Best Sugar-Free Keto Pecan Pie Recipe

This is a delicious, and easy to make Sugar-Free Keto Pecan Pie Recipe. A low carb version of a normally very sweet and high carb dessert that now you can eat!

Pecan pie is one of my favorite autumn and winter desserts. There’s something special about the flavor of this pie along with the fact that I love nuts, so any dessert with nuts is on the top of my list. Plus when you put whipped cream on top, the combo is unbeatable!  

I love a good piece of pecan pie so much and it is something that I never thought could be made as a low carb dessert.

Normally it is very high in carbs, especially because of the sticky, sweet corn syrup that is one of the main ingredients that make up the pie.

I think you will be pleasantly surprised by this flavorful version of a low carb pecan pie.

Can You Eat Pecan Pie on a Keto Diet?

Normally Pecan pie is not low carb or keto-friendly because it’s way too sweet. It’s full of high carb, sticky sweet corn syrup.

However, our sugar-free pecan pie is different because it uses ingredients that take away the high carbs and replaces them with keto-friendly ingredients. 

We will show you how to make it with an almond pie crust and other substitute ingredients for the filling like butter and 2 no-carb sweeteners, that do away with the carbs and still give it the thick, creamy, sweetness of pecan pie. 

What Ingredients are in Keto Pecan Pie?

The Crust

We use an almond flour pie crust made totally of low carb ingredients, instead of regular flour pie crust that’s loaded with carbs. So right away this almond flour pie crust already lowers the carb count of the entire pie.  

Almond Flour – Your choice of low carb flour consists of several options, but almond flour is the favorite choice. It has a good consistency and flavor. Look for the superfine almond flour because it works the best, even though any almond flour will work fine too. 

Swerve granulated – Granulated swerve is a good fit for this crust. It measures the same as sugar. It’s a zero-calorie, non-glycemic sugar replacement that is safe for those who have diabetes and is often used in Keto desserts. 

Butter – This is a staple ingredient in pie crusts. If you only need a bottom crust for your pie, as in this case, you can use melted butter. If you need to make a top crust then use cold butter to keep your top crust more firm. 

Vanilla – This adds a little sweetness to your pie crust and is used in so many baked goods. 

Egg – Eggs also are used in so many baked goods. It helps hold your pie crust together.

Xanthan gum – A binding agent to help in keeping your pie crust together. 

The Filling

Pecans – Obviously the main ingredient in pecan pie. Very flavorful and a low carb nut, only 4 carbs for ¼ cup. 

Butter – As the main ingredient in a lot of baked goods, butter has zero carbs and lots of flavor, which is essential in this pie since we have removed the corn syrup.

Vanilla – An essential ingredient loaded which also adds a wonderful taste to most desserts.

Brown Swerve – By taking out the corn syrup the brown swerve adds sweetness and color. so that it tastes just like a pecan pie and when it’s cooked it looks like a pecan pie too

Bocha Sweet – This is a sugar substitute that adds to the sticky, gooey texture of the filling which helps to resemble high carb pecan pie. Combined with the Brown Swerve they do the job well!

Eggs – Eggs help hold the filling together

Making Pecan Pie without Corn Syrup

Corn syrup is an essential ingredient to a normal pecan pie, but being on a low carb diet corn syrup is out of the question to eat.

It has a lot of carbs, so to replace the corn syrup, instead, we use brown sugar swerve which has a lot of sweet flavors and adds some stickiness. 

A nice side bonus is the color being dark brown makes the filling of your Keto pecan pie look authentic like the corn syrup.

Then add the Bocha Sweet which is a 2nd sweetener in the pie, and together they make a flavor and texture to resemble regular pecan pie.

Different Variations of Pecan Pie

Everyone who loves chocolate will appreciate this variation. For a good and yummy version of pecan pie try adding some no sugar Lilly’s chocolate chips.

With just one small addition, it now becomes a chocolate pecan pie. So pecan pie and chocolate, who would’ve thought that on a low carb diet you could have either one of these yummy treats! 

You could also add some walnuts to the pecans and make it a combo nut pie, for all of the nut lovers like me who feel that anything with nuts is better than without!

And speaking of nuts, pecans only have 4 carbs in ¼ cup. The same with walnuts. 

How to Make Keto Pecan Pie

In this next section, we are going to show you the steps of how to make the crust, how to make the filling, and how to fill the pie. 

This is an easy way to make low carb/keto pecan pie. Once you get the crust in the oven, then start to make the filling. It only takes about 10 min to throw the filling together, super simple.

Step 1: The Low Carb Pie Crust

The first step to making your sugar free pecan pie is you are going to need a low carb pie crust. That’s where our Almond Flour Pie Crust comes in. Just click on the link and follow the instructions.

You should follow our Almond Flour Pie Crust recipe as indicated above, just make sure you stop when you get to the part about actually cooking it. When you get to that point, you’ll want to continue our instructions here below.

This Keto pecan pie calls for baking the crust 10-15 min at 325 degrees and then taking it out to fill it and then finish baking it together for the duration. 

Step 2: The Filling

While the pie crust is in the oven par-baking, for 10 minutes, in a large saucepan over medium-low heat, melt the butter and 2 sweeteners together, stirring constantly while they dissolve which will be for a couple of minutes. 

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Next whisk in the salt and vanilla. 

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Take the pan off the burner for about 10 minutes so the mixture can cool off a little before whisking in the eggs.

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In the meantime take the pie crust out of the oven and partially cool it off before adding the nuts. 

Step 3: Filling the Pie

Pour the nuts at the bottom of the crust and spread evenly.

Pour the filling over the nuts. Don’t worry, the nuts will rise to the top. 

Return the pie to the oven and bake for about 40 minutes, making sure not to overcook the pie or else the filling will become too hard.

You want your filling still to be gooey but cooked.

Tips for Making the Best Sugar-Free Pecan Pie

After making 4 lousy pecan pies before finally getting it right, I have a few tips to share with you before making your first low carb pecan pie.

Use a glass pan. The pie comes out better than if you use a metal pie plate.

Preheat your oven. It’s not always important in making every recipe, but in this pie, it is because you’re dealing with a lot of eggs in your filling and want the eggs to set properly.

Another thing with the eggs, don’t use them cold right out of the refrigerator. Cold eggs can throw your whole pie out of whack, so let them warm up a bit, maybe 20 min or so. They will respond better to your pie filling.

If it’s not done in the middle just give it a few more minutes of baking time.

How to Tell When the Pie Is Done

I made 4 pecan pies before I made one that finally came out cooked to perfection. I kept thinking that I needed to cook it more but at the same time, I was afraid to cook it too long and lose that wonderful consistency that pecan pie is known for.

The best way to see if your sugar-free pecan pie is ready is when it puffs up in the center and it just jiggles slightly. But don’t be surprised after you take it out of the oven, a few minutes after sitting that the center shrinks and settles down.

I also stuck a tiny straight paring knife in the center just to make sure that it wasn’t runny. Remember though, pecan pie is supposed to be gooey, so don’t let it dry out. 

How to Thicken Keto Pecan Pie Filling because My Pie is Runny

• You may have baked your pecan pie and it came out too runny. There are several reasons that this can happen to you. 

• Make sure that your oven is preheated because you are dealing with a pie that has a lot of eggs in it which can be temperamental to work with. 

• Be sure to use eggs that aren’t cold right out of the refrigerator, take them out about 20-30 min ahead of time to let them warm up a bit.

• If your pie is runny you may be able to just leave it in the oven an extra few minutes and that may be the easy fix.

• One of the ways not to get a runny pie filling is to use a glass pie plate instead of a metal one for more accurate baking.

Burnt Pecan Pie

There are two ways that you could burn your pecan pie. It’s easy to burn it even before you bake it and it’s a common problem if you don’t watch your preparation on the stove. 

For example, if you’re not careful you could burn the butter mixture on the stove. Butter burns easily if you don’t keep your eye on it. 

Also, you could burn the pie if you overcook it in the oven, so keep your eye on it so as not to dry it out or burn it. Invest in a pie guard to cover the edges of the crust in case they start to burn before the pie is done. 

If you don’t have one then just put a piece of aluminum foil loosely over the top to prevent burning your low carb almond pie crust.

Other Diets this Recipe is Good for

Gluten-free – There are no ingredients with gluten in them in this pie so it’s 100% gluten-free. It’s nice to have a dessert without gluten. My friend is so happy when I bring her some of the things that we bake, like this pie!

Do I Need to Add Pecans to the Top of the Pie?

When I first wanted to make pecan pie the low carb way, I read through a lot of recipes and I couldn’t figure out how to get the pecans on the top of the pie when I read in the instructions to put the pecans on the bottom of the pie. 

I kept wondering why I should put the nuts on the bottom if I want the nuts on the top of the pie?

I finally lined the nuts on the pie crust and then poured the filling in the crust on top of the pecans. Surprisingly when I did that the nuts floated to the top, where they should be…

You want to make sure that there are enough pecans on top of your Keto pie, not only for taste but also for appearance. If for some reason there aren’t enough nuts on top you could always throw a few more on there before baking. Otherwise, you don’t have to.

Whole Pecans vs. Chopped

There is absolutely no difference in taste whether you add whole pecans or chopped pecans or broken ones.

However, as far as the looks of the pie, it looks much nicer, more professional if the pecans are whole vs pieces. After all, it is a Sugar-free Pecan pie, and the main ingredient is Pecans!

What Can I Serve with Low Carb Pecan Pie?

I love pecan pie but besides the pie, there is something necessary to have on top of it. The best thing to compliment your low carb pecan pie is the taste of whipped cream on top. It’s so creamy and the flavors of both blended are such a good combo. 

Homemade Keto whipped cream is the best and we have a recipe for a Keto version of whipped cream on our website.

If you don’t have the ingredients to make homemade whipped cream, you could always use the kind already made in the aerosol can. 

Another good option on top of your sugar-free pecan pie is Keto Ice Cream. We also have a recipe for that too or if you’re in a hurry you could always buy sugar-free ice cream at the store.

Can Pecan Pie be Made a Day Ahead of Time?

You may be wondering if you can make your pecan pie ahead of time. When you are making a big meal for guests you may not have enough time to prepare your pie that day, because of all the other things to make.

If you want to make your pecan pie ahead of time you can, but not too far in advance because It will only last 3 or 4 days in the refrigerator. Keep in mind that there are no preservatives in it. 

Wrap it well so that it’s airtight and it will stay fresher. Or you could always freeze your pie. ( See the instructions below)

How to Store Pecan Pie

You may wonder if your sugar-free pecan pie has to be refrigerated after it’s baked if you don’t eat it all right away.

It can stay on the counter for a day or two, but instead, if you put it in the refrigerator it will stay fresh at least double time, for 3 or 4 days.

However, if you leave the pie in the refrigerator too long it may become watery, dried out or start to grow mold because there are no preservatives in your pie. So if this happens, throw it out immediately.

Reheating Pecan Pie

If you like your Keto pecan pie warmed up, especially if it’s cold right from the refrigerator, just pop it in the oven on warm, a 300-degree oven for 10-15 minutes or until desired heat is reached.

You could also pop a piece into the microwave for 1-2 minutes. Then top it with whipped cream or ice cream. Yum.

Can You Freeze Pecan Pie?

It would be helpful if you have some spare time ahead of time to make your low-carb pecan pie and then stick it in the freezer. That way it will save you time when you are preparing for a big dinner for guests and one thing finished ahead of time.

If you wrap it well with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and then put it in an airtight container, it can last 1-2 months as long as the air doesn’t get to it.

When you are ready to serve your pie, take it out of the freezer the night before. If you want to eat it cold you can. Or if you want to heat it you can do that too.

Low Carb Dessert Recipes

If you’re in the mood for some other Keto-friendly Desserts, check out our:

• Keto Pumpkin Pie
• Sugar-Free Peanut Butter Fudge
• Best Keto Brownies
• Keto Apple Pie
• Keto Magic Cookie Bars

All of them are Keto-friendly and low carb, and will have your friends raving!

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