From Alison Walker, author of A Country Cook’s Kitchen (Jacqui Small, £25)
If you can’t find molasses sugar, use dark brown muscovado sugar instead.
Preparation: 35 minutes plus chilling; cooking about 1 hour; serves 6–8
Ingredients
1 quantity basic rich shortcrust pastry made with 225g (71/2oz) flour and 110g (31/2oz) cold butter
75g (3oz) butter
75g (3oz) molasses sugar
3 medium eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon cornflour
200g (7oz) pecan halves
60ml (21/2fl oz) dark maple syrup
250ml (8fl oz) golden syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 Roll out the pastry and use it to line a 23cm (9 inch) flan tin. Chill for 30 minutes, preheat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan oven/400°F), gas mark 6 and then bake blind.
2 Turn down the oven temperature to 180°C (160°C fan oven/350°F), gas mark 4 and put a baking sheet in the oven to preheat. Beat the butter and sugar together until soft and fluffy, then gradually beat in the eggs with the cornflour.
3 Stir in two-thirds of the pecans, the syrups and vanilla extract and pour into the pastry case. Arrange the remaining pecan halves on top.
4 Bake in the oven on the preheated baking sheet for 45 minutes until the filling is set. Serve warm.
