From coconut pie to coconut pie soup

[Max Frederickson]

This has happened at least twice. I prepared the thickened filling for a coconut pie, poured it into a premade graham cracker pie crust, and topped it with meringue. (Last night my pie shell was too small for the filling so I put part of the filling into a standard custard cup and put it in the fridge.)

I sprinkled a little more coconut on the meringue and put the pie in the 350°F oven just long enough for the meringue to brown. When I pulled the pie out, the custard had turned soupy. I refrigerated the pie. Even after it was cold, the filling remained soupy.

What gives? What's the problem? The portion of the filling that I put into a custard cup and refrigerated retrained its pie-appropriate firmness. Here's the recipe I used, and I think I made this pie quite successfully in the past.


1 cup sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour or 1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 tsp. salt
3 cups milk
4 eggs
3 tbsp butter
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup flaked coconut
1/3 cup flaked coconut

In saucepan combine sugar, flour, salt; gradually stir in milk. Cook and stir over medium heat till thickened and bubbly. Reduce heat. Cook and stir 2 minutes more. Remove from heat. Separate egg yolks. Gradually stir 1 cup of hot custard into yolks. Return to saucepan and bring to gentle boil and cook and stir 2 more minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in butter, vanilla, and 1 cup coconut. Pour into baked pie shell. Top with meringue (3 egg whites, 6 tbsp sugar, 1/2 tsp vanilla, 1/4 tsp cream of tartar), and seal to edge. Sprinkle with 1/3 cup coconut. Bake at 350 for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden.

 

[Sir_Loin_of_Beef]

I would make the filling, put it into the crust, refrigerate until firm, then put the meringue on top, add the coconut, and brown the meringue with a torch.

 

[CWS4322]

I would make the filling, put it into the crust, refrigerate until firm, then put the meringue on top, add the coconut, and brown the meringue with a torch.

+1 or, refrigerate the pie and then make stabilized whipped cream using coconut milk, top the pie and add roasted/toasted coconut.

 

[Just Cooking]

I would make the filling, put it into the crust, refrigerate until firm, then put the meringue on top, add the coconut, and brown the meringue with a torch.

yup...

Ross

 

[Max Frederickson]

Sir Loin, that may in fact be what I should do, but for some reason that wasn't necessary in the past. Now apparently I can't cook it correctly anymore. I thought perhaps it's because I didn't cook it long enough after pouring the tempered egg yolks into the mixture on the stove, but this time I made sure the custard was very thick before taking it off the burner. It thinned in the oven while the meringue was browning anyway.

I don't have a torch so that might need to be a new acquisition.

I would make the filling, put it into the crust, refrigerate until firm, then put the meringue on top, add the coconut, and brown the meringue with a torch.

 

[Max Frederickson]

CWS4322,

"Stabilized whipped cream using coconut milk." Hmmm . . . never even thought of such a thing and didn't know it was possible. But I love coconut, so how does one do that? I know the "stabilized" part involves using gelatin. I have done that in the past. But how do you incorporate coconut milk without liquifying the cream? And in what proportions?

+1 or, refrigerate the pie and then make stabilized whipped cream using coconut milk, top the pie and add roasted/toasted coconut.

 

[jennyema]

Might be because it cooked for too long, if you used corn starch

https://www.craftybaking.com/learn/baked-goods/custard/problems-and-solutions

 

[Max Frederickson]

Interesting answer. That really makes sense because I did use cornstarch. Flour would have behaved differently, I'm guessing?

 

[CWS4322]

CWS4322,

"Stabilized whipped cream using coconut milk." Hmmm . . . never even thought of such a thing and didn't know it was possible. But I love coconut, so how does one do that? I know the "stabilized" part involves using gelatin. I have done that in the past. But how do you incorporate coconut milk without liquifying the cream? And in what proportions?

https://minimalistbaker.com/how-to-make-coconut-whipped-cream/

I just stabilize with powdered sugar, but a search indicates you can stabilize using gelatin as well.

 

[Max Frederickson]

You are apparently 100% correct. I replicated the recipe today using flour rather than corn starch and it turned out fine. I thought corn starch and flour were interchangeable. Evidently they aren’t. Thanks for enlightening me.

Might be because it cooked for too long, if you used corn starch