Do you have a Betty Crocker cook book? Mine was a wedding present so is very old and shows much wear and tear from so much use while on my dairy farm and these many years since. The outside is broken off as are many of my favorite pages.

HOW-SOME-EVER…..I still often refer to recipes from that raggedy old book. That is where I get the recipe for my cream filling for banana pie and coconut cream pie. And as per-usual, I revise that recipe!

Things you need to purchase at you favorite market:

Package of Pet-Ritz deep-dish pie shells (comes two in a pkg)
Package of coconut (I buy the 5 cup package).
Package of Dream Whip
Two percent milk ( that is what I use.)
Eggs

I’m assuming you have sugar, cornstarch, salt and vanilla
This is my revised recipe for the cream filling.

3/4 cup sugar
3 & 2/3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 cups milk
6 egg yolks
1 and 1/2 tablespoons butter
1 & 1/2 tablespoons white imitation vanilla extract
3/4 cup shredded coconut

In advance, take a pie shell from the freezer to thaw and after it is thawed punch holes in bottom and sides to let our air pressure while baking and keep it from raising up in bubbles.

In medium size bowl mix sugar, cornstarch and salt, add small amount of milk from one cup just enough to make a paste, add egg yolks and mix well. Add 2 tablespoons vanilla to mixture. Add approximately 1/4 cup more milk to this mixture and put the remainder of that cup of milk plus three more cups in a microwave bowl and heat in the microwave for four and 1/2 minutes. Add butter to hot milk.

Place thawed pie shell in 385 degree oven to bake while you finish mixing the hot milk slowly at first into the mixture of sugar, eggs etc, place in a medium size pan on burner stirring constantly with flat end wood spoon. Bring to a boil and cook for two minutes. Turn burner low for boiling so it doesn’t bubble up and burn your hand. That has happened to me more than once and take it from me that hurts.

Remove from burner and add 3/4 cup coconut to pudding, place back on burner and bring to a boil and remove. Never stir the pudding once you have removed it from the burner. That will cause it to go runny like soup. You probably already knew that.

Your pie shell should be baked to a light golden about the same time you pudding filling is done so remove from oven and pore hot pudding into the hot pie shell. That is how you keep the crust from soaking with them each being hot. I leave the pie on the counter to cool to room temperature before placing it in the fridge to cool further before adding the dream whip topping.

I top with Dream Whip using one package dream whip with one half cup plus two tablespoons two percent milk and when beaten up sweeten with a rounded teaspoons confectioners sugar and add a few drops of vanilla. If I don’t have the white vanilla I use the regular dark vanilla. After pie has cooled in fridge add dream whip to top of pie, sprinkle with fresh moist coconut and place your completed beautiful pie back in the fridge until ready to serve.

I baked this pie often for Barbara and Bernie Collins who were my helpful neighbor’s in Highland Creek in Salem Ohio. When I ask him what kind of pie he wanted it was always COCONUT CREAM!!!!!!!!!!

When I moved to Florida, Bernie said I could mail him a coconut cream pie.

Sure Bernie!!  Keep watch for that Florida bird that will swoop down out of that Salem Ohio sky and deliver a COCONUT CREAM PIE AT YOUR FRONT DOOR!!!!

FRF ❤️