Lawry's Coconut Banana Cream Pie

Heads up coconut lovers, this pie is amazing, totally decadent, and the coconut crust is absolutely awesome.  The crust takes it from ordinary to sublime.

Back in August of 2002, I emailed the L.A. Food Times regarding a recipe that I had gotten from their S.O.S. site and lost.  We made it several times and it was one of those special to-die-for recipes, so I was not a happy camper when I misplaced the recipe.

After writing to them, they reposted the recipe for me in their food column, I came across it again today and wanted to put it on Jan CAN Cook before I lost it again.  If you want a truly wonderful dessert, forget about the calories and make this.  It’s really special.

~ jan

DEAR SOS: About five or six years ago you printed a recipe for Lawry's Coconut Pie. It had a coconut crust and was to die for.

JAN

DEAR JAN: This is a great pie for those who fail at making pie crusts. This crust is really simple, consisting of melted butter and coconut pressed into a pie plate.

 

Lawry's Coconut Banana Cream Pie

Active Work Time: 20 minutes * Total Preparation Time: 30 minutes plus 2 hours chilling

COCONUT PIE SHELL

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, plus more for pie plate

3 cups sweetened flake coconut

Lightly butter a 9-inch pie plate and set aside.

Melt the 1/2 cup butter in a large skillet over medium heat and brown the coconut flakes, stirring constantly, about 5 minutes. They should be golden brown. Press the coconut firmly and evenly in the pan to form a shell. Chill the crust 30 minutes before filling.

PIE FILLING

4 egg yolks

3/4 cup sugar, divided

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup flour

3 cups half-and-half, divided

Yellow food coloring

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 bananas

1 cup whipping cream

1 tablespoon powdered sugar

Combine the egg yolks, 1/4 cup of the sugar, the cornstarch, salt and flour in a small bowl. Gradually add 1 cup of the half-and-half.

Combine the remaining 2 cups half-and-half and 1/2 cup of the sugar in a 3-quart saucepan and bring just to boil over medium heat. Add the egg mixture and cook and stir until the mixture returns to a boil and thickens, about 1 minute.

Remove from the heat. Stir in 2 drops of food coloring and the vanilla. Cover the surface with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming. Let cool.

Slice the bananas into the pie shell. Pour the filling into the shell.

Whip the cream with the powdered sugar until stiff. Spoon in dollops or pipe with a pastry bag around the edge of the pie. Chill 2 hours before slicing.

6 to 8 servings. Each of 8 servings: 563 calories; 427 mg sodium; 182 mg cholesterol; 39 grams fat; 26 grams saturated fat; 50 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams protein; 1.62 grams fiber.

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