Heavenly Coconut Cream Pie

Heavenly Coconut Cream Pie

Dorcas Annette Walker

There is something about a Coconut Pie that I find irresistible. It doesn’t matter how many other desserts there are around if there is a Coconut Pie I find myself taking a piece. (For those of you who hate coconut bear with me this month.) In fact I consider myself an unofficial connoisseur of Coconut Pie simply by the virtue of many years experience. I’ll have to confess there were a few pieces of Coconut Pie along the way that I shuddered over wondering how on earth the cook managed to ruin what should have been a delectable dessert.

Have you ever done something that frequently comes back to haunt you? Every so often, without fail, as a crowd of people sits around relaxing and talking after a huge meal invariably someone will mention that they think I hardly eat anything compared to the rest. That is the cue for my husband to say, “Well one time believe it or not, Dorcas ate an entire pie!” I’ve given up trying to explain as my husband’s statement always sets off an uproar, but between you and me I’d like to set the record straight. I only ate half a pie, my sister ate the other half, and it was under very stressful circumstances. I was expecting at the time when one evening my sister stopped by for a visit. Both of our lives were in the midst of a drastic upheaval. My husband and I were in the process of moving south to take a church in the foothills of North Carolina- what seemed to me like the ends of the earth. For the first time in our lives my sister and I would be separated indefinitely. Due to the unusual circumstances in which we were raised, with our father often in the hospital at death’s door and our mother having to work full-time to keep our family going, my sister and I were closer than most sisters. We had gone through experiences together that kids our age had no idea of. Crazy as it sounds we had become each others security. No matter what happened in our world we always had each other to depend on; now all that was changing. My husband had gone on to bed as Lois and I talked and cried together. After a couple of hours we were hungry. That morning I had made two Coconut Cream Pies so I got one of the pies out and we both had a piece. One piece let to another as we chatted. Sometime in the early morning hours near daybreak we discovered to our shock that between us we had eaten the entire pie; something we had never done before or since. I tried to hide the evidence, but my husband discovered that one pie was gone. Despite making thousands of Coconut Pies since, my husband has never let me forget the one pie that my sister and I ate.

My Heavenly Coconut Cream Pie is the deluxe edition of all the Coconut Pies that I have made after years of experimenting. This Heavenly Coconut Cream Pie recipe is simple to make and has a light mellow texture. Even my son, who doesn’t like Coconut Pie, couldn’t resist tasting my Heavenly Coconut Cream Pie on the sly and confessed to me that he actually liked it. My Heavenly Coconut Cream Pie takes only fifteen minutes to prepare and serves eight. I couldn’t resist making two Heavenly Coconut Cream Pies. Now if I just can find the perfect spot to hide a pie…

Heavenly Coconut Cream Pie

1 (9 inch) deep pie crust baked

Mix together in a small bowl:
1 pkg (3.9 oz) instant vanilla pudding
1½ c milk

Fold in:
½ (8 oz) container of cool whip
¾ of 1 c toasted coconut
Pour into the baked and cooled pie shell. Spread the remaining half of the cool whip on top of the pudding. Sprinkle the rest of the coconut on top of the cool whip. Chill in the refrigerator and serve!

Weekly tip: A quick and easy way to toast coconut: place coconut in a microwave bowl and microwave on high for three to five minutes stirring frequently!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, syndicated columnist, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcaswalker@twlakes.net For more information check out: www.dorcasannettewalker.com