Coconut Cream Pie

Ingredients:

• Pre-Baked Pie Shell (I will be emailing my recipe and “how-to” with images to subscribers this week. Hint, hint!)

• 2 ½ cups unsweetened coconut flakes

• 12 room-temperature egg yolks (save the whites and bake an angel food cake!)

• 2/3 cup white sugar

• ½ tsp kosher salt

• ¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg

• 4 cups (1 quart) whole milk

• 1/3 cup cornstarch

• 2 tsp vanilla paste – used separately

• 1 cup heavy cream

• 2 Tbsp confection sugar

1)     Gently toast the coconut in a non-stick pan over medium heat until slightly golden and aromatic. Make sure to shake the pan often so the coconut does not burn. Set aside to cool.

2)     In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, salt and nutmeg.

3)     In a heavy medium saucepan, whisk together the milk and cornstarch and slowly bring up to a simmer, stirring constantly.

4)     Temper the milk mixture into the yolk mixture and return the combined mix to the saucepan and to the heat.  Whisk constantly until the mixture reaches 170 degrees.  Remove from the heat and stir in 1 tsp of the vanilla paste and 2 cups of the toasted coconut.

5)     Pour the custard into the pre-baked pie shell.  Make sure the pie shell has cooled for at least 1-2 hours before filling.  We don’t want any soggy bottoms!  Cover the custard top with a piece of plastic wrap and chill the pie for at least three hours.

6)     When ready to serve, whisk the heavy cream, confection sugar and remaining 1 tsp of vanilla paste to stiff peaks.  Remove the plastic wrap from the custard top and mound the whipped cream over the custard.  Sprinkle the remaining ½ cup of toasted coconut over the whipped cream.