Vanilla Ice Cream (for serving)
- Flaky Salt (for topping)
Instructions
For the Pie Crust Chips:
- Preheat the oven to 425℉. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Unroll the pie crust. Brush the top all over with with the egg wash. Then sprinkle on the raw sugar and cinnamon on top in an even layer. Cut the pie crust into 1 x 2½ inch rectangles or any shape similar to that size. Place the pie crust pieces onto the baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes until golden brown and crisp. Set aside to cool
For the Brown Butter Praline Sauce:
- Heat a sauce pot over medium heat. Add in the butter and allow it to melt. Continue to cook the butter for 8-10 minutes until it has browned.
- In the meantime heat a separate pan over medium heat. Add in the chopped pecans and toast for 3-5 minutes until fragrant. Stir occasionally then transfer the pecans into a bowl.
- When the butter has browned, mix in the brown sugar and salt then cook for 2-3 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium low and while whisking, slowly pour in the heavy cream in a steady stream. Continue to whisk and cook for another 4-5 minutes. The mixture should be bubbling but not rapidly boiling. Lower the heat as needed while cooking. Remove the pan from heat then mix in the pecans, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
- Serve the praline sauce on vanilla ice cream with the pie crust chips and top with a sprinkle of flaky salt. Enjoy!
