Coconut Cream Pie was my dad’s favorite dessert and is one of those treats I love to enjoy to feel connected to him. This Easter my mom wanted coconut cream pie for dessert so I offered to give it a try making it for the first time. I thought it would be fun for us to each have our own mini pie so that we could all have a slice or two to take home with us. It turned out delicious so I decided to try taking the same ingredients but scaling down to just make one mini pie. So whenever I have a craving for coconut cream pie I won’t have to wait all night for the frozen Sarah Lee version to thaw enough to get a knife through it so we can have a slice at 10pm, but can make my own mini version. And yes my dad totally ran to the store one evening and we waited to eat a still semi frozen slice of pie right before bed 🙂 He’s definitely where I get my sweet tooth from.
Mini Coconut Cream Pie
Ingredients
- 1 egg only use 2/3 of the egg
- 1/2 cup half-n-half
- 1/2 cup coconut milk
- 2 Tbsp cornstarch
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- pinch salt
- 1/4 cup shredded sweetened coconut
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 Tbsp powdered sugar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
Instructions
- Scoop out the coconut cream and milk from the can of coconut milk into a microwave safe bowl. Microwave for 40 seconds so that the cream is melted. Stir until all combined. Pour 1/2 cup into a measuring cup. Add1/2 cup of half-n-half to the same measuring cup. Pour milk mixture into a small pan.
- Crack 1 egg and whisk with a fork to scramble the yolk. Pour 2/3 of the egg into the pan. Add sugar, cornstarch, and salt to the pan. Whisk until all combined.
- Place pan over medium-low heat and whisk frequently until the mixture gets hot and starts to thicken. This will take about 8-10 minutes, but you want to go slow to make sure the custard stays nice and smooth. Once it starts to thicken into a custard consistency remove from heat and add in vanilla and shredded coconut. Stir to combine.
- Pour custard into the pre-baked and cooled pie crust. I used my home made Pie Crust Recipe linked below recipe.
- Cover the pie/custard with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours. At this time I also put the bowl of my stand mixer in the refrigerator to get chilled for making the whipped cream. Right before serving make the whipped cream by combining heavy cream, powdered sugar and vanilla in the chilled mixing bowl. Use the whisk attachment and beat cream until stiff peaks form. Remove plastic wrap from pie and top with whipped cream. You will also want to toast a little coconut for topping the pie. So heat a small skillet over medium heat. Add 2 Tbsp of shredded coconut and toast until golden in color. Allow to cool for a few minutes before topping pie.
- Slice pie into 3-4 pieces depending on how big a slice you want. Store left over pie in the refrigerator for up to a few days.
