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Walnut, whiskey and salted caramel pie

Add a Southern kick with rye whiskey, smoothed out by a salted caramel crumble.

By Lisa Featherby
  • 20 mins preparation
  • 35 mins cooking
  • Serves 8 - 10
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Walnut, whiskey and salted caramel pie
Pastry for a case can be grated rather than rolled out. Chill the dough and, once firm, grate it evenly over the base of the pie dish and press quickly to join it together. This reduces the risk of overworking the gluten and it's easier, too. Ensure the pastry is pressed into the dish evenly so it cooks uniformly.

Ingredients

  • 200 gm walnuts
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 1½ tbsp plain flour
  • 30 ml rye whiskey
  • Scraped seeds of 1 vanilla bean
  • Pure icing sugar and thickened cream or icecream, to serve
Sweet pastry
  • 250 gm plain flour (1⅔ cups)
  • 60 gm pure icing sugar, sieved
  • 120 gm butter, chilled, coarsely chopped
  • 3 egg yolks
Salted caramel
  • 200 gm caster sugar
  • 100 ml pouring cream
  • 80 gm butter, coarsely chopped

Method

Main
  • 1
    For sweet pastry, process flour, icing sugar and 1 tsp salt in a food processor to combine, then add butter and process until fine crumbs form, then add yolks and process to combine. Tip mixture out onto a work surface and bring together with the heel of your hand. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour to rest.
  • 2
    Preheat oven to 150C. Roast walnuts on an oven tray until golden brown (10-15 minutes). Cool briefly, then process in a food processor until coarsely chopped. Set aside.
  • 3
    Coarsely grate pastry evenly over base of a 25cm-diameter pie dish, then press evenly onto base and up sides. Pinch rim to create a crimped effect and refrigerate pastry case for 1 hour to rest.
  • 4
    For salted caramel, stir sugar and 80ml water in a saucepan over medium-high heat, brushing crystals down sides of pan, until sugar dissolves, then bring to the boil and cook without stirring until dark caramel (6-8 minutes). Remove from heat and stir in cream, butter, 100ml water and 1½ tsp salt (be careful, caramel will spit). Return to heat and stir until smooth (1-1½ minutes). Stand to cool briefly (15 minutes).
  • 5
    Preheat oven to 170C. Whisk eggs and yolks together in a bowl, then whisk in caramel, flour, whiskey, vanilla seeds and a pinch of salt. Stir in chopped walnuts, then pour into pastry case and bake until set and golden (25-35 minutes). Dust with icing sugar and serve with cream or ice-cream.

Notes

Drink Suggestion: Rich moscatel sherry. Drink suggestion by Max Allen