Caramelized maple pecan pie with rosemary

Instructions

• Make the pie crust
• In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, rosemary, and salt. Cut half of the butter into cubes and very thinly slice the other half. Add to the flour mixture and use your hands to toss the butter to coat it in flour. Then, smoosh each of the butter pieces with your hands to help flatten them and break them apart until you have a mix of pea-sized pieces and pieces that are slightly larger.
• Add in five tablespoons of ice water and mix together with a fork. Then use your hands to compress the dough a couple of times and push it together until it forms a ball. If it’s too dry to come together, sprinkle just a little bit more water over the dry spots. Flatten the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour and up to overnight.
• Let the dough sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes. Place it on a floured surface, dust the top with flour and then roll it into a round that is about two inches larger than the base of your pie plate. If the dough is difficult to roll out, let it warm up at room temperature for a few more minutes. Rotate the dough frequently to prevent sticking as you roll.
• Gently fold the dough round in half and transfer to the pie plate. Unfold and press down firmly at the bottom and up the sides of the pan.  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 5 minutes to keep the butter cold.
• Once the dough has chilled for a few minutes, trim around the edge so you have about a 1/2 inch overhang. Fold the overhang underneath and press down to seal. You can then either crimp the pie by smooshing a fork down around the edge and continuing that motion all around the pie or by using your index finger on the inside of the crust, and pressing it gently between your index finger and thumb on the other side to make pleats all the way around the pie. Lightly prick the bottom and sides of the dough with a fork, cover with plastic wrap and chill for 30-60 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 375F. Remove the pie crust from the fridge and line it with aluminum foil or parchment paper. Cover the bottom with a layer of pie weights, uncooked rice or dried beans. Bake for about 20 minutes. Carefully remove the foil and return to the oven for another 5-8 minutes, until the bottom of the crust has dried and the edges are a light golden brown. Remove from the oven until ready to add your filling.
• Prepare the filling
• This step can be done while your pie crust bakes. Add your chopped pecans and pecan halves to a baking sheet and toast in the oven for approximately 8-10 minutes, stirring once part-way through. They will start to smell toasted when ready. Remove from the oven and let cool.
• Prepare the maple syrup. Add the syrup to a small saucepan and add the rosemary sprig, submerging it in the syrup. Bring to a boil, remove from the heat, and then cover and steep for 30 minutes. At the end, fish out the rosemary sprig and any loose pieces of rosemary that fell off. Return the maple syrup to medium heat to caramelize. Cook until the maple syrup is thick and smells strongly of caramel, about 5-7 minutes. At first, the mixture will bubble up significantly with many small rapid bubbles–you will need to frequently stir to keep the bubbling down. When the syrup is close to caramelizing, you will notice that the bubbles become large and very slow as the mixture thickens. Continue to cook at this stage until it smells very caramely, almost like it’s on the cusp of burning.
• Then remove from the heat and pour in the heavy cream, being careful, as it may sputter and steam in the hot maple. Stir to incorporate and return the mixture to low heat. Stir in the butter, one tablespoon at a time, until fully melted into the mixture. Transfer the caramel mixture to the bottom of a large mixing bowl and let cool slightly.
• To the caramel mixture, add the dark brown sugar, salt, vanilla, and apple cider vinegar. Whisk together. Check that the mixture is not too hot, and then whisk in the eggs until everything is evenly incorporated. If you would like to add 1-2 tablespoons of bourbon, you can do so here. Stir in the toasted chopped pecans, reserving the pecan halves for the next step.
• Lower the oven to 350F. Pour the filling into the pie crust. Top with the pecan halves, arranging them in concentric circles around the top. Bake for 40-50 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and the filling is nearly set but still jiggles slightly in the center. Let cool completely.
• Serve with unsweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.