About six months after Michael Jones moved to his residence in Maurice, in 2017, he looked at the property’s 10 pecan trees and realized it was going to be a bountiful year. “I couldn’t stand to see all those pecans go to waste, so I found my mother’s recipe for pecan pie and started making some,” says Michael, who never baked before and doesn’t eat pecans. “I went into it totally blind and relied on the opinion of family and friends who taste tested for two years, before I tweaked the recipe to my liking.” Michael, fondly called Pop by his 10 grandchildren (11 counting the baby born in mid-October) opened Pop’s Pecan Pies in 2019. Today, from his kitchen, he turns out his popular 9-inch pecan pies along with other varieties: chocolate, chocolate chip, bourbon pecan and, this year’s newest flavor, chocolate bourbon pecan. “Each year, I try to make something new,” he adds. Working from his home as a Medicaid analyst for the state, Michael takes off the Friday before the Delcambre market to bake his pies, assuring their absolute freshness. Waking at 4:45 a.m. and starting around 5.30, he’ll bake some 15 pies until 8 or 9 p.m. His best-selling pecan pie has
a whopping 1 ¼ cup of pecan halves. “Many bakeries use chopped pecans, but I don’t think it looks as pretty,” notes Michael who is pictured on each box sticker with one of his grandchildren.
The Delcambre Seafood & Farmers Market is the only market Michael attends and regular customers from Delcambre, New Iberia and Lafayette have come to know him. “New customers who come to our booth, look at me and my girlfriend and ask if I am the one who really make the pies,” he laughs. “It’s a great market, not too big or small, a very folksy, homey atmosphere. I’m a former radio DJ from the 80s, so I enjoy the live music; it’s the essence of the ambiance, I feel at times.” Michael hopes to expand his business after he retires, possibly bringing his pies into a local grocery store or two.
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