Butterscotch Pie

Creamy homemade Butterscotch Pie features a buttery, flaky crust filled with smooth butterscotch custard that is a perfect make ahead dessert and comes together quickly with minimal ingredients.

Ingredients and substitutions for Butterscotch Pie

• Plain flour: This is the best option for that flaky pastry, cake flour is not recommended here and if you live in the UK, see the FAQ's section as to the type of flour to use here.
• Butter: Cold and cubed helps you press it into your flour without heating it up too much as you work it. Make sure that butter is fully coated with flour so no puddles form during baking.
• Ice water: Ice water helps the water not soak into the flour too much which helps the gluten form in the dough whilst giving you that flaky texture!
• Brown sugar: It just wouldn’t be butterscotch pie without the brown sugar. Light brown sugar gives our pie the traditional flavor, however, you could try and substitute with a mixture of half light and half dark brown sugar or half brown and half raw sugar. It is not recommended to completely replace with a different sugar as this would affect the overall flavor. Also, using less than the recommended amount is also not suggested as this will lead to a much subtler flavor.
• Milk: Whole milk was used as it works perfectly with the heavy cream, however, you could replace with any creamy dairy free milk. The weight in grams was 245 grams.
• Egg yolks: They help give a deep custard flavor to our pudding and contribute to the velvety texture with no recommendations for substitutions here.
• Corn starch: Sometimes termed cornflour in certain parts of the globe. Corn starch gives our pudding that thick texture without being runny. It does need to be heated to 95C/203F before it is activated to thicken.
• Heavy cream: Cream is traditionally used for a butterscotch sauce, so this helps not only give us an authentic flavor to our filling, as well as a richness. The weight of the heavy cream is 341 grams.
• Vanilla extract: Vanilla extract acts as a flavor enhancer, without it we wouldn't have depth of flavor needed to make this pudding a stellar one.

See recipe card for quantities.

How to make Butterscotch Pie:

Step 1: Begin your pastry: Place the flour and salt into a bowl, stirring and then incorporating the cubed butter until it resembles large breadcrumbs.

Step 2: Ice water: Pour in ice water to form your dough until it holds together.

Step 3: Chill: Shape into a disc, cover and chill for 1 hour to rest.

Step 4: Roll out: On a lightly floured surface and to ¼ inch thickness and large enough to fit into your pie dish.

Step 5: Press and shape: Press the dough into your pie dish, trim the edges and shape the edges to your preference.

Step 6: Chill and bake: Chill the dough and pierce. Parbake with rice or baking beans before removing and baking until golden.

Step 7: Custard base: Heat the milk until lightly bubbly and separately whisk those sugar and yolk until pale.

Step 8: Butterscotch milk: Pour the warm milk in batches and whisk into the yolk mixture until smooth.

Step 9: Custard: Heat and stir the mixture in a saucepan until thickened before pouring into your cooled pastry.

Step 10: Chill and cream: Chill the pie and when ready to serve, whip your cream and decorate as per your preference.

Step 11: Serve up: Slice and enjoy!

FAQ's for the best Butterscotch Pie

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Butterscotch Pie

Sylvie Taylor

This Butterscotch Pie recipe features a buttery, flaky crust filled with velvety smooth butterscotch custard, creating a perfect balance of sweetness and warmth that will impress butterscotch and dessert lovers alike.

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Prep Time 1 hour hr

Cook Time 28 minutes mins

Chill time 1 hour hr 20 minutes mins

Total Time 2 hours hrs 48 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 10

Calories 401 kcal

Ingredients

  

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Pastry

• 150 grams / 1 ¼ cups plain flour
• ¼ teaspoon sea salt
• 110 grams / 3.88 ounces butter chilled and cubed
• 62 grams / ¼ cup ice water

Butterscotch pudding

• 240 grams / 1 cup milk
• 340 grams / 1 ½ cups heavy cream
• 230 grams / 1 cup + 2 ½ tablespoons light brown sugar
• 72 grams / 4 large egg yolks room temperature
• 30 grams / ¼ cup cornstarch
• 15 grams / 1 tablespoon butter
• ¼ teaspoon sea salt
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

To serve

• Whipped cream

Instructions

 

Pastry

• For the pastry, place the flour and salt into a bowl and stir to combine.
• Add the cubed butter and toss through the flour to coat completely in flour.
• Press each cube between your fingers to thin out and continue tossing through the flour, trying to ensure the butter becomes no smaller than the size of peas.
• Add in a little of the ice water and stir to combine, continuing 1 tablespoon at a time until a dough forms, but ensuring it’s not too sticky, but that there are no dry portions in the base of the bowl.?Press firmly into a disc, wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 220C/425F.
• Lightly flour your surface and both sides of your dough and roll out to ¼ inch thickness.
• Flipping the dough and adding a small sprinkle of flour, where necessary. Roll the dough around your rolling pin and place into your 18 cm or 7 inch pie dish.
• Pressing therein and trimming the edges, folding ½ inch of the dough under the edges and pinching firmly.
• Return the dough to the fridge for 20 minutes to chill.
• Remove, pierce with a fork all over and lay greaseproof paper to cover the entire pastry.
• Fill with baking beans or rice right up to the edges of your crust.
• Bake for 20 minutes until the edges are golden, remove the baking beans and continue to bake until golden all over, approximately 8 further minutes. Remove and allow to cool completely.

Butterscotch pudding

• Place the milk, cream and half of the brown sugar into a saucepan on medium heat until simmering and the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat.
• Meanwhile, place the remaining brown sugar, egg yolks and cornstarch into a bowl and whisk until fluffy and pale, approximately 1 minute.
• Gradually pour the hot cream mixture into the egg yolks and whisk to combine.
• Return the custard to your saucepan on medium heat, whisking until thickened, approximately 3 minutes.
• Remove from the heat and stir in the butter, salt and vanilla extract until the pudding is smooth.
• Pour the butterscotch custard into your pastry and cover with wrap.
• Place in the fridge to chill for at least 3 hours or preferably overnight.
• Pipe or spoon the top of your pie with a little whipped cream.
• Slice it up and serve.
• Dig in!

Notes

• Brown sugar: It just wouldn’t be butterscotch pie without the brown sugar. Light brown sugar gives our pie the traditional flavor, however, you could try and substitute with a mixture of half light and half dark brown sugar or half brown and half raw sugar. It is not recommended to completely substitute with a different sugar as this would affect the overall flavor, also, using less than the recommended amount is also not suggested as this will lead to a much subtler flavor.
• Milk: Whole milk was used as it works perfectly with the heavy cream, however, you could definitely substitute in any creamy dairy free milk. The weight in grams was 245 grams.
• Corn starch: Sometimes termed cornflour in certain parts of the globe. Corn starch gives our pudding that thick texture without being runny. It does need to be heated to 95C/203F before it is activated to thicken.
• Heavy cream: Cream is traditionally used for a butterscotch sauce so this helps not only give us an authentic flavor to our filling, as well as a richness. The weight of the heavy cream is 341 grams.
• Best flour to use for your pastry, if living in the UK: Plain flour in the UK has a lower protein amount which contributes to the dough strength, type of crumb and texture of your pastry, in this case. Plain flour in the Unites States, for example, has the same level of protein as Bread flour in the UK. The best flour to use here will be 175 grams / 1 ¼ cups bread flour. This will help you ensure a flaky pastry and making it easier to shape without being flimsy which is often the feeling of unbaked dough.
• You can use store bought pastry: You can if you are short on time with shortcrust pastry to replace for homemade flaky pastry.
• Pie dish: The pie dish used here is 18 cm or 7 inch which is around average, though a substitute would be a deep tart tin.
• Baking beans: Baking beans help keep your help to keep the pastry in shape as it bakes. Uncooked rice is a great substitute; but make sure you have sufficient to come right up to the edges of your crust.
• Make ahead: This is a great make ahead without the cream topping and will remain perfect, when covered, for up to 2 days before serving. Once the cream topping has been added, you will want to serve it up within 6 hours.

Recipe by Roamingtaste

Nutrition

Calories: 401kcal

Keyword caramel, custard, pie

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