Tomorrow is Pi Day! It’s my most favorite day of the year (not really), because it makes it perfectly acceptable to make and eat pie. For basically no reason at all. And this year, of all the years, Pi Day is especially epic, because even the year gets in on the pi-loving fun: 3.14.15. My inner nerd is freaking out, so I made us coconut cream pie to celebrate.
What’s that? You don’t know what Pi Day is? That’s okay. It just means you likely have a life that doesn’t involve math-related holidays. And you probably have more friends than me. But Pi Day is the ultimate nerdy celebration (edging out Mole Day, simply because we get to eat pie), recognizing the first three digits of the irrational number pi (3.14159265359….. and on to infinity. literally.). I also think I love Pi Day so much because of the inordinate number of food puns it allows for. Pi/Pie can be both a numerical concept AND a delicious food? Sign me up.
Which brings us back to this dreamy little coconut number. I’m relatively new to the world of homemade pie crusts, but I didn’t want to cheat your my coconut cream pie dreams with a graham cracker crust or one of those store-bought jobs. Instead, I toasted up a whole mess of coconut and mixed it into the dough. Is this required? Absolutely not. You may not be as crazy as me, so feel free to use your favorite store-bought crust instead (or even go for a graham cracker/cookie (OREO?!) crust situation).
Be warned friends. This pie is not for those who are iffy on the whole coconut business. In doing research for this post, I found a lot of variations on coconut cream pie, but I combined my favorite elements into this ultimate coconut cream pie, of sorts. As I said, it’s got toasted coconut mixed into the pie crust. Then the filling is made with coconut milk and infused with shredded coconut (untoasted this time) and a good splash of coconut extract. The whole mess is then topped with sweetened whipped cream (I bet whipped coconut cream would be amazing!) and more toasted coconut.
I mean, it’s coconut cream pie. A lot of the recipes I saw were basically just vanilla pudding with coconut tossed in at the end. That wasn’t going to fly with me. I tell you this because if you don’t love the texture of coconut, this may not be the pie for you. I’ve heard many a normally sane person say that they love the flavor of coconut, but not the texture. It’s front and center in this coconut cream pie, mostly because the texture is one of my favorite parts. Basically, I’m in love with this pie.
A few notes on pie crust:
- Your fats need to be VERY cold in order to get a super flaky crust. I cut my butter and shortening into small-ish pieces and stick them in the freezer for about 15 minutes before I work them into the flour. That keeps them from melting too much.
- (You’re going to notice a theme, but…) The water you use to bring the dough together should also be ice cold. I literally fill a glass with ice water and dip my tablespoon into it to ensure it is as cold as possible.
- Once you’ve made and chilled the dough, roll it out and get it into your pie plate as quickly as possible. Then stick it back in the freezer to ensure it’s good and cold before you bake it off.
- When you finally go to bake the pie, line it with a piece of foil and fill it with some kind of weights. They sell metal or ceramic pie weights, but I find that a pound of dried beans works perfectly for this.
- Why go to all that trouble? It gives the crust all those flaky layers that a good pie crust should have, but it also prevents shrinkage. It sucks to work so hard on a crust only to have it come out of the oven looking like a sad, shrunken version of its former self. So do yourself a favor and take out some pie insurance. Follow the steps, and your patience will be rewarded.
Now, go find your nerdiest friend, hand them a coconut cream pie, and wish them a happy Pi Day. Or better yet, make it together! Just get some pie in your lives, friends. Have a great weekend!
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Crust adapted from Good Housekeeping Best Loved Desserts. Filling adapted from Cooks Illustrated, via Matt Bites.
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups flour
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons butter, very cold
- 2 tablespoons shortening, very cold
- 1/2 cup coconut, toasted
- 4-6 tablespoons ice water
- 1 (13 1/2-ounce) can coconut milk
- 1 cup milk
- 1/2 cup shredded coconut
- 1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 4 egg yolks
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoon coconut extract
- Sweetened whipped cream
- 1/2 cup coconut, toasted
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, mix the flour, sugar, and salt. Using a pastry cutter, two forks, or your fingers, cut in the butter and shortening until the mixture resembles coarse sand. There may still be a few large chunks of fat, and that's ok.
- Stir in the toasted coconut. Then, using a fork or your fingers, mix in the ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough starts to hold together. I usually end up using about 5 tablespoons, but each time is different. The dough is ready when you squeeze a fistful of dough in your hand and it holds together. If the dough is still very crumbly, add another tablespoon of water.
- Once the dough is ready, turn it out onto a sheet of plastic wrap and form a disc. Wrap tightly with the plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes. This can also be done the day before.
- After the dough has chilled, preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Spread a work surface with flour and roll out the dough into a 12-inch circle. Carefully transfer the dough to a pie plate.
- Trim away the excess dough and crimp the edges of the pie as desired. Freeze the formed pie crust for about 15 minutes before baking to ensure the fats are as cold as possible.
- When ready to bake, lay a piece of aluminum foil or parchment paper onto the pie crust and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake for 15 minutes, then carefully remove the weights and bake for another 5-7 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and the bottom is dry and flaky.
- Let cool completely (about 30 minutes) before filling.
- Add the coconut milk, milk, coconut, 1/2 cup sugar, and salt to a saucepan over medium heat. Cook the mixture, stirring occasionally, until it is hot and steaming, but not boiling.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks, remaining 1 tablespoon sugar, and cornstarch. Slowly whisk 1 cup of the hot milk mixture into the eggs. After all the milk in incorporated, transfer the mixture back to the pot. Bring the mixture to a boil, whisking constantly, and allow it to thicken. This should happen fairly quickly once the mixture reaches a boil.
- Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the butter, vanilla, and coconut extract. Immediately pour the hot filling into the cooled crust. Place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the pie and chill for at least 3 hours, or until the filling is completely set. Top with the whipped cream and toasted coconut.
March 18, 2015 at 12:53 am
What a gorgeous pie! I just want to grab my fork and dig right in! 🙂
March 18, 2015 at 8:59 am
Thanks for stopping by! We definitely ate the last few pieces out of the pan with a fork 😉