It's minus twenty-two degrees as I write this next installment of my pie blog. About this time each year, I suffer a bad case of Montana brain freeze. My winter-loving friends are immune to it, my warmer clime friends are clueless about it, but they all know when I've been afflicted by it. The telltale symptoms of Montana brain freeze are: incessant whining about the cold temperatures, explosive outbursts over the hazardous road conditions, and near delirium over the lack of sunlight. Montana brain freeze victims are seized with the same intense singular thought that paralyzes those besieged with the infamous Slurpee brain freeze: "PLEASE make it go away!"
Unfortunately for me, Montana winters don't dissipate like a fleeting Slurpee brain freeze episode. But I can escape the deep snow and the biting wind by allowing my mind to drift to tropical topics: swaying palm trees, white sand beaches, juicy pineapples, fragrant plumerias, banana cream pie. Last week's Banana Cream Dream recipe whisked me right back to balmy Hawaii and right on its coattails (or rather, aloha shirttails) is this week's Coconilla Coconut Cream Pie.
With the sweet taste of banana cream success lingering on my tongue, I took some creative license with the coconut cream recipe. I opted for a Nilla wafer cookie crust and indulged the filling with the addition of Coco Lopez cream of coconut, the luscious ingredient in piña coladas, hence my hybrid recipe name of Coconilla. Interestingly, I discovered that coconilla is a perennial shrub that originated in the West Indies. The plant bears a juicy berry that is used for medicinal purposes, specifically spleen issues. Coconilla is extremely sensitive to frost and needs sunny conditions to thrive. Even partial shade will compromise its growth. Do you know of someone that might resemble that description?
While making this pie, I flashed back to 1974 and Miss Miranda's home economics class. As I mentioned in a previous blog entry, our class pie creations were less than stellar. Our coconut cream filling was tainted, in my opinion, with the intrusion of flaked coconut. I've omitted it in my version and allowed the Coco Lopez to punch up the pie with coconut flavor sans the annoying bits of flaked coconut. Miss Miranda, if you are reading this, I apologize for leaving out an ingredient, but I think you'll love my smooth, unadulterated version.
I hope you enjoy this pie as much as I have. My first bite transported me to the sunny West Indies. I polished off two slices in my tropical reverie with nary an issue with my spleen. But rest assured, a garnish of a coconilla berry would have quelled it!
COCONILLA COCONUT CREAM PIE
Crust:
40 Nilla wafers, crushed
1/4 cup butter, melted
Thoroughly blend wafer crumbs and melted butter. Press into an even layer against bottom and sides of a 9" pie plate. Bake in a preheated oven at 375 degrees for 6-8 minutes. Cool.
Filling:
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 cups half and half
4 large egg yolks
1/2 cup Coco Lopez canned cream of coconut, well stirred
1 teaspoon coconut extract
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons butter
Combine the sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a medium-size heavy saucepan. Whisk in the half and half, egg yolks, and cream of coconut. Cook over medium heat, continuously whisking until the mixture starts to thicken and comes to a boil, 5-7 minutes. Continue to whisk and cook until quite thick, about 1 1/2 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in extracts and butter, blending until butter is melted. Immediately pour the filling into the cooled pie crust. Press a piece of plastic wrap directly over the filling to prevent the forming of a skin. Transfer the pie to a wire rack and let cool to room temperature before refrigerating for at least 5 hours or overnight.
Topping:
1 cup cold heavy whipping cream
3 tablespoons confectioner's sugar
1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut, toasted (optional)*
When you're ready to serve the pie, make the topping. Using a chilled bowl and beaters, beat the cream with an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Add the confectioner's sugar and beat until stiff but not grainy. Smooth over the chilled pie. Sprinkle with toasted coconut, if desired.
*To toast coconut, spread flakes on a large baking sheet and place in a preheated 325 degree oven for about 10 minutes. Watch carefully and stir the coconut every few minutes to ensure even toasting. Remove from oven when coconut turns a golden color.
When I lived in the Hawaii in the mid 1980s, I sampled the most heavenly banana cream pie. It left an indelible memory which recently surfaced in a conversation I was having with a friend. We don't get together often, and when she asked me how my life was going, I answered using a food analogy.
Because my life is so busy and full of varied activities, I told her my life is like a pie sliced into many wedges. There is no slice too big to consume but rather many little tasty slivers that I graze upon and which completely satisfy me.
"But what flavor is your pie?" she inquired further.
This is when that dreamy banana cream pie memory came to light. After pondering for a moment, I replied, "My life is a banana cream pie. Bananas are sweet yet healthful and their sunny color brings cheer. Bananas remind me of Hawaii which is my favorite place on earth with its warm climate and warm people. My life now is sweetly blessed; I am happy but freezing and would love to snowbird in Hawaii where the bananas grow.
"Banana cream pie is also creamy and rich, and my life is rich with purposeful activity and rich in friendships. Mounds of fluffy whipped cream represent the fun opportunities that have come my way.
"My favorite banana cream pie has a scrumptious macadamia shortbread crust and a light sprinkling of chopped macadamias and toasted coconut atop the whipped cream. Those nuts represent the obstacles and pitfalls in life, not so overwhelming as to halt me but just enough to challenge me. Nuts are full of fiber and require a thorough chewing, a nutritional liquid plumber of sorts. A plain banana cream pie without nuts would lazily slide past the tongue and down the throat. My life has been sweet but I need a little roughage to prevent me from getting too complacent.
"I'm not overly fond of coconut and would choose to omit it in most recipes. Grated coconut has a funky texture. I can chew and chew it but it just doesn't seem to disintegrate. And it gets stuck in my teeth. The toasted coconut slivers on the pie represent those people and situations in my life that, despite my chewing, just won't disappear. But with patience and tolerance, I must deal with them head-on and become stronger in the process. And usually with coconut, after the first bite I realize I actually don't mind the taste!"
My friend looked at me and giggled. "Let's ask a bunch of other people this question!"
Later at home, I queried my daughter who, over the drone of her hairdryer and the blaring music from her boom box, yelled, "What did you say???....Oh, my life is one of those cheesecake samplers with lots of slices and lots of flavors." How true of my wanderlust daughter who who hopscotches along, experiencing a little bit here and a little bit there but all of it with gusto.
So I pose this question to you now. If your life were a pie, what flavor is it and why? In the meantime, I have done my best to replicate that banana cream pie I sampled in paradise. The cookie crust is sweet and the filling is especially creamy with the half and half. If you really want to live on the edge, use full cream. Make sure your bananas aren't green or black. The ripeness factor is critical to the overall flavor. Use a 9 1/2" deep dish pie pan. This pie needs some room to show off its ample whipped cream topping. And please post answers to my pie question. I'd love to read your creative responses!
Macadamia Shortbread Pie Crust
1/2 cup macadamia nuts
1 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup confectioner's sugar
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
In a coffee mill or small blender, grind macadamia nuts until a thick paste form. Using your hands, mix macadamia paste, butter, sugars and flour together in a large bowl. Squeeze and work dough until it holds together. Press into a deep dish 9 1/2" pie pan making sure the dough is pressed a little higher than the lip of the pie pan to prevent shrinking during baking. Chill for 2 hours. Preheat oven to 325 degrees and bake for 15 minutes. Cool.
Filling
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 cups half and half
3 large egg yolks
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2" chunks
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Combine the sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a medium-size heavy saucepan. Whisk in the half and half and egg yolks. Place over medium heat and cook, stirring continuously until mixture thickens and bubbles, 5-8 minutes. Continue to cook, whisking continuously, for about 1 minute more. Remove from heat and whisk in butter, one chunk at a time. Whisk in vanilla. Pour the filling into the cooled crust. Gently press a piece of plastic wrap against the filling to prevent a skin from forming. Cool on wire rack to room temperature, then refrigerate for at least 5 hours or overnight.
Topping
2 cups heavy or whipping cream, well chilled
1/4 cup confectioner's sugar
3 large bananas
1/4 cup each chopped macadamia nuts and toasted coconut for garnish (optional)
Using a chilled medium-size bowl and chilled beaters, beat the cream with an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Add confectioner's sugar and continue beating just until stiff. Spread a thin layer of the topping over the chilled pie filling. Slice the bananas about 1/4' thick and place all over the pie. Mound the remaining whipped cream over the bananas. Sprinkle with chopped macadamia nuts and toasted coconut, if desired. Chill uncovered for an hour and then serve.
I would be remiss if I didn't include in my pie blog Miss Miranda's original recipe from home economics class circa 1974. So to pay homage to her and to redeem my pathetic pie-making self, I have attempted to bake that very same pie using the very same recipe that, believe it or not, I still have filed away in my recipe archives. The mimeographed copy is faded and there are stain splotches on the 8 1/2 x 11 paper (I imagine these stains are from the burnt custard fiasco). And for those of you under the age of forty, you probably don't even know what a mimeograph is.
So here in all its glory is Miss Miranda's original recipe for vanilla cream pie. Check out how the graham crackers are to be crushed in wax paper. This recipe was written B.Z. - before Ziploc! And notice how butter is referred to as table fat. Can you imagine going to the movie theatre and requesting table fat on your popcorn?
Rest assured that if you try this recipe, you cannot possibly botch it like I did during the Grand Pie Debacle of 1974. I can almost hear Miss M raising her voice above the loud din of chirping junior high girls, "Don't leave out any ingredients-es!"
Graham Crust:
12-14 graham crackers (to yield 1 1/2 cups of crumbs)
2 tablespoons sugar
1/3 cup butter
1. Place crackers on waxed paper. Crush to fine crumbs with rolling pin.
2. Soften table fat, add sugar to crumbs. Mix well.
3. Press mixture firmly into greased 9" pie pan with back of spoon. Bake at 400 degrees for
8-10 minutes.
Vanilla Custard Filling:
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups milk
3 egg yolks (slightly beaten)
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
In saucepan, combine dry ingredients. Gradually stir in milk. Cook and stir over medium heat till bubbly. Cook and stir 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir small amount of hot mix into egg yolks. Return to hot mix. Cook 2 minutes more, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add butter and vanilla and blend well. Pour into baked pie shell and refrigerate.
I wasn't exactly thrilled about replicating this pie. If you've read my first blog piece, you'll recall that my filling had errant globs of unsightly burnt custard. It's no surprise I filed away that mimeographed pie recipe and hadn't taken it out for decades. But I'm happy to report that my second attempt wasn't a complete disaster: no burnt custard and the crumb crust did not migrate into the filling. No offense to Miss Miranda, but I would substitute cornstarch for the flour. The custard had that cooked flour taste and it was a bit runny. When I removed the first slice from the pan, the custard was not firm enough and began oozing into the empty space. The overall flavor, however, was pleasant. I think Miss Miranda would give me a passing grade this time around!
The key to key lime pie is key lime. The end....
Seriously though, the key to authentic key lime pie is truly the key lime. Floridians take their key lime pie seriously. In 2006 both the Florida House of Representatives and the Florida Senate passed legislation effecting that key lime pie be deemed the "Official Pie of the State of Florida." And back in 1965, Florida State Representative Bernie Papy Jr. introduced legislation calling for a $100 fine to be levied against anyone advertising key lime pie not made with key limes. That bill did not pass but every Floridian has ingrained deep into their southern soul that substituting standard lime juice in a key lime pie is a cardinal sin.
I just returned from sunny Orlando and I thought it apropos that I should kick off my pie blog with key lime pie. My research in the sunshine state was fruitful, so to speak. The key ingredient, of course, is key lime. Key limes are not to be confused with the ubiquitous Persian limes found in every supermarket. Key limes are like the runt offspring of a lemon and a lime; a much smaller and roundish yellow fruit whose juice, although paltry, packs a super tart punch. Being in the heart of Florida, I was confident that key limes would be displayed right next to their Persian relatives on the produce shelves.
Incorrect assumption. The first grocery clerk I approached apparently did not know what key limes were as she directed me to Persian limes. Another clerk led me to kiwis. And since I didn't want to spend my precious short time fruitlessly searching for those elusive key limes, I settled for bottled key lime juice, making sure it was 100% pure unadulterated key lime juice. (On an ironic side note...when I returned home to Montana, I discovered key lime juice and key limes are regularly stocked at my local grocers).
What the Orlando grocery stores lacked in key limes they redeemed themselves in key lime cookbooks. Go figure. I purchased a couple and then went to the bakery department of the Publix grocery store. Online reviews of their key lime pie were favorable, so I purchased a pie and let it chill in the hotel refrigerator before sampling it. A key lime connoisseur I am not, but this pie was quite delicious with a firm custard bursting with lime flavor and a graham cracker crust that embraced the filling without suffocating it.
My next stop was a Bahama Breeze restaurant whose key lime pie got rave reviews. Indeed, with its hearty brown sugar graham crust and billowy meringue topping, this pie seriously upstaged the Publix version. Had I more time in Florida to taste test, I would have graced my palate with many more key lime pies. So armed with an arsenal of recipes and my key ingredient of key lime juice, I flew back home to bake my very first pie.
I opted for the classic version - graham cracker crust, custard filling, and a whipped cream garnish versus the gourmet version of a meringue topping. Tackling meringue will come later in my pie quest. Miss Miranda would be happy that I left out no ingredients-es. She might, however, frown upon the fact that I took some creative license with the original recipe. I substituted brown sugar in the crust, added a bit of vanilla extract for depth and doubled the custard filling because it didn't quite fill the pie pan. The end product was a respectable Key Lime Pie!
LINDA'S SUBLIME KEY LIME PIE
Crust:
1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup butter, melted
Filling:
2 14-ounce cans sweetened condensed milk
7 egg yolks
3/4 cup key lime juice
Freshly whipped cream
Lime slices for garnish
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. In a medium bowl, mix all crust ingredients together and press evenly into a 9-inch pie pan. Bake for 8 minutes. Cool.
In another medium bowl, using an electric mixer, combine the milk and egg yolks at low speed. Slowly add the key lime juice. Mix until well blended and mixture has thickened a bit. Pour into prepared crust and refrigerate overnight. Right before serving, top with whipped cream and lime slices. Makes 1 9-inch pie.
Other key facts about key lime pie:
Purists shudder at the thought of adding green food coloring to key lime pie. A key lime pie in its natural glory is a pale buttery yellow mainly due to the egg yolks but also because key lime juice is yellow, not green.
Key Lime Pie originated in Key West, Florida by local residents referred to as "Conchs". Because refrigeration was not available and there were no cattle in the area, canned milk was used.
The acid from the lime juice sets and thickens the egg yolks. There is no need to cook the custard filling although most recipes nowadays call for briefly baking the filling to ward off any possible lurking salmonella bacteria.
A key lime yields just 1-2 teaspoons of juice whereas a Persian lime yields 1-2 tablespoons. In a pinch, you can substitute 1/2 Persian lime juice and 1/2 lemon juice for key lime juice. Purists, of course, insist on fresh key lime juice when making their pies.
