Homemade Pie Recipes: Uncle Gordon's Coconut Caramel Pie

Source: Glenbow Museum Archives, Alberta, Canada

Radio Recipe

Good ideas come from many places and in the old days, Grandma listened to radio shows for new recipes. In her notebook, she pencilled in some instructions for my Uncle Gordon on how to make this fantastic coconut caramel pie. It was one of his favourites!

My grandmother didn't call them recipes though. She called them 'receipts'. So here is her receipt for the pie, as written.

Coconut Caramel Pie

• 3/4 cup flour
• 1-1/2 cups brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 cups scalded* milk
• 2 egg yolks beaten slightly
• 4 tablespoons of butter
• 1-1/2 teaspoons of vanilla
• 1 cup coconut
• 1-9 inch pie shell
• 4 teaspoons of icing sugar (confectioner's sugar)
• 2 egg whites beaten stiff
• 1/4 cup coconut

* Scalded milk is made by heating the milk and removing from heat before it boils. You can see little foamy bubbles form around the edge of the saucepan.

Method:

In a double boiler, combine flour, sugar, salt and add milk gradually. Cook over (not in) boiling water until mixture thickens, stirring constantly.

Pour a small amount over egg yolks, stir, and return the mixture to double boiler stirring constantly. You don't want the eggs to scramble! Cook 3 to 4 minutes longer. Remove from fire and add butter, vanilla and 1 cup of coconut.

Pour into pre-baked pie shell. Top with meringue. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of coconut over the meringue, place pie in moderate oven (300˚F) for 40 to 45 minutes or until it is a delicate brown.

Do not remove the meringue too soon or it will fail!

NOTE: Use large eggs. Eggs separate best when they are cold so do that first and then let the whites sit to warm up.

About Meringue:

Meringue can be tricky. Make sure the egg whites are at room temperature. If you've taken them from the refrigerator to make the filling, let the whites sit about half an hour before you start making the meringue.

Use a metal or glass bowl that is free from any fat residue. Traces of butter or oil will doom your meringue before you start. So will bits of egg yolk so be sure there are no stray bits of yellow in your whites. I usually add a pinch of cream of tartar to help it hold together well. In this recipe, about 1/8 of a teaspoon or so will do. Beat the egg whites until they start to form soft peaks. Then and only then, start to add the sugar one spoon at a time.

Beat until you have nice glossy peaks. They don't have to be stiff for pie. Test the meringue by dipping the back of a spoon in the mixture and pulling straight up. It's fine if the tips curl over a bit.

Spread the meringue over the warm filling and make sure you spread to the edge of the pie crusts with no gaps. When you remove the pie from the oven, let it cool gradually away from any drafts. Do not put it in the fridge or you will have a gooey, watery mess.

Note: Many recipes say to cool the filling but meringue adheres to the pie better if the eggs whites "cook" a bit on contact with the warm filling. It helps prevent 'weeping'.

This is a heavenly dessert and perfect for early spring. In keeping with the olden days, try and find natural and organic ingredients for the results you remember.

For those too young to have grandparents who lived this far back, it's a good time to start your own warm kitchen memories. Here's a voice from the past to get you in the mood.