Favorite Chocolate-Bourbon Pecan Tart

Christmas at the cottage. Year nine. Luc home from LSU — sophomore now, more confident, broader (he's been using the gym; Danielle noticed; I pretended not to). Colette brought a portfolio of her semester's work that made Mama speechless (Mama is never speechless except when confronted with art that moves her beyond words, which is: always with Colette). Rémy cooked Christmas dinner. THE WHOLE THING. Gumbo, dirty rice, baked ham glazed with Mama's fig preserves, and a sweet potato pie that he made from a recipe in his own journal — not mine, not Mama's. His.

His sweet potato pie is different from Mama's: more cinnamon, less nutmeg, a splash of bourbon that he added "because the bread pudding has whiskey so the pie should have bourbon" — the logic of a twelve-year-old who thinks in flavor parallels and who may be, in his quiet way, developing a culinary philosophy at an age when most kids are developing opinions about video games. The pie was excellent. Different from Mama's. Better? I won't say. But different, and the difference is Rémy's, and the Rémy-ness of it is the whole point.

Mama tasted the pie and said, "Ton garçon." Your boy. Two words. Not about the pie. About the boy. About the twelve-year-old who stood in her kitchen and cooked Christmas dinner with the authority and the love and the total commitment that she recognizes because she had it, and Joey had it, and I have it, and now Rémy has it. "Ton garçon." Yours. Mine. Ours. The chain's.

When Rémy decided that bourbon belonged in the sweet potato pie — because the bread pudding has whiskey and therefore the pie should have bourbon — he wasn’t being random. He was thinking in a system, the way Mama thinks in a system, the way I think in a system. Bourbon belongs in Southern desserts the same way love belongs in a kitchen: it deepens everything it touches. This chocolate-bourbon pecan tart is the recipe I reach for when I want to honor that logic — the dark richness of chocolate, the toasted weight of pecans, and just enough bourbon to make the whole thing feel like it was made by someone who knows exactly what they’re doing.

Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 45 minutes | Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes | Servings: 10

Ingredients

1 unbaked 9-inch tart shell or deep-dish pie crust
1 cup pecan halves
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
3 large eggs
3/4 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
2 tablespoons bourbon
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon fine salt

Instructions

Preheat the oven. Set your oven to 350°F (175°C). Place the tart shell in its pan on a rimmed baking sheet and set aside.
Layer the base. Scatter the chocolate chips evenly over the bottom of the tart shell, then arrange the pecan halves on top in a single layer.
Whisk the filling. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, corn syrup, granulated sugar, brown sugar, melted butter, bourbon, vanilla, and salt until smooth and fully combined, about 1 minute.
Fill the tart. Slowly pour the egg mixture over the pecans and chocolate, allowing it to settle between the pecans without disturbing the arrangement.
Bake. Slide the baking sheet into the oven and bake for 40–45 minutes, until the edges are set and the center has only the slightest jiggle when gently nudged. The filling will firm as it cools.
Cool completely. Transfer the tart to a wire rack and cool for at least 1 hour before slicing. The filling needs time to fully set — patience here is worth it.
Serve. Slice and serve at room temperature or very slightly warm. A dollop of lightly sweetened whipped cream alongside is never wrong.

Nutrition (per serving)

Favorite Chocolate-Bourbon Pecan Tart — The Bourbon That Runs in the Family