Mini Pecan Pies With Whipped Creme Fraiche And Gingerbread Cookies Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Mix together the granulated sugar, corn syrup, maple syrup, butter, brown sugar, whiskey, vanilla, salt and eggs in a bowl.
• Divide the chopped pecans among the pie shells. Pour the syrup mixture over the top and put a whole pecan on top of each. Bake until just set, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool.

Steps:

• For the cookies: Decorate the cookies as desired with red, green, black and white decorating icing.
• For the crust: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray two 12-cup muffins tins with nonstick cooking spray.
• Roll each pie into a 12-inch circle 1/8-inch thick on a lightly floured surface. Use a 3-inch round biscuit cutter to cut 24 circles, rerolling the dough as needed. Press one dough circle into the bottom and up the sides of each hole in the muffin tin. Freeze for 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, make the filling: Combine the butter, brown sugar, corn syrup and salt in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly, and boil for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and stir in the pecans and vanilla. Set the filling aside to cool slight, about 5 minutes.
• Whisk the eggs into the filling until smooth. Spoon about 1 1/2 tablespoons of filling into each pie shell. Bake until the filling is set and the crust is cooked through and golden brown around the edges, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.
• For the whipped cream: Mix the creme fraiche and granulated sugar in a medium bowl until smooth. Add the heavy cream and beat with a hand mixer until stiff peaks form. Spoon about 1 tablespoon whipped cream on top of each pie and top with a gingerbread cookie.
• The pies can be made up to 3 days in advance and stored in separate airtight containers. Make the whipped cream just before serving.