Easy old-fashioned Coconut Cream Pie is homemade with a creamy coconut pudding filling and whipped cream topping. This AMAZING Pie is a crowd favorite.

I look for any excuse to make my favorite pie recipes.  Lemon Sour Cream Pie and Triple Berry Pie will always be my favorite but my husband loves this Chocolate Mousse Cheesecake Pie.  Honestly, you can’t go wrong with any of them! One taste of this Coconut Cream Pie and you’ll never be able to enjoy a store-bought version again!

A slice of coconut cream pie on a white plate with a fork.

Coconut Cream Pie

I grew up in a big family, with a HUGE extended family. We’re talking like 30 cousins, just on my mom’s side of the family. Needless to say, each Easter and Thanksgiving includes just about every Homemade Pie option under the sun!

I was so accustomed to it that I thought all families had dozens of pie choices at their Thanksgiving party.  I feel like no matter how many people there are at the party, you’ve still got to have a bunch of pies, right? I like to try a small piece of a few different kinds.

This coconut cream pie is a classic, old-fashioned recipe that deserves a seat at any party! The homemade filling is incredible, with the perfect texture and flavor that’s not overly sweet. I can’t wait for you to try it!

What is Coconut Cream Pie Made of?

The ingredients in coconut cream pie include:

  • A pre-baked baked Pie crust.  I’d highly recommend my EASY Perfect Pie Crust, over a tasteless store-bought crust. I’ve included step-by-step photos at the bottom of the pie crust recipe for how to blind-bake the crust for recipes that call for a pre-baked pie shell, like this coconut cream pie recipe.
  • Coconut. Shredded sweetened coconut flakes, or use unsweetened, if you’d rather.
  • Unsweetened coconut milk. This can be found in a can in the asian food isle at your local grocery store..
  • Half and half 
  • Sugar
  • Salt
  • Cornstarch
  • Egg yolk
  • Cream cheese
  • Vanilla
  • Coconut extract
  • Whipped cream and toasted coconut. For topping!

A whole homemade coconut cream pie with one slice removed.

How to Toast Coconut:

I love to toast the coconut before adding it to the pie filling and topping. Toasting coconut adds a really great depth of flavor and “nuttiness”. I’ve found the simplest way to toast coconut is on the stovetop.

  • Add desired amount of coconut to a large skillet.
  • Cook over medium-low heat, stirring and tossing frequently, until the flakes are mostly golden brown. Watch it closely because once it starts to toast it goes quickly. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
  • Store toasted coconut in an airtight container or jar for up to one month. This is a great step to do ahead if you want to save time.

Overhead photo of a skillet with toasted coconut and a wooden spoon.

How to Make Coconut Cream Pie:
  • Make the filling. Combine coconut milk, 1 cup half and half,  sugar and salt in a saucepan. Bring to a near boil.
  • Make a cornstarch slurry.  Mix ½ cup half and half and cornstarch.
  • Temper the egg yolks.  Slowly add the hot mixture to the egg yolks, making sure the eggs don’t cook.  Add egg yolks and cornstarch to the pan.
  • Finish the pudding. Remove it from the heat and add in cream cheese, vanilla extract and coconut extract.  Stir in coconut.
  • Pour into pie crust. Pour mixture into baked pie crust.
  • Cool. Cover with plastic wrap and chill 2 – 3 hours. Top with whipped cream and the toasted coconut.

Six process photos for making the filling for coconut cream pie and pouring it into a baked pie shell.

How to store coconut cream pie:

Store coconut cream pie in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.

Coconut cream pie with a spoonful of whipped cream being spread on top next to another photo of the completed pie with toasted coconut sprinkled on the whipped cream.

CONSIDER TRYING THESE HOMEMADE PIES:

A slice of coconut cream cake with a bite taken out of it.

You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOKTWITTERINSTAGRAM and PINTEREST for more great recipes!

Recipe

A slice of coconut cream pie on a white plate with a fork.
Prep 3 hours
Cook 20 minutes
Total 3 hours 20 minutes
Save Recipe

Equipment

Ingredients
  

For Topping:

  • fresh whipped cream , lightly sweetened
  • shredded sweetened coconut , toasted

Instructions
 

  • In a medium saucepan combine coconut milk, 1 cup half and half, granulated sugar and the salt. 
  • Set mixture over medium heat, and bring mixture nearly to a boil, stirring occasionally. 
  • Meanwhile, in a small mixing bowl whisk together remaining ½ cup half and half and cornstarch until well blended. 
  • In another small mixing bowl, whisk together egg yolks. Slowly pour ½ cup of the hot milk into the egg yolk mixture, whisking constantly (to temper the eggs).
  • Pour egg yolk mixture and cornstarch mixture into saucepan, stirring constantly. Cook, stirring vigorously, for 2 - 3 minutes. 
  • Remove from heat and add in cream cheese, vanilla extract and coconut extract; stir until well blended.
  •  Stir in ½ - ¾ cup coconut, reserving the rest for topping on the finished pie.
  • Pour mixture into baked pie crust. Cover with plastic wrap and chill 2 - 3 hours.
  • Top with whipped cream and the toasted coconut.
  • Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Notes

*You could also use graham cracker crust or Vanilla Wafer Crust
Recipe adapted from Cooking Classy.

Nutrition

Calories: 304kcalCarbohydrates: 24gProtein: 3gFat: 21gSaturated Fat: 14gCholesterol: 91mgSodium: 177mgPotassium: 159mgFiber: 1gSugar: 12gVitamin A: 390IUVitamin C: 0.3mgCalcium: 53mgIron: 1.7mg

Did You Make This Recipe?

Tag @TastesBetterFromScratch on Instagram with #TastesBetterFromScratch!

Have you tried this recipe?!

RATE and COMMENT below! I would love to hear your experience.

 

*I originally shared this recipe November 2014. Updated April 2019.

This post contains affiliate links.

Related Posts

Share Recipe

Categories

About The Author

Lauren Allen

Welcome! I’m Lauren, a mom of four and lover of good food. Here you’ll find easy recipes and weeknight meal ideas made with real ingredients, with step-by-step photos and videos.

Leave A Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Comments

  1. 4 stars
    This is my first attempt at a cream pie. I followed the directions to the letter. It didn’t thicken so after I added the cream cheese I returned it to the stove, turned up the heat, and continued stirring for 10-15 minutes. It did thicken up but never firmed up. Lauren, do you have any suggestions on how to fix this? Other than this the pie was delicious.

  2. 5 stars
    I’ve never made a chocolate cream pie nor a coconut cream pie before. I made them for my mom who is an excellent cook and pretty picky about her food. She went on and on about how good both of these pies were! Thank you so much for sharing your passion!

  3. 5 stars
    I made this for Thanksgiving and it was a huge success. I was glad that I made two! Not a single slice remained through out the evening.

  4. Filling never thickened, therefore, filling didn’t all fit in crust. Followed recipe exactly. 3 1/2 cups of liquid (coconut milk, 1/2 and 1/2) seemed to be too much liquid. Cornstarch didn’t thicken all that liquid. Also didn’t like the cream cheese taste in the pie. I noticed other comments concerning problems with it setting up as well.

  5. 5 stars
    This is SOOO GOOD!!! Even got the best compliment from my father-in-law … he said it tastes like what his mother used to make (win!!)

  6. 5 stars
    I have been wanting to make coconut cream pie for my husband (his favorite pie) but I couldn’t find any coconut cream pudding in the store. I started looking online and discovered your recipe. I was encouraged by the reviews so I got all the ingredients to make it from scratch and gave it a try. I didn’t change anything. It was absolutely the best and I don’t particularly like coconut. It has such a light coconut flavor, I loved it and so did my husband. I’m coming to this website for my future recipe needs.

See More Comments