Coconut Cream Pie from Scratch

 

INGREDIENTS:

Pre-baked Pie Crust

For the Coconut Custard Filling:

3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs (use only the yolks for the custard; set the whites aside for meringue)
2 1/4 cups milk preferably whole milk
1 1/4 cups shredded or flaked coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
3 tablespoons (1 1/2 oz) unsalted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla 

For the Meringue:

       3 large egg whites, that you set aside

       5 teaspoons granulated sugar

DIRECTIONS:

 

Blind bake the crust according to the directions for unfilled crust here. Let the crust cool while you make the custard filling.  




Make the coconut custard filling:

1. In a medium bowl, beat the egg yolks and set aside.

2. In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, flour, and salt. Use a whisk to mix them well. Pour the milk into the pan and stir well with a whisk or a spatula (which I like to use because it is easier to keep things moving on the bottom of the pan) until everything is very well combined and the dry ingredients are well incorporated. Place the saucepan over medium/high heat and cook, still stirring, until the mixture heats up and almost reaches a boil and steams and thickens into a smooth, velvety sauce, 8-9 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat.

3. Gently ladle out about 1/2 cup of the hot milk mixture and begin slowly adding to the beaten egg yolks stirring constantly as you pour. (This helps to warmup the eggs and prevent them from curdling). After the milk and egg yolk mixture is totally warmed...pour the egg yolk and milk mixture back into the pan, stirring until completely incorporated.

4.Place the pan back over medium/high heat and continue to cook, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan often, for approximately 2 to 3 minutes or until the mixture thickens considerably and begins come to a gentle but plopping boil. Let it boil gently for 1 minute more. Remove the pan from the heat.

5. Add 1 cup of the coconut, the butter, and the vanilla to the custard in the pan and stir to combine. Now pour all the filling into your pie crust. Set aside until you make the meringue.




Make the meringue:

Heat the oven to 350° F (176°C)

Beat the egg whites in a medium bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed for a minute. Increase the speed to high and beat until foamy. Start adding the sugar, 1 teaspoon at a time. Beat the egg whites until shiny, soft, firm peaks form. (This should only take a minute or two).




Assemble and bake the pie:

Layer the meringue on top of the warm custard filling, spreading it all the way to the crust and mounding the meringue in the center of the pie. Use a butter knife to make peaks in the meringue then sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup of the coconut on the top of the meringue.

Place the coconut cream pie in the preheated 350°F oven on the middle rack and bake until the meringue is a beautiful golden brown, 8-10 minutes. Remove from oven and place the pie on a cooling rack to let cool to room temperature. Refrigerate and chill for a couple of hours. Makes 8 beautiful servings.

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť! 

Beve's Flaky Pie Crust with Vodka

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
4 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
6 tablespoons chilled shortening, cut into pieces
2 tablespoons vodka, cold
2 tablespoons cold water

Combine flour, salt, and sugar. Cut in butter and shortening with pastry blender until mixture forms pea-sized lumps. Sprinkle in cold water and vodka evenly over surface, Stir with a fork until all dry ingredients are moistened. DO NOT OVERWORK AT THIS POINT.
Shape into 1" thick disk and cover with plastic wrap.
Chill for at least 45 minutes in refrigerator. (I make mine the night before and refrigerate until the next day

***Actually any alcohol can be used. If you don't want to use alcohol, you can use vinegar. I have used apple cider vinegar years ago...but mostly I use the vodka. 

Roll disk about 1/8" thick on a well-floured surface to fit into a 9 or 10" pie plate. Place the formed pie crust in pie plate and flute it.(Make a decorative pattern in the top edge of a pie crust). Place the formed pie crust in the refrigerator for 45 if needing an unfilled pie crust).

***For an unfilled pie crust, while the crust is chilling, preheat oven to 400°F. After rolling out your pie crust, prick holes all around the bottom crust with a fork. (This is docking the crust). 

 I weigh down the pie crust with something so it doesn’t puff up in the center or shrink down the sides. You can carefully line the pie dough with parchment paper first, then add some weight. (You can use dry beans). I use a smaller tin pie pan, cover the bottom with parchment paper, and lay that inside my 10" pie crust. Bake on the lowest rack for 15 minutes, remove pie from the oven and carefully lift the parchment paper (with the beans) out of the pie. Return the pie crust to the oven on the center rack for an additional 13-15 minutes or until bottom of crust is golden brown.. Please check at 13 minutes!

***Recipe can be doubled for a double-crusted pie and can be baked according to the times for each specific pie.

Enjoy! Élvez! Piacere! Gustirati! Radosť!