A lady at a local bookstore and I were talking one day about unusual recipes, and she shared that she had once eaten a delicious pie made from pinto beans while visiting a friend’s home. I was incredulous, but she was adamant that the pie tasted just like a pecan pie.
A few weeks later, she supplied me with the recipe, but I never got around to trying it until today. The recipe is surprisingly easy to prepare using a minimum of kitchen equipment and the pie really is delicious. It does remind me of a pecan pie, but it’s got the added benefit of some extra protein and fiber.
The use of beans in this recipe, however, does not make it a health food. There’s too much sugar and butter in this recipe, and they offset any health benefits from the beans. This is great as an occasional treat, but I wouldn’t eat it every day. It’s so delicious when topped with some whipped cream.
Allow the pie to cool almost completely before cutting or the filling will not be firm enough to serve a picture perfect slice. (See photo below for details.)
Here’s your printable recipe. Give it a try and let us know what you think. Have you ever had any other kind of dessert made with beans? If we hadn’t made it ourselves, we wouldn’t believe that there were beans in this recipe.
Thanks for visiting Patty Cake’s Pantry
- ¾ cup pinto beans, drained and rinsed
- ¾ cup white sugar
- ¾ cup firmly packed brown sugar
- 3 eggs
- ½ cup butter, melted
- 1 tsp vanilla
- ¾ cup pecan pieces
- 1 (9") pie crust for a deep dish pie
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- Mash or puree beans (This is your preference. I pureed mine with an immersion blender and used the same blender to mix together all of the other ingredients except for the pecans.)
- Add sugar and melted butter to bean mixture and mix well to combine.
- Add eggs, one at a time, and mix well after each addition.
- Stir in vanilla.
- Stir in the pecans with a spoon.
- Pour into pie crust
- Bake in 350 degree oven for 50 - 60 minutes

Nutrition Facts |
Amount Per Serving |
Calories 542
|
% Daily Value
|
Total Fat 29.3g
45%
|
Saturated Fat 10.2g
51%
|
Trans Fat 0.0g
|
Cholesterol 92mg
31%
|
Sodium 281mg
12%
|
Total Carbohydrates 64.8g
22%
|
Dietary Fiber 4.5g
18%
|
Sugars 44.5g
|
Protein 8.6g
|
Vitamin A 14%
Vitamin C 2%
|
Calcium 6%
Iron 13%
|
2 thoughts on “Pecan Pinto Pie”