• 1 recipe Lard-Crust Pastry or your favorite single crust pastry
• 3 eggs, slightly beaten
• 1 cup light-colored corn syrup
• ⅔ cups sugar
• ⅓ cup butter, melted
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 cups pecan halves

1. Preheat oven to 375ºF.
2. Prepare and roll out pastry for Lard-Crust Pastry. Line a 9-inch pie plate with the pastry. Trim pastry and crimp edge as desired.
3. For filling, in a large bow. Combine eggs, corn syrup, sugar, butter and salt. Mix well. Stir in the pecan halves.*
4. Place the pastry-lined pie plate on the oven rack. Carefully pour the filling into the pastry shell. To prevent over-browning, cover edge of the pie with foil.
5. Bake in a preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes more or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. Cover and refrigerate within 2 hours.

Makes 8 servings

Note: if desired, prepare egg mixture as above; set aside 2 tablespoons of the mixture. Stir 1 cup of the pecans into the egg mixture and pour into prepared crust. Add remaining pecans to the reserved mixture, toss to coat. Arrange in a circular pattern on top of the filling. Bake as above.

Lard-Crust Pastry

• 1¼ cups all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ⅓ cup lard
• 3 to 4 tablespoons cold water

1. In a medium bowl stir together flour and salt. Using a pastry blender cut lard until pieces are pea-size.
2. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon cold water over part of the flour mixture, gently toss with a fork. Puts moistened dough to the side of the bowl, repeat moistening flour mixture, using 1 tablespoon of water at a time, until all the flour mixture is moistened.
3. On a lightly floured surface, use your hands to slightly flatten dough. Roll form center to edges into a circle about 12 inches in diameter.