Who said that coconut cream pie had to be full of dairy? That’s right, no one! While it’s delicious with milk and cream, it is equally rich and fluffy without it. # 66: Coconut Cream Pie (Dairy-free!)

 

I absolutely LOVE dairy in all forms. Cheese, milk, whip cream, butter . . . bring it on! Sadly, some of my family and friends are lactose intolerant and I feel the tiniest bit guilty when making dairy-rich desserts in front of them. And what better recipe to substitute out the dairy than coconut cream pie! There are so many products that come from coconuts – coconut water, oil, milk, cream, etc. – that can be used in place of dairy products with differing levels of fat.

 

You know how when you crack open a can of coconut milk, there is that solid part at the top that you have to mix in? That is the “cream” that can be whipped up into a fluffy replacement for whip cream. You can sometimes find cans of just coconut “cream” but it’s less common in grocery stores. I actually found some at Sprouts in Oakland, and I’m sure it’s sold other places too! Safeway didn’t have it and Trader Joe’s was out of stock.

 

First step: crust. I had graham crackers that were getting a little past their prime, so I ground them up and mixed them with butter, sugar and salt to make a base. While graham cracker crusts have never been a favorite of mine, it worked well with the mounds of coconut pudding and cream. It would be fun to try a denser, possibly chocolate, crust with this pie next time. What kind of crust do you like with pudding-heavy pies?

 

I made it a little thick to make sure it would hold up considering the weight of the filling I was planning to layer on top of it.

 

 

Toasting coconut makes the whole place smell like a tropical vacation! I had to keep an eye on it though – it browns super quickly.

 

 

This doesn’t look appealing, but it’s amazing, I promise. I mixed in a bit of the toasted coconut to give it a bit of crunch. I might make this again and just add rice to make a delish coconut rice pudding. Yum!

 

This is the “whip cream.” It held stiff peaks rather well, I was impressed!

 

Assembly time!

 

I don’t know about you, but I like coconut cream pie piled up high. Next time, I’ll double the whipped coconut topping.

 

Voila! The more toasted coconut, the better.

 

Happy munching!

 

Filling recipe: https://minimalistbaker.com/coconut-cream-pie-vegan-gf/