Preheat the oven to 350. In the bowl of a stand mixer or with a hand mixer, cream together the butter and brown sugar
After butter and sugar are well combined, add in the eggs one at a time. Mix the eggs and butter together until fully incorporated
Add the vanilla bean paste, dark corn syrup, salt, bourbon, orange zest and mix. Set the filling aside
Coarsely chop 1 ½ cups of the pecans. Lay the chopped pecan in an even layer on the bottom of the par-baked 9” pie shell. Pour the filling over top. Only fill until the pie filling is just under the rim. (note: be careful not to over fill the pie as it will puff slightly when it bakes.)
Arrange the remaining cup of pecans on top of the filling and bake for 50 minutes-1 hour. You will know the pie is done when if you shake it there is just a slight jiggle in the middle of the pie