Blue Bell Announces New Classic Pecan Pie Ice Cream Flavor

Texan ice cream giant Blue Bell just released a new flavor for its fall collection, Classic Pecan Pie. Speaking on 5 KALB News, Blue Bell operations manager Darin Pasche explained the new range. 

“Now you don’t have to buy pecan pie and ice cream,” he said. “They are all combined together.” Added to this mix are real pecans, swirls, and pie filling, making a perfect bite for ice cream and pecan pie fanatics everywhere. 

The Roots of an American Classic

Fall is upon us, and as any nut farmer knows, this means the American pecan harvest is just around the corner. Therefore, the timing of this announcement comes in perfect harmony with the season. It helps that pecan pie also happens to be the Texas state pie, making this a marriage made in Heaven. 

Nonetheless, pecans aren’t only native to Texas. According to Dana Hatic of Eater, pecans “grew along areas watered by the Mississippi River, spreading a bit to the east into Alabama.” 

Georgia Leads the Way

Before long, Georgia was growing them, eventually becoming the United States’ chief supplier and commercial grower. While the connotations between Georgia and pecans are strong, the birthplace of its pie-based version was Texas. 

“The earliest printed pecan recipes began popping up in Texas cookbooks in the 1870s and 1880s,” writes Hatic. She confirms how the first recipe of the pecan pie we know today was “published in 1898 in a church charity cookbook in St. Louis.” The caveat: it was sent in by a “Texas woman.” 

Pies Under Different Skies

Regardless, there are several variations of the much-loved dessert in the continental US. The following are just some examples of states that enjoy a different twist on pecan pie:

• Mississippi likes a chocolate pecan pie.  
• Alabamians enjoy buttermilk custard-style pecan pies.
• New Mexicans opt for an expected hot chili addition.
• Louisiana has a cane syrup and praline version.
• Texas goes for the classic corn-syrup base, specifically Karo corn syrup, an adaptable baking product featured in this Tasting Table post. 
• Kentucky goes for a chocolate and bourbon-infused filling, usually made with walnuts, but easily substituted for pecans.

The Unbridled Spirit of the Kentucky Derby Pie 

The latter’s pie recipe story is shrouded in controversy (not a sentence that many food writers get to use). The Kentucky Derby-themed pie makes for a fascinating tale of intrigue, secrecy, and litigation. While not strictly a pecan pie at all, the Derby Pie has become one of the most fiercely guarded recipes in the world. 

The name “Derby Pie” stems from Kern’s Kitchen, a family business that trademarked the name in 1968, guarding it with military-like will from that moment. The Kern family, based in Louisville, has been selling these pies for over 50 years, and today, they produce over 1,000 daily. They, of course, also sell Golden Pecan Pies on their website alongside the famous Chocolate Nut Derby Pie. 

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The Derby Pie is now synonymous with being Kentucky’s de facto state pie. While baking one isn’t illegal, infringing on the recipe’s trademark might get you in hot water.

Don’t Mess With Kern’s Kitchen

Kern’s Kitchen’s lawsuits against anyone calling their recipe a “Derby Day Pie” are legendary, but have made them some enemies. Southern Kitchen’s Kate Williams explains how one of those parties was “Bon Appétit” magazine, which had dismissed the idea of Kern’s Kitchen’s claim for intellectual property. 

Non-profit free speech advocacy group Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) even added Kern’s Kitchen to its “Takedown Hall of Shame” inductions list in 2013. The webpage containing the list refers to the company as “meanspirited censors who seek to shut down recipe-sharing.”

The Texas Eye for Great Pecan Pies

It isn’t easy to pin down the greatest pecan pies in the United States, though some have tried. TasteAtlas created a solid — if somewhat Texas-friendly — list of contenders for the country’s best pecan pies. The foodie platform has issued a guide for where one can find the best ones, “according to the experts.” These pies are found in:

• Goode Company Barbecue in Houston, Texas;
• Magnolias in Charleston, South Carolina;
• Emporium Pie out of Dallas, Texas;
• The Salt Lick BBQ in Driftwood, Texas; 
• Killen’s BBQ in Pearland, Texas;
• Pappas Bros Steakhouse in Houston, Texas.

It’s fair to say that Texas has a pecan pie monopoly on greatness with this list. RoadFood’s Michael Stern gives a succinct review of the leading candidate, Goode Company’s offering. “Brazos Bottom pecan pie, loaded with unbroken nuts, is required eating,” he writes. “Pecan pie fanciers consider it one of the nation’s best.”

Pecan Season Is the Perfect Time for Pies

For serious pecan pie aficionados, there are festivals across the land, uniting America’s regional pecan pie titans. The prime pie showdown is the National Pie Championships. This contest is thanks to the American Pie Council, which lists all the official award winners from the competition on its website. 

While all pies are welcome to participate in the organization’s annual contest, the nut category has some unique pecan ideas. The 2024 winners cohort on the American Pie Council’s website includes entries like Tuxedo Junction, Pecan Dream Pie, and Maple Bacon Pecan Pie. There are other delectable ideas: Pecan Pie with Peanut Butter Caramel, Bourbon Pecan Praline Pie, and Pecan White Chocolate Cranberry Pie. 

The website lists different recipes and offers membership for pie obsessives, opening up a whole new world of pie possibilities. There is nothing to stop fans from experimenting this fall, and few things can beat fresh pecans from one’s local orchard baked in a pie.