I made my January pie, but instead of choosing between the coconut cream and the banana cream pie, I found a recipe for banana coconut cream pie and a recipe for a crust made of crushed Vanilla wafers, a most amount of sugar and melted butter.

I’m not reprinting the recipes here. Instead I’m posting the links to the links to both recipes, so the people who created these recipes get full credit for their efforts. They include complete directions and wonderful tips.

I did make a couple of tweaks to the pie recipe. One of my sons warned me not to mess with the crust recipe because it’s perfect as is. Let me first say my sons aren’t really dessert eaters or coconut lovers, but they all put these recipes in the let’s have it again pile.

Here are the links:

Vanilla Wafer Crust

https://www.thespruceeats.com/vanilla-wafer-crust-3059181?utm_source=emailshare&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=shareurlbuttons

Banana Coconut Cream Pie

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/91726/banana-coconut-cream-pie/?did=247862-20200124&hid=&utm_campaign=recipe-to-a-friend_lifecycle&utm_source=allrecipes.com&utm_medium=email&utm_term=bounceexchange&utm_content=012420&cid=247862&mid=28945242977

Here are the tweaks I made:

I used unsweetened coconut flakes and went generous on the amount used.

I added a teaspoon of coconut extract along with the Vanilla extract called for in the recipe.

I do not add sugar or other sweeteners to the cream after it’s whipped.

I used shelf stable heavy cream (found it at Trader Joe’s) and made sure to freeze the glass bowl I used and the mixer beaters – it whipped up creamy and delicious into firm peaks and the whipped cream didn’t separate – the last piece of leftover pie was just as pretty and flavorful as the first piece. The other thing I like about shelf stable heavy cream is that I can keep it on hand because it doesn’t have to be refrigerated until 6 hours before you intend to use it.

Confession – I burned the first sheet pan of coconut I was trying to toast, but 350 degrees for five minutes was the perfect time and temperature. I have an old oven and temperature and cook times can be an adventure.

The pie was a major hit. I served it instead of cake for a family birthday celebration.

Here are my photos:

For this month, I’ll be making cherry pie and I’ve been asked to use the Vanilla Wafer Pie Crust again. It will be a nice test to see if it can replace a traditional pie crust. I’ll share my results in the March issue.

Send your recipes and original photos to Fran at This Awful Awesome Life. My email is fran.thisawfulawesomelife@gmail.com.

On the subject heading of your email, please include your name and Pie of the month: ex. Pat Jones - April: French Silk Pie.

You can send them a month before the feature month or during the month and I’ll feature them in the next month’s issue. The sooner the better. If you love to bake, you can contribute each month. In December, we will select one lucky baker who will receive a gift from Pampered Chef.