Pecan Pie Filling—Prototype 1:
 
This sauce is essentially the same as my failure-laden Pecan Pie Disk recipe (see Pitfalls to avoid for more info on this), but with one notable exception:

No xanthan gum was included in this more recent recipe!

I originally intended to make that earlier disk recipe as a sauce or pie filling. But when I added the xanthan gum to it, I ended up using too much. I cannot recall ever using this thickener in the past, so that recipe was highly likely my xanthan gum debut. So I had a new ingredient that I had yet to get a lot more familiar with. Due to an excess amount of it, I ended up settling for a firm, pecan-pie-flavored "disk", and I was ultimately disappointed with the outcome.

Therefore, the "corrected" recipe is presented below.
 
2 eggs
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons flour (white whole wheat)
(Tip: blend these three above ingredients first, before adding the other ones below.)
2 cups corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 oz. chopped pecans (about 1 cup, after chopping)

Combine all these ingredients in a saucepan before heating. Stir constantly over a roughly medium heat, bringing the mixture to a mild boil. Stir and cook carefully for about another 5 minutes, then remove from heat and let cool to about room temperature.
 
Even without any xanthan gum, this recipe came out plenty thick enough, especially when refrigerated. And the taste was great! At least one person at Living Hope Church even described this filling as "decadent". However, there did not seem to be many takers at this gathering. My guess was that many were perhaps more used to this stuff being in a pie, rather than being presented as "pecan dip" (as indicated on a little nearby sign). I encouraged others to try this pecan recipe with cookies (or other sweet baked goods). But somebody (Gaynell from what I best recall) gave it a try with a cracker and reacted rather favorably to this sweet-and-salty combo.

At least I now had an excellent "building block" to add on to select future desserts (probably including my next pumpkin or eggnog cheesecake).
 

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