So many pies, so little time.
This is probably the number one thing I post on my blog - PIES. They are such a versatile food that can be enjoyed for all meals - cheddar & bacon quiche for a nice brunch, chicken pot pie for a cold winter evening at home, and of course, sweet pies for a delectable dessert.
This is probably the number one thing I post on my blog - PIES. They are such a versatile food that can be enjoyed for all meals - cheddar & bacon quiche for a nice brunch, chicken pot pie for a cold winter evening at home, and of course, sweet pies for a delectable dessert.
A restaurant chain, native only to the south, is Jim N Nicks bbq. They have good barbecue, fun appetizers, crazy good cheese muffins, and the best coconut pie we've ever eaten. We don't order dessert at restaurants as a general rule, but we needed to try this pie. And yes, it was worth the $6 and was everything they said it was.
So I made it myself. I came home and searched the web for the best coconut cream pie recipe there ever was. And I found it. I've now made it 4 times, twice for family dinners, once for Thanksgiving, and this time for company coming over. It's so rich and creamy and coconutty {not at word} and you need it in your life. The original recipe is from allrecipes.com.
A couple of hints, DON'T USE LIGHT COCONUT MILK. It was so sad when I did. Just don't do it. This pie is not suppose to be good for you! Also, it is so much better 1-2 days after you make it. I don't know why, it just is. Lastly, I don't make my own pie crust. I can, and I have, but Trader Joe's makes the best pie crust I've ever had and it also has all real ingredients.
Ingredients
- One nine inch homemade pie crust or pre-made crust.
- One 13.5 Fl Oz Can Coconut milk
- Half & half: 1 1/2 cups
- 4 egg yolks, beaten slightly
- 3/4 cup white sugar
- 1/3 cup corn starch
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 Tablespoon butter
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups shredded sweetened coconut + extra to toast for the top
Instructions
- 1. Place the whole can of coconut milk into a large measuring cup. It will measure a little over 1 1/2 cups. Pour the Half and Half into the same measuring cup on top of the coconut milk until you reach the 3 cup measurement. Stir to combine the half and half and coconut milk.
- 2. Place the coconut/half and half mixture into a medium size heavy metal saucepan. Place the 4 beaten egg yolks ,3/4 cup of sugar , salt and the 1/3 cup of corn starch into the pan as well. Whisk to combine. Turn your burner on low. Place the pan on low heat and slowly whisk . Keep whisking, this is the part that needs just a little patience. It can take up to 15 minutes for the ingredients to thicken. DO NOT turn the heat up to speed up the process. As you whisk you will start to feel a slight resistance to the whisk as you make your way around the pot. The pudding is starting to thicken. Don't walk away from the pot, when it starts to thicken it will happen all at once.
- 3. Keep whisking until the pudding starts to boil, it will release thick bubbles that will come to the top like a little volcano. It has to reach this stage for it to set up properly. Once it starts to boil, whisk a little faster for a minute. Take the pudding off the heat and add the vanilla, butter and coconut. Mix to combine.
- 4. Pour the pudding into the pie crust while it's hot. It's going to fill that pie crust to the brim! Place a piece of plastic wrap on top of the pudding, pressing down on the surface of the pudding slightly so the plastic wrap sticks to it to prevent a film from forming on the pudding when it cools. Refrigerate pie for about 4 hours. Top with homemade whipping cream or Cool Whip.
- Toasted coconut is super easy to make; just pour about 1/4 cup of sweetened coconut out on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 for about 7 minutes, or until it gets golden. Sprinkle it on top of the whipped cream!
Really & truly this pie can make 10 slices because it is such a deep, rich pie, but you're only gonna want it to feed 8 so there's more for each person ;)