Pineapple Coconut Cream Pie

Now that you’re all finished ooh-ing and aah-ing over the adorable kitten in my pie photo, I’ll admit that I made this pie solely to use up a can of pineapple pie filling that I’d purchased ages ago (for reasons now forgotten). The pie starts with a frozen pie crust (because I made two pies and wanted to give one away without having to worry about getting my pie pan back), a layer of pineapple pie filling, a layer of coconut cheesecake, and then swoops of whipped cream topped with toasted coconut. I only wish I’d had a jar of maraschino cherries to decorate the top!

The creamy coconut cheesecake goes nicely with the pineapple layer, and the whipped cream lightens the dessert up a little while still staying rich. I think coconut is the dominant flavor– the pineapple is more of an accent– so if you really like pineapple you could adjust the proportions by decreasing the cheesecake amount and increasing the pineapple accordingly. I used one can of pie filling for two pies, so it would be easy to just make one pie instead!

Since you’re not using a water bath to bake the cheesecake, you’ll need to be careful not to overbake– jiggle your pie plate to see if the custard is set. It should be gently jiggly in the center, not firm– it’ll firm up the rest of the way as it cools, and you’ll get a creamy cheesecake rather than a grainy, overbaked one.

Pineapple Coconut Cream Pie

• One frozen deep-dish pie crust
• 1/2 can pineapple pie filling
• 8 oz. cream cheese
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 tsp. coconut extract
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups heavy cream
• 3 tbs. sugar
• 3 tbs. shredded coconut, toasted

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Spread pie filling into the bottom of your frozen pie crust.

• In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together cream cheese, sugar, and salt until smooth.
• Beat in eggs one at a time, then slowly add milk, beating continuously, until smooth.
• Add coconut and vanilla extracts.
• Carefully pour mixture into the pie shell, and move to a baking sheet.

• Bake 10 minutes at 400 degrees, then lower heat to 325 degrees and bake for 25-35 minutes, until center jiggles gently when shaken. Only the outer 2″ of the pie should look firm– the rest should jiggle.

• Remove from oven and chill until completely cold.
• You can toast your coconut in the still-hot oven at this point, just to save time.
• When ready to serve, whip cream with sugar until stiff. Pipe or dollop onto pie, then sprinkle with cooled toasted coconut.

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