The recipe
A Straightforward Southern Pecan Pie
Mary Anne Hagedorn’s Southern Pecan Pie is a concise community-cookbook classic: eggs, sugar, salt, melted butter and corn syrup are beaten together, then 1½ cups of pecans are added to the filling.
Everything goes into an unbaked 9-inch pie crust and bakes at 375° for 40 to 50 minutes, or until set. The source keeps the formula simple—no added flavorings or toppings, just the familiar pecan-pie combination.
Why it matters
Why This One Is Worth Bringing Back
Not every recipe worth preserving needs a twist. This one matters precisely because it is so spare: a short ingredient list, a single mixing step and a clear doneness cue. It captures the kind of dependable pie formula community cookbooks were built to share.
Mary Anne Hagedorn is identified in the source as a Jersey County member of 31 years, which connects this simple dessert to the long-running network of home cooks behind the cookbook.
Within a collection that includes several very different pecan pies, this version works almost like a baseline—the uncomplicated Southern Pecan Pie the variations can be read against.
Explore more recipes and source context in the 75 Years of Caring and Sharing archive.
Modern kitchen notes
If You're Making It Today
These are modern editorial suggestions, not changes to the archived recipe. When a variation comes directly from the original source, we will say so.
Do not assume a pecan shape
The source simply says pecans; it does not specify halves or chopped nuts. Keep that detail open rather than adding specificity the record does not provide.
Use “set” as the finish cue
The source gives a 40-to-50-minute range and says to bake until set. Avoid treating one exact minute mark as universal.
Keep additions separate
Whipped cream, ice cream, bourbon or chocolate are serving ideas only if added today; they are not part of the preserved recipe.
Recipe card
The Preserved Recipe
Southern Pecan Pie
Ingredients
- 1 9 inch pie crust unbaked
- 3 eggs
- ⅔ c. sugar
- ½ tsp. salt
- ⅓ c. melted butter
- 1 c. corn syrup
- 1½ c. pecans
Instructions
- Combine eggs, sugar, salt, butter, and corn syrup. Beat well. Add pecans. Pour into pie shell. Bake at 375° for 40 to 50 minutes or until set.
Give Something Back
Help preserve the community behind the cookbook.
This recipe traces back to a Jersey County community cookbook created in the spirit of sharing, service and local connection. If you’d like to carry that spirit forward, consider supporting the Jersey County Historical Society and its work preserving local history for future generations.
Support Jersey County History →
Nostalgic Foodie is not affiliated with the Jersey County Historical Society and does not receive any portion of donations.
From the archive
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