Coconut Cream Pie Recipe

One of my favorite deserts for the holiday season or in fact at any time of the year is a tasty coconut cream pie.  Below is my recipe for a very delicious coconut cream pie that is made with a rich and creamy custard, toasted coconut and a rich and creamy whipped cream topping.  The pie is then decorated with some toasted coconut sprinkled over top.

Ingredients:

1 cup of sweetened flaked coconut
1 cup of sugar
1/4 cup of cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon of salt
3 cups of whole milk
3 eggs, lightly beaten
3 tablespoons of butter at room temperature
1 teaspoons of vanilla extract
1 baked 9 inch pie crust
1 cup of heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons of confectioners sugar

Instructions:

You will want to begin this recipe by toasting your coconut.  To do so, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.  Then spread the coconut on a baking sheet and then place your baking sheet in the oven and bake your coconut for 5 minutes or until its golden brown.  You will need to stir your coconut around occasionally.  When done, transfer your toasted coconut to a plate and let it cool a bit.

To make the custard you will want to whisk together the sugar, cornstarch, salt and milk until smooth in a heavy large saucepan. Cook and stir the mixture over medium-high heat until thickened and bubbly. You will then want to reduce the heat and cook while stirring for 2 minutes longer.  Remove the saucepan from the heat and then stir in a small amount of hot mixture into a bowl that you have beaten your eggs in.  This is called tempering the eggs and you do it so that you don’t create scrambled eggs in your mixture.  Once the eggs are tempered add in your egg mixture to the saucepan and bring it to a gentle boil and cook for an additional 2 minutes.

Your next step is to remove the saucepan from the heat and then gently stir in 3/4 cup of your toasted coconut, butter and vanilla extract. Press some plastic wrap onto surface of custard; cover it and then refrigerate for 30 minutes.

When the custard has cooled down sufficiently you will want to prepare the topping by beating the whipping cream until soft peaks form.   Then add the confectioners sugar and beat until stiff peaks form.

Now take the pie shell that you have already baked in the oven and pour in your custard mixture.  Then spread or pipe your whipped cream on top of your coconut custard and finally sprinkle your remaining toasted coconut on top.  You will want to chill your coconut cream pie for 4 to 6 hours or overnight and then serve.   enjoy