5 Types of Coconut Pies (And How to Make Them)

Coconut pies are so delicious. And there are many types of coconut pies to choose from, whether a cream pie, a custard pie, or a chess pie. Whether you like it with whipped cream or by itself, coconut pie is for everyone!

types of coconut pies - coconut custard pie
Coconut Custard Pie. Credit: canva

This blog post will discuss four of the most popular types of coconut pies, the differences, and how to make them.

5 Delicious Basic Types of Coconut Pies

#1 Coconut Cream Pie

Coconut Cream Pie. Credit: canva

What is Coconut Cream Pie?

This coconut cream pie is made with a luscious coconut filling, crispy homemade pie crust, fluffy whipped cream, and toasted coconut.

This pie is a custard cooked on the stove and chilled before being served. A layer of whipped cream is then added to it.

How to make it?

There are 3 parts to coconut cream pie:

  • Flaky Pie Crust (store-bought or homemade)
  • Creamy Coconut Filling
  • Whipped Cream

Ingredients:

  • Egg Yolks & Cornstarch:
  • Half heavy cream & half whole milk
  • Sugar
  • Salt
  • Sweetened Shredded Coconut
  • Softened butter for a smooth, creamy texture.
  • Vanilla Extract & Coconut Extract:

Instructions:

  1. Like most homemade pudding, the coconut filling is cooked on the stove.
  2. Bring the coconut milk, half-and-half, sugar, and salt to a boil in a saucepan. Whisk the egg yolks and cornstarch together, then keep them ready for tempering. Tempering is used to prevent scrambling eggs.
  3. Add a spoonful or two of the boiling coconut mixture into the egg yolks, then return everything to the pan. This raises the temperature of the egg yolk gradually.
  4. Off-heat, stir in the coconut, butter, vanilla, and coconut extracts.
  5. Pour the warm pudding into a chilled crust and chill until thickened.

#2 Coconut Custard Pie

Coconut Custard Pie. Credit: canva

What is Coconut Custard Pie?

These pies are similar to coconut cream pies but do not have whipped cream on top, and the filling is baked.

Coconut custard pie recipe with a flaky crust and egg custard filling. This tropical dessert is best served warm with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream.

How to make it?

Coconut custard pie is very easy to make.

Ingredients:

All you have to do is mix the following ingredients in a bowl until they are creamy:

  • One can of coconut milk
  • Five eggs (beaten)
  • Three tablespoons corn starch
  • Two tablespoons of sugar
  • A pinch of salt

Instructions:

  • Then, pour the mixture into a pie crust. Bake for fifteen minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
  • After that, please remove it from the oven and allow it to cool before serving! Delicious!
  • Slice and serve with whipped cream and a sprinkling of toasted coconut flakes.

#3 Coconut Chess Pie

What is Coconut Chess Pie?

Coconut Chess Pie is a baked custard pie full of coconut flavor. It is an ooey-gooey pie that bakes up with a sweet, delicate candy-like top crust. It’s like a creamy sweet macaroon pie with a homemade pie crust.

Made with simple ingredients and easy directions, chess pie is an old-fashioned Southern favorite that everybody loves.

The major difference in a chess pie from other custard pies is the addition of cornmeal for binding, But this coconut version uses flour.

How to make it?

Ingredients:

  • ready-made pie crust
  • large eggs
  • all-purpose flour
  • salt
  • granulated sugar
  • unsalted butter, melted
  • vanilla
  • coconut extract
  • buttermilk
  • shredded sweetened coconut, divided

Instructions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place pie crust in a 9” pie plate and crimp the edges as desired before baking. Allow chilling thoroughly before filling.
  2. Whisk the eggs in a large mixing bowl, then add flour and sugar. Add the melted butter, vanilla extracts, salt, and buttermilk to this mixture. Stir in the shredded coconut.
  3. On a rimmed baking sheet, spread out the prepared pie crust. After filling the pie, carefully place it in the oven. Covering the edges of the pie crust with strips of aluminum foil or using a pie crust shield is an effective method to prevent burning.
  4. Bake the pie for 40-45 minutes.
  5. Remove the shield from the crust after 25 minutes to let the edges brown.
  6. Cool completely before serving.

#4 French Coconut Pie

French Coconut Pie. Credit: canva

What is French Coconut Pie?

This easy french coconut pie recipe has a crackly, sugary crust with a wonderfully gooey vanilla and coconut center. It is sinfully good.

The French coconut pie is always baked. The center is a thick, rich, gooey, sweet coconut filling. It’s generally served at room temperature.

How to make it?

Ingredients:

  • pie shell
  • eggs
  • white sugar
  • white vinegar
  • vanilla extract
  • butter
  • salt
  • Sweeten shredded flaked coconut. 

Instructions:

  1. In a large mixing bowl, whisk the eggs. After that, add sugar, vinegar, and vanilla to the beaten eggs. Stir thoroughly.
  2. In a small saucepan, slowly melt the butter. Add a pinch of salt. Combine the egg and milk in a mixing bowl.
  3. Add shredded coconut flakes to the egg mixture and combine thoroughly.
  4. Fill the pie shell with the coconut filling.
  5. Cook for 50 to 60 minutes. At a touch, the top should be brown and crispy hard.
  6. Serve warm, but wait for the pie to cool to room temperature before eating.

#5 Impossibly Easy Coconut Pie

What is Impossibly Easy Coconut Pie?

The Impossibly Easy Coconut Pie isn’t baked in a pie shell. The pie magically creates its crust. It takes only minutes to make.

This custardy and creamy pie can be made in just 10 minutes, which makes it a great choice for last-minute desserts. So the next time you want coconut, you must try this recipe.

Stir the ingredients until well combined, then pour them into your pie dish. Isn’t it simple?

How to make it?

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup flaked or shredded coconut
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup Original Bisquick™ mix
  • 1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
  • 2 cups milk
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 4 eggs

Instructions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Use shortening or cooking spray to grease a 9-inch pie plate.
  2. In a medium bowl, combine all the ingredients until well combined. Pour the pie filling into a pie plate.
  3. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes until golden brown and the knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Refrigerate any remaining pie.

What is a Coconut Pie?

A coconut pie is a delicious dessert made from coconuts and other ingredients. The most common ingredient in a coconut pie crust is pie crust and graham crackers.

But many variations can be created using nuts/nuts, chocolate cookies, or premade doughs.

What Makes Coconut Pie Unique?

Several things make coconut pie unique.

The first thing is, of course, the creamy texture of a coconut pie. Unlike most pies where you have to cut through pumpkin or strawberry jelly – with a coconut pie, all you need is a spoon! And who doesn’t love that?

Another reason why people enjoy this type of dessert so much is that it is often served with a generous portion of whipped cream.

And finally, coconut pies are also known for their crunchy and flakey crust – making them irresistible to many!

What Are the Differences Between Each Type of Coconut Pie?

Coconut Cream Pie vs. Coconut Custard Pie

Coconut Custard Pie and Coconut Cream Pie are two distinct desserts with similar names. The main distinction is that the filling in Custard Pie is baked, while Cream Pie’s isn’t.

Coconut Custard Pie’s custard is prepared with egg and milk/cream, which sets up and thickens in the oven.

Coconut Cream Pie is a custard cooked and cooled on the stove. A layer of whipped cream is then added to it.

Custard Pie’s texture isn’t as creamy as Cream Pie’s and is frequently smaller.

French Coconut Pie vs. Coconut Cream Pie

The flaky coconut is a prominent component in French coconut pie and coconut cream pie, but the two dessert dishes are not the same.

The crunchy and crackly top crust of a French coconut pie provides an identical texture to that of a chess pie, making it just as delicious.

French coconut pie is baked every time. The filling is a thick, rich, gooey, and sweet coconut center. It’s usually served at room temperature.

A coconut cream pie is a custard pie. On top, it generally has mounds and mounds of whipped cream. It contains a light, custard-like coconut filling. It’s usually served chilled.

Chess Pie vs. Custard Pie

Chess pies differ from other custard pies in that there is a small amount of cornmeal (or flour at times) added to the batter.

Adding flour to the mixture helps to set it and gives texture. Chess pie recipes also include acidity in some form, such as vinegar, buttermilk, or lemon juice, to balance the sweetness.

So the only difference between a chess and custard pie comes down to one ingredient–cornmeal.

Other Variations of Coconut Pies

Peach Coconut Pie

Satisfy your taste buds with the delectable Peach Coconut Pie. Combining peaches and shredded coconut in a flaky crust, this dish exudes a unique flavor that can’t be found elsewhere. Its subtle sweetness will bring you back for seconds – without the overwhelming sugar of cream pies!

Chocolate and Banana Coconut Pie

This pie is so good you’ll want to eat the whole thing in one sitting!

Chocolate and Banana Coconut Pie. It sounds like an unusual combination, but it works well together. The chocolate flavor enhances the taste of bananas, which makes this a delicious dessert for either late-night or afternoon snacks. Give it a try sometime soon if you haven’t already.

Lemon Meringue Coconut Pie

Luscious Lemon Meringue Coconut Pie is an ideal confluence of tart and sweet flavors. Plus, it’s unbelievably simple to make in your own kitchen, so you can indulge whenever a craving strikes!

An exquisite treat, this pie features a delightful lemon custard filling topped with fluffy meringue expertly browned for that classic look.

This delicious treat will surely brighten up your day! Lemon Meringue Coconut Pie has all the flavors you’re looking for in an easy-to-make recipe that may become one of your favorites.

Pumpkin Spice and Apple Pecan Coconut Pie

Pumpkin Spice and Apple Pecan Coconut Pie is a delicious pie featuring autumn flavors. It combines classic pumpkin with tasty, crunchy pecans in an easy-to-make crust.

The filling has all the right spices that make it taste like freshly baked apple pies on Thanksgiving day.

Salted Caramel and Peanut Butter Coconut Pie

Salted Caramel and Peanut Butter Coconut Pie is a wonderful dessert that will satisfy your sweet tooth.

What makes this unique? The salted caramel sauce drizzled on top! It’s made with real peanut butter cups, too. Yum! And the coconut pie crust recipe used for this delicious treat comes from Cooks Illustrated, so you know it’s sure to result in perfection.

Key Lime, Pineapple, and Raspberry Coconut Pies

Raspberry, pineapple, and key lime pies are three more tasty variations of traditional coconut pie.

Both of these desserts feature sweetened condensed milk as an ingredient. Key Lime Pie has it in the crust, too, while most pineapple coconut pies have a thick layer between the filling and whipped cream topping made with sweetened condensed milk and fresh pineapple juice and zest.

If you like refreshingly light desserts that still have the richness of a full-size pie, raspberry coconut is for you! This one has an easy graham cracker crust and layers of custard on top filled with raspberries.

Tips for Making Pies

  • When creating a chess pie (and any custard pie, for that matter), keep in mind one golden rule: the exquisite chess or custard pie is baked low and slow. The eggs will curdle if the oven temperature is increased too rapidly, resulting in a watery chess or custard pie. It’s also possible that an insufficiently thick
  • To prepare for baking, place the pie on a cookie sheet. It’s simpler to handle in and out of the oven with the cookie sheet.
  • Baking the crust partially (blind baking) before adding the filling gives it a head start. When you add the coconut custard to the preheated pie shell, it will be fluid. If you used uncooked dough, the bottom of your pie would not brown properly, and your crust would be soggy.
  • Remove from the oven when the center is jiggly but still a little soft, and it will be firm as it cools.

FAQs

What is the difference between coconut cream pie and coconut custard pie?

Coconut Custard Pie and Coconut Cream Pie are two different recipes with the same name. The primary difference between a Custard Pie and a Cream Pie is that the former’s filling is baked, whereas the latter’s isn’t.

What are the four types of pie?

Cream, fruit, custard, and savory are the four varieties of pies.

Does a coconut pie need to be refrigerated?

Store your pie in the refrigerator for up to five days; when you’re ready, slice and heat it in a preheated oven until warm.

You may also use up any extra slices (or make your pie ahead of time and freeze it). Simply wrap it well in plastic or seal each slice in a sealable sandwich bag. Allow defrosting on the counter.

How do you know when a coconut custard pie is done?

A coconut custard pie is done when the center jiggles slightly and still looks soft.


See also: 23 Delicious Types of Non Fruit Pies

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