Vanilla Cream Pie

   Dad asked me to make the Chocolate Marvel Pie again sometime soon. He only had one slice- and with a pie like that, you have to have at least two. If possible, three. I'm serious- no kidding! When KakYong And Aiman come home, I'll have to make a 10-inch one.

   Today I made pie again for ifthar- only I made it too late and it'd only been in the fridge for 1 1/2 hours, so it wasn't quite set. I made vanilla cream pie. Adik liked it, but I think Abang prefers the chocolate pie. I personally think it tasted a little- and I mean a little bit like cough medicine, haha. I think it was because of the vanilla essence. I have to say, even though I use vanilla essence instead of vanilla extract due to several reasons (which I will explain in another post), I don't think I'll use it again for custards because it rather spoils the taste.

   On the other hand, Abang managed to snap a picture or two of the whole pie, but I've yet to take one of one piece. The thing is, the custard didn't 'set' actually- instead, it stayed soft and custardy. When you slice through the crust, the filling pours out like custard sauce. Since there was no picture of this particular pie from the book, I hoped this was the way it was to be. After all, the only thickener it used was cornstarch. Or maybe I need to cook it longer. Anyway, next time I'll substitute that with custard powder and see if it makes a difference.

   The book offers measurements for three pie sizes- 8-inch, 9-inch and 10-inch. I've included all versions so that you can find the best that suits you. I made a 9-inch pie, and once again the crust slid down the slippery slop of the bowl. Tomorrow I'm going to hunt for a nice pie pan. And buy one if I can afford it.

VANILLA CREAM PIE

Source: Betty Crocker's Pie & Pastry Cookbook

*still too lazy to post the recipe yet, just use your favourite pie crust recipe


8-INCH PIE
8-inch Baked Pie Shell
1/2 cup sugar
3 tbsp cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups milk
3 egg yolks, slightly beaten
1 tbsp butter or margarine, softened
Sweetened whipped cream

9-INCH PIE

9-inch Baked Pie Shell
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups milk
4 egg yolks, slightly beaten
2 tbsp butter or margarine, softened
Sweetened whipped cream



10-INCH PIE

10-inch Baked Pie Shell
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups milk
4 egg yolks, slightly beaten
2 tbsp butter or margarine, softened
Sweetened whipped cream

Bake pie shell.

In saucepan, blend sugar, cornstarch and salt.

Stir milk into egg yolks. Stir egg mixture into dry ingredients. Cook, stirring constantly, over medium heat until mixture thickens and boils. Boil and stir one minute. Remove from heat; blend in butter and vanilla.

Immediately pour into baked pie shell; press plastic wrap onto filling. Chill pie thoroughly (2 hours or longer).

Just before serving, remove plastic wrap from filling and top it with sweetened whipped cream

Serve and enjoy!