Martha Stewart Aspirational Attempt Series: Pecan Pie

Behold the remnants of the pecan pie which I baked yesterday. I "think" there was something wrong with this... Hmm... twinge of denial there. Okay, let me rephrase, I am SURE I botched this pie! Anywayt, let me show you guys the recipe:

Classic Pecan Pie

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 55 to 60 minutes
Chill Time: 2 hours
Yield: 8 servings

• 1 cup Karo® Light Corn Syrup
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• 1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) pecans
• 1 (9-inch) unbaked or frozen** deep-dish pie crust

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Mix corn syrup, eggs, sugar, butter and vanilla using a spoon. Stir in pecans. Pour filling into pie crust.
3. Bake on center rack of oven for 55 to 60 minutes. Cool for 2 hours on wire rack before serving.
4. **To use prepared frozen pie crust: Place cookie sheet in oven and preheat oven as directed. Pour filling into frozen crust and bake on preheated cookie sheet.


5. RECIPE TIPS: Pie is done when center reaches 200°F. Tap center surface of pie lightly - it should spring back when done. For easy clean up, spray pie pan with cooking spray before placing pie crust in pan. If pie crust is overbrowning, cover edges with foil.

Looks easy right? In fact, the filling is just mixed together and poured into the frozen pie crust in just 5 minutes. After I baked the pie, I just let it cool and went off to work. When I came home and tasted the pie, the filling, especially near the center felt mushy in my mouth. Too soft.

Question #1... and this is directed to anyone who has ever bitten into a pecan pie:
Should the filling be sort of firm? And firm not just because the pie was put into the ref ha. My filling was sort of soft that if you heated a slice, the corn syrup/egg/sugar glue would be slightly molasses-y and the pie slice would kind of droop.

Question #2... directed to anyone who's ever baked:
I found the recipe too sweet and too rich. What should I tweak... the amount of sugar or the amount of corn syrup? BTW, I used brown sugar for this recipe...does it matter if it's brown or regular white sugar?

Question #3...directed to anyone who's had an experience with an electric oven:
Our oven is quite an old electric oven which I use maybe once or twice a year and I notice that the heating light thingies above and below the racks light up and fade every few minutes (though I think the heat is constant inside the oven chamber). Is this characteristic of all electric ovens?

Question #4...free for all question to all smarty-pants bakers...
At 15 minutes into my baking I found out that my crust was turning brown at a fast rate so I had to take out the pie and put foil (as stated in the recipe) on the edges. Also, i opened the oven door quite a few times to test the top surface of the pie for springiness. Did my open and shut tendencies play a part in the eternal damnation of my pecan pie?

Oh well.. mushy or not... once slice is left so I guess it wasn't that bad. All pie-makers, feel free to toss your own goody-two-cents.