Homemade Coconut Cream Pie

close up of coconut cream pie topped with toasted coconut.

Homemade Coconut Cream Pie

This homemade coconut cream pie has a flaky pie crust base and rich, creamy coconut custard filling topped with coconut whipped cream and toasted coconut! It's the perfect light, summery dessert!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American, Southern

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 30

Chilling Time 4

Total Time 5

Servings slices

Calories 392kcal

Author Kyleigh Sage

Equipment

Ingredients

Pie

½ perfect pie crust substitute your favorite pie crust
1 ½ cups coconut chips or shredded coconut

Coconut Custard

1 (14 ounce) can coconut milk
1 cup heavy whipping cream
½ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup cornstarch
½ teaspoon kosher salt
5 large egg yolks
2 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
1 ½ teaspoons coconut extract
½ teaspoon rum extract optional

Coconut Whipped Cream

1 cup heavy whipping cream cold
¼ cup powdered sugar
½ teaspoon coconut extract

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Blind Bake Pie Crust

I use my homemade flaky pie crust for this recipe. You can check out this blog post for all my pie crust tips and tricks!
Prepare one half of my perfect pie crust recipe according to directions. Form a disk and place into the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
Remove the pie dough from the fridge and on a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough to about ¼ inch thick and about 2 inches wider than your pie pan. Roll the pie crust into the pie pan and be sure to poke the bottom a few times with a fork to allow air to escape during baking. Cut away any undesired excess crust and crimp, curl, or decorate the edges however you like!
Chill the pie crust in the freezer for at least 30 minutes before baking (if you skip this step, the pie crust will shrink). While the crust is chilling, preheat the oven to 425°F.
Place a piece of parchment paper or heavy duty aluminum foil inside the pie crust and fill with pie weights (uncooked rice or dry beans also work great).
Bake at 425°F for 15 minutes. Carefully lift the parchment paper and pie weights then return the pie crust to the oven to bake for another 10-15 minutes or until the bottom of the crust is golden brown.
Let the crust cool completely before filling.

Toasted Coconut Chips

Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Spread the shredded coconut chips in an even layer on a parchment lined baking sheet.
Toast for 5-10 minutes, tossing every couple minutes until golden brown.
Remove from the oven and let cool to room temperature.

Coconut Custard Filling

In a small bowl, beat the egg yolks until smooth and set aside.
Combine the coconut milk and heavy cream and then scald in the microwave or on the stove top until it is almost boiling. (I prefer the microwave because there is no chance of burning the milk).
In a large sauce pan, combine the cornstarch, sugar, and salt.
Over medium-low heat, slowly add in the coconut milk/heavy cream about ½ cup at a time while whisking constantly.
As the filling begins to thicken, add in another ½ cup of coconut milk/heavy cream and continue whisking.
Once all of the milk/cream is added and the filling has thickened (enough the coat the back of a spoon), remove the pot from the heat.
Pour about ½ cup of the filling into a glass measuring cup and then slowly drizzle it into the beaten egg yolks, whisking constantly until fully combined and smooth.
Pour the egg mixture back into the pot with the rest of the filling cook for an additional 2-3 minutes or until the filling has thickened to a pudding consistency.
Stir in the butter, coconut extract, and rum extract until smooth.
Pour the custard through a fine mesh strainer to remove any lumps.
Cool the filling for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, before pouring into your cooled tart shell. Cover and chill in the fridge overnight (or a minimum of 4 hours) to let the filling set.
Right before serving, top with the coconut whipped cream and toasted coconut chips.
This coconut cream pie will keep covered in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Notes

Note: Most standard pie pans are about 1 inch deep. So if you're using a deep dish pie pan (1 ½ to 2 inches deep) this recipe will not yield enough filling to completely fill your pan and you may want to double it.

Nutrition