Coconut Cream Pie

When I asked my Dad what he'd like to see on the Father's Day dinner menu, I was not at all surprised that Coconut Cream Pie made the list. For as long as I can remember, it has been his favorite dessert. I've been working on my recipe for almost a decade now, unfortunately I haven't quite perfected the meringue yet. (The custard is pretty darn good though- if I do say so myself.) This last pie would have been close to perfect if I wasn't battling what feels like 80% humidity here in Lexington. Meringue and humidity are NOT friends, however I'm just not on board with substituting whipped cream like so many people do. A real custard pie-whether its chocolate, vanilla, banana cream, etc-requires a mile high meringue topping in my opinion. Dad's Favorite Coconut Cream Pie Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Custard Filling: 2 1/4 cups whole milk 3/4 cup sugar 1/4 cup cornstarch 3 eggs, separated 1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste (I love this stuff but you could substitute seeds from one whole vanilla bean or 1 tsp vanilla extract) 3/4- 1 cup flaked, sweetened coconut (depending how much you love coconut) 1 tablespoon butter I always make the custard first because it needs lots of time to set up. I like to have at least 4 hours in the fridge before serving. If its not properly set, the custard oozes out into a puddle when you set the slice of pie on a plate. In a heavy bottomed sauce pan, I whisk together the sugar and corn starch before adding the milk. I then cook it over medium heat until the liquid comes to a simmer. (Stir constantly to avoid sticking- I like a whisk for this. If you get lumps from minor sticking on the bottom of the pan, you can quickly strain the mixture to remove any clumps and then return it to the pan and continue.) In the meantime, separate the eggs (set whites aside) and lightly beat the yolks with a fork in a small bowl. As the custard mixture reaches a simmer, spoon about a 1/4 cup of the hot mixture into the egg yolk bowl and mix together quickly. This process is called "tempering" the eggs. It essentially brings the yolks up to a hot temperature so that they can be incorporated into the custard versus being immediately cooked by the hot liquid. This would give you big, eggy chunks in your custard...not pleasant. Pour the eggs into the saucepan with the custard, stirring everything together immediately. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil over medium heat- whisking constantly- for 4-5 minutes or until the mixture has thickened to resemble pudding. (It will thicken much more as it cools.) Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the vanilla, coconut and butter. Transfer the custard mixture to a glass bowl and let cool for a few minutes. Then cover with plastic wrap so that the plastic is laying on top of the custard (this prevents a skin from forming on the top of the custard) and refrigerate while you prepare the crust and meringue. Pie Shell: [Insert your favorite pastry dough recipe here] -or- Use one store bought Pillsbury pie dough. The rolled up kind in the refrigerator section is my favorite. I set it out on the counter for 5 minutes to let it soften slightly and then I roll it out a bit with a rolling pin. I gently press it into a 9 inch glass pie plate, crimping the edges into a wave pattern with my fingers. Next I prick the crust all over with a fork, including up the sides before baking it at 400 degrees for 10-11 minutes or until just golden brown. (It will bake a few minutes more with the meringue so leave a little room for additional toasting.) (Use pie weights for this if you have them. I don't so I just try to secure the dough over the lip of the pie plate while crimping the edges. This keeps it from shrinking in too much while baking.)

Meringue: 5 egg whites (three were reserved from the custard, I add two extra)

1/4 cup granulated sugar

pinch of salt

Beat the egg whites together with the salt in a standing mixer fitted with whisk attachment- on high speed- for about 2-3 minutes or until they are foamy and nearly doubled in size. I then sprinkle the sugar lightly over the top and continue to beat on high speed for another 3 minutes or so until stiff peaks form. (Stopping once to gently spoon down the sides with a spatula.) The definition of stiff peaks is where I struggle a bit... When I've watched my Mom make it (hers is always perfect) the meringue looks shiny and holds a peak when you scoop the top with a spatula. I think I always stop a minute short for some reason.

Once the meringue is ready, I transfer the custard into the baked pie shell and then top with the meringue. You want to make sure the meringue is "connected to" or touching the pie shell around the edges. This prevents the it from shrinking back to form an island in the middle of the pie while baking.

Put the pie back into the 400 degree oven for 4-5 minutes or until the meringue is golden brown. I like to sprinkle the top with lightly toasted coconut before baking. You can also sprinkle with un-toasted coconut as it will get a little color on it when it bakes. As you can see, mine got a little too toasty this time so watch carefully!

I was anxious to continue the setting up process in the fridge so I threw it right in there on a wire rack... I would NOT do this again... I think the quick cooling of the meringue created some condensation which resulted in some extra liquid in the pie plate. My meringe also fell amost a whole inch between the baking and cooling which was disappointing. It was due partially to humidity for sure. Learn from my mistake and let cool completely before refrigerating.

Though the meringue wasn't exactly mile high as I like it, I think Dad (and the rest of us) enjoyed it nonetheless.