cooking with mom

On Saturday, my mom and I made a giant coconut cream pie for the family dinner we were having later that evening. My mother's desserts are legendary, and I learned how to cook and entertain at her hand. True to Midwestern cooking, though, I didn't know any spices other than salt, pepper, and butter until my senior year of college. I think you won't be disappointed by the components of this pie if you're from that school:


First we toasted the coconut for the topping.

In the morning, mom made the crust, which is sort of like a shortbread with pecans in it, pressed into the bottom and up the sides of a 9X13:



The next step is mixing up a cream cheese layer that features cream cheese (duh), sugar, and more sugar in the form of that lovely modern creation, Cool Whip:



This is then spread on the cooled crust and put into the fridge to set a bit. Then I made the custard layer, which is 4 packets of vanilla pudding made with only enough milk for 3, which makes it thick and crazy. I guess the original recipe featured whole milk, but my mom improvised with half and half and 2%:



When the custard is cooked, I added shredded coconut. Mom only measured out a cup, but I snuck in a bunch more:



The custard is then chilled so it can set up, and then spread over the cream cheese layer. The final step is topping it all with more Cool Whip:



The finished product weighs several pounds, is far too decadent (I'd lighten it up with regular milk, light CW, and light cream cheese should I'd make it myself), and oh so yummy:



The clan snapped it right up.