An outrageously fun twist on a famous pie, this Candy Cap Salted Maple Pie is special indeed. Flaky, buttery pie crust holds a rich, silky maple custard infused with candy cap mushrooms, finished with crunchy flakes of sea salt to balance the sweetness.
Candy cap mushrooms have enchanted me from the very beginning. Their strong maple syrup aroma is uncanny, lingering in the kitchen for days every time I open up my jar of the little unassuming dried mushrooms.
It’s always fun to bring mushrooms into dessert because they’re so unexpected. But candy caps are particularly well suited for sweet treats, thanks to their natural earthy maple scent. For this pie recipe, I’ve played up that flavor by incorporating them in two different ways: infusing them into melted butter and blending them into the sugar.
The inspiration comes from the famous Salted Maple Pie from Sister Pie in Detroit, which I’ve given a hard twist. Expect a flaky, crisp all-butter crust and a rich, golden filling that’s somewhere between a custard and a gooey butter tart. It’s silky, unapologetically buttery, and full of pure maple flavor, with crunchy sea salt flakes cutting through the sweetness.
This pie is so delicious it’s borderline dangerous. It’ll make your kitchen smell like a pancake house, and it’s a pretty special addition to a Thanksgiving dessert table. If you’re looking for a way to surprise people with an unexpected ingredient, you’re in the right place.
🍄🟫 Want more candy cap mushroom recipes? Try candy cap caramel sauce, candy cap shortbread cookies, or this candy cap caramel latte!
Recipe highlights
- Wildly surprising: our unexpected hero ingredient puts a spin on a much-loved pie
- Texturally delightful: crispy, flaky pie crust + silky custard filling + crunchy salt
- Easy to make: all you need is a mixing bowl and a whisk!
- Perfect for Thanksgiving or any cozy fall day
Recipe overview
⏱️ Prep: ~20 min • Chill: 1 hr • Bake: 55-70 min
🍴 Yield: One 9-inch pie (8 slices)
💪 Skill level: Beginner
😋 Flavor profile: Pure maple syrup, butter, vanilla, sea salt. Pairs well with: Vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, hawthorn sauce, cranberries, vanilla sauce, bourbon.
Where to find candy cap mushrooms
If you know where to forage your own candy cap mushrooms, you’re very lucky indeed! But if not, no worries. They’re easy to buy online. I’ve ordered from West Coast Wild Foods and Far West Fungi multiple times.
Interested in finding your own candy caps? Check out my full guide on foraging and cooking with candy cap mushrooms!
✨ This recipe uses dried candy cap mushrooms in two ways: first, they’re infused into melted butter to bring out their natural aromas, and second, they’re blended into sugar for even more flavor. The candy cap sugar is optional, so if you don’t have a batch on hand, simply replace it with an equal amount of additional brown sugar.
How to make this candy cap salted maple pie
For full recipe instructions and ingredients measurements, head to the recipe card towards the bottom of this post. Here’s a quick overview of how to make this recipe:
- Make the pie dough: Whisk flour, sugar, and salt together, then blend in cold butter. Add ice water until the dough just comes together. Wrap tightly and chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
- Prep the crust: Roll the pie dough into a rough circle, about 12 inches in diameter and ¼ inch thick. Gently lift it into a pie dish. Leave about 1 inch of pie dough around the edges, cutting away any excess. Fold and crimp the edges as desired. Place in the freezer and chill for at least 15 minutes.
- Blind bake: Preheat the oven to 425° F. Line the chilled pie dough with parchment paper or foil, then fill to the top with pie weights or dried beans. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until bottom is mostly baked and crust is lightly golden.
- Make filling: While crust is blind baking, prepare the filling. Melt butter with candy cap mushrooms and set aside to infuse for 15 minutes. Strain, then whisk in maple syrup; add brown sugar, candy cap sugar, cornmeal, and salt. In a separate bowl, beat together heavy cream, eggs, and vanilla. Slowly pour cream mixture into butter mixture while whisking until well combined.
- Bake: Turn oven down to 350° F. Pour filling into blind baked pie shell and bake until top is brown and crackly and crust is deeply golden, about 55-70 minutes. The middle should have just the slightest jiggle left to it when you shake it gently.
- Enjoy: Allow pie to cool for several hours at room temperature, then sprinkle generously with flaky sea salt and serve. Excellent with ice cream or whipped cream!
Blind baking the pie crust:
Making the pie:
Pro baking tips for salted maple pie
Don’t mix the butter in too much. When making your pie dough, you want to see little flecks of cold butter throughout. This is what gives pie crust those beautiful flakes! As the cold butter pieces hit the hot oven, steam is created, leaving behind little open pockets (aka flakes!!).
🥧 For more tips on making homemade pie crust, see my recipe for Strawberry Rhubarb Galettes. That post contains all my best advice for tender, flaky dough!
Let the eggs & cream come to room temperature. Take these ingredients out of the fridge as soon as you start making the pie dough. If they’re cold when you mix them with the other ingredients (which are warm from the melted butter), it may cause the mixture to separate.
Whisk the egg mixture in slowly. This is another measure that will help ensure you have a smooth custard that doesn’t separate. Pour the mixture of eggs, cream, and vanilla into the butter-maple mixture in a gradual stream, whisking as you go.
Serving & storing
Keep your candy cap salted maple pie at room temperature, loosely wrapped or in an airtight container, for up to 3 days. You can also keep it in the refrigerator if you prefer it cold.
I highly recommend you serve slices of this pie room temperature with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, or créme fraîche whipped cream.
Want to add more wild fun and a little color? I served my pie with a simple hawthorn berry sauce. To make it, cook ½ cup hawthorn juice with ¼ cup sugar and 2 teaspoons lemon juice for about 5 minutes, or until sugar is dissolved and mixture thickens slightly. Cool before drizzling over pie.
If you don’t have hawthorn berries, this pie would also be lovely with a cranberry coulis.
Did you make this Candy Cap Salted Maple Pie? I’d love to know what you think! Please leave a star rating and comment below, it really means a lot to me.
Candy Cap Salted Maple Pie
Equipment
- 9-inch pie pan
- Rolling pin
Ingredients
Pie crust
- 1 ¼ cups (150 grams) all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 4 ounces (½ cup) unsalted butter, cold, diced
- ~½ cup ice cold water
Filling
- 6 ounces (12 Tbsp/ 1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter
- 8-10 dried candy cap mushrooms, (1 gram)
- 1 cup pure maple syrup
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup candy cap sugar, or additional brown sugar
- ¼ cup fine cornmeal
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 eggs, room temperature*
- ¾ cup heavy cream, room temperature*
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- flaky sea salt, for topping
Instructions
- Make pie dough: Whisk 1 ¼ cups flour, 1 Tbsp sugar, and ¼ tsp salt together in a large bowl. Blend in 4 oz cold diced butter, using your fingers to rub it into the flour until you have pea-sized crumbs. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add cold water, starting with about ¼ cup. Blend water in gradually, using a fork or wooden spoon, adding additional water a tablespoon or so at a time. Mix until the dough just comes together in a shaggy mass. Knead it together lightly with your hands, form it into a rough disc, then wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and let it rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
- Prep the crust: On a lightly floured work surface, roll the pie dough into a rough circle, about 12 inches in diameter and ¼ inch thick. Gently lift it into a pie dish. Leave about 1 inch of pie dough hanging over the edges, cutting away any excess. Fold and crimp the edges as desired. Place in the freezer and chill for at least 15 minutes. While it's chilling, preheat the oven to 425° F (220° C).
- Blind bake: Line the chilled pie dough with parchment paper or foil, then fill to the top with pie weights or dried beans. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until bottom is mostly baked and crust is lightly golden.Allow to cool a few minutes, then remove the weights and parchment.
- Make filling: While crust is blind baking, prepare the filling. Melt 6 oz butter with 8-10 candy cap mushrooms and set aside to infuse for 15 minutes, keeping slightly warm. Strain the butter into a large mixing bowl, discarding mushrooms. Whisk in 1 cup maple syrup. Add ½ cup brown sugar, ¼ cup candy cap sugar, ¼ cup cornmeal, and ½ tsp salt; whisk well. In a separate bowl, beat together ¾ cup heavy cream, 3 eggs, and 2 tsp vanilla. Slowly pour cream mixture into butter mixture in a gradual steam while whisking until well combined**.
- Bake: Turn oven down to 350° F. Pour filling into blind baked pie shell and bake until the filling is puffed, brown, and crackly, and the crust is deeply golden, about 55-70 minutes. The middle of the pie should have just the slightest jiggle left to it when you shake it gently.
- Enjoy: Allow pie to cool for 2-4 hours at room temperature, then sprinkle generously with flaky sea salt and serve. It's excellent with ice cream or whipped cream!
Notes
Did you try this recipe?
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