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Easy Pecan Crust

4.58 from 7 votes

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This easy pecan pie crust is a new twist on an old classic. With 4 ingredients and 20 minutes of your time, you can have a deliciously nutty crust for all your family favorites. 

Nut crusts are naturally low carb (or at least low-er) and gluten-free and can easily replace the pastry crust in pies and graham cracker crusts in other desserts.

Pecan Cinnamon Pie Crust on wooden cutting board with pecans and cinnamon sticks.

I really, really, like pecans.

When I was a kid we would get boxes from my grandmother out in West Texas in the fall, and there was always a couple of gallon bags of pecans.

Daddy would spend all of football season cracking them, and Mom would use them just as fast as he could get them out of the shells.

Lots of our holiday goodies contained those little treats, and I carry on that tradition.

My Mom now has pecan trees of her own that she and Daddy planted 30 some years ago.

When I lived far away from home I would get care packages stuffed with a few gallon bags of pecans every year.

It was awesome!

Now I live in the same town and I get them whenever I want.

Cuz I’m the favorite. 🙂

And because I use pecans in just about everything, I thought I needed a pecan pie crust recipe, too.

So here it is.

I love this recipe!

It’s crunchy and slightly sweet and perfect for all kinds of amazing desserts and pies.

Check out my Cherry Cream Cheese Pie recipe to fill it up. It’s made with homemade cream cheese and it’s amazing in this crust.

You could fill it with a sweet potato pie.

Or maybe with Spiced Plums.

Or Apple Pie Filling.

Or, maybe get a little crazy, and put Rhubarb in it!

Now that sounds yummy! 🙂

This crust is perfect for those of you that are avoiding gluten as nuts are naturally gluten free.

And I even included a keto friendly option!

Pecan Pie Crust on wooden cutting board with pecans and cinnamon sticks.

Pecan Crust Recipe

Yield: This makes enough crust for an 8 or 9 inch pie crust.

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 cups finely chopped pecans (if you’re not lucky enough to have your own trees, you can order them here)
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 4 Tablespoons butter (salted or unsalted butter both work perfectly)

NOTE: For a keto friendly version of the crust, simply replace the sugar with the granulated sweetener of your choice.

Instructions

First things first, preheat your oven to 350° F.

Next, chop the pecans pretty fine.

Finely chopped pecans on cutting board.
finely chopped pecans

You can do that by hand or in a food processor.

But be careful if you’re using a processor. You don’t want pecan butter.

Which is a thing.

And quite tasty.

But not so good for crust.

Melt the butter while you’re chopping the pecans.

I like to use my cast iron butter melting pot to melt it in.

Just pop it in the oven while it’s preheating and, Presto! Melted butter.

Mixing the Crust

Next, put the melted butter, sugar, and cinnamon in a medium mixing bowl and stir that up until well combined.

Melted butter, sugar, and cinnamon in mixing bowl with wooden spoon.
mixing up the good stuff

Then add the chopped up pecans and mix it really well.

When it’s all mixed up it holds together kinda like wet sand does.

Pecan Crust mixture in bowl with wooden spoon.
crust mixture ready to go

Now comes the fun part!

Press the pecan mixture into the bottom of your pie dish(es).

And then press the mixture up the sides for a pie.

Pecan crust mixture pressed into the pie plate.
crust in place and ready for the oven

If you are making a cheesecake, just press it into the bottom.

The cool thing about this recipe is that you can put it all in a regular pie pan where it will have a fairly thick crust, or split it between two for a thinner crust, or even use a deep dish pie pan.

There’s crust enough for all!

Baking the Crust

Bake the pecan crust in the preheated oven for 12-15 minutes.

Only until it’s lightly browned. Nuts burn easily, so be careful.

I take any leftover crust mixture and spread it on a cookie sheet and bake it at the same time.

Then I have something to use as a garnish for the tops of cheesecake or to sprinkle over yogurt.

And if you are topping your pie with whipped cream, it makes a lovely crunchy counterpart to that as well!

Finally, cool the crust completely on a wire rack before adding the filling.

PLEASE NOTE: If you are using this crust for a baked pie, like pumpkin pie or apple pie, carefully pour the filling into the uncooked crust and bake as long as your recipe calls for.

Blessings!

What would you put in this amazing crust?

Frequently Asked Questions About Pecan Crust

Can I substitute almonds, cashews, or walnuts for the pecans in the crust?

Absolutely! Just make sure that they are finely chopped and there is 2 1/2 cups.

Should I always prebake my pecan crust before filling it?

That depends on what you are putting in it! If you are baking a pie like apple or pumpkin, don’t pre bake it. If you are filling it with no-bake cheesecake or pudding, you need to prebake it and allow it to cool completely before filling.

Why did my pecan crust not stay together?

There are 3 possible reasons when your crust falls apart.
1. The pecans were not chopped finely enough. Make sure they are really fine or they wont hold together. If you press the chopped pecans together and they just fall apart, chop them some more.
2. You didn’t press it firmly enough into the pie plate. Make sure that you quite firmly pressing the mixture into the pie tin or plate in an even layer.
3. You didn’t bake it long enough. The crust should be a golden brown and a little more brown around the top edges.

More desserts you should try:

Pecan Pie Crust

Pecan Cinnamon Pie Crust

This pecan crust is the perfect crust for just about everything! Not too sweet and gluten free.
4.58 from 7 votes
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Total Time 18 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 8 slices
Calories 296 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 2 1/2 cups finely chopped pecans
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/3 cup white sugar
  • 4 Tbsp butter melted

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  • Chop the pecans pretty fine. You can do that by hand or in a food processor.
  • Melt the butter while you’re chopping the pecans.
  • Put the melted butter in a small bowl and add sugar and cinnamon. Mix well.
  • Add the chopped pecans and mix well.
  • Press the crust mixture into the bottom of your pan(s). You can go slightly up the sides (like a 1/4 inch) if you want to.
  • Bake in the preheated oven for 12-15 minutes. Just until its lightly browned. Nuts burn easily, so be careful.
  • Cool the crust completely before adding the filling.

Notes

Nutrition

Serving: 1sliceCalories: 296kcalCarbohydrates: 13gProtein: 3gFat: 28gSaturated Fat: 6gPolyunsaturated Fat: 7gMonounsaturated Fat: 14gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 15mgSodium: 45mgPotassium: 129mgFiber: 3gSugar: 10gVitamin A: 193IUVitamin C: 0.3mgCalcium: 25mgIron: 1mg
Keyword pecan crust, pecan pie crust
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
By on November 29th, 2022

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