Coconut Pie (GF, DF and easy? Impossible!)
Categories: All, Desserts, Holiday, Pies, Recipes
Tags: , Allergy Friendly, Coconut, Dairy Free, Desserts, Easter, Pie
This pie is another of family favorites. My mother always called it “Impossible Pie,” and I now understand why! It really is embarassingly easy, and now that I make it gluten-free and dairy-free too, it seems so easy and delicious that it must be impossible … but I promise that it is possible!
We typically serve this pie at Easter, which only reminds us of how much we love the recipe, thereby causing us to crave it every month thereafter, until we are ultimately distracted by some other series of desserts (often, not until Christmas cookies!), only to revisit the recipe a few short months later, and to be reminded of how much we love it … anyway, you get the picture.
It truly is one of my springtime favorites because it is so quick and easy – I mean, what could be easier than a crustless pie? And don’t for a minute think that you can’t enjoy a custard pie because you avoid dairy; with this recipe, you have no such worries! Wonderful hot out of the oven, cold, or even room temperature, I recommend doubling the recipe, because one pie is never enough!
- 1 1/2-2 cups flaked coconut (sweetened or unsweetened, to your taste)
- 2 cups milk (dairy or nondairy – coconut milk is the obvious, but not required, choice)
- 4 large eggs
- 1 1/2 cups granulated cane sugar
- 1/2 cup Jules Gluten Free™ All Purpose Flour
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, gluten-free
- 8 tablespoons butter or nondairy alternative, melted (I use Earth Balance® Buttery Sticks)
Preheat oven to 350ºF.
Pour coconut into a small bowl. Add milk/”milk” to soak, and set aside for at least 10 minutes.
Beat eggs and sugar then add all the other ingredients slowly. Add the soaked coconut and pour into an oiled pie plate or 4–6 ramekins. This pie rises when cooking, then shrinks as it cools; therefore, use caution not to overfill the pans. I recommend leaving at least an inch clearance to allow for the pie to rise. Consequently, you may find that you have extra pie batter and need to use an additional baking pan.
Bake for 50–60 minutes (approximately 30–40 minutes for ramekins), or until the edges are lightly browned and the middle is no longer jiggly.
(See how easy that was?!)
Serves: 4-6
*This recipe and over 149 more, also available in my new cookbook, Free for All Cooking: 150 Easy Gluten-Free, Allergy-Friendly Recipes the Whole Family Can Enjoy!
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27. Jan, 2012
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Kelli said: on April 23, 2011
So really all I’m doing is mixing all the ingredients together & then baking? Too easy, but I’ll try it tomorrow for my GF Father-in-law. He loves coconut cream pie and hasn’t had one since he had to go GF. Thanks for sharing.
Jules said: on April 23, 2011
Yep – that’s about it! The expression, “easy as pie” must have come from somewhere! Enjoy!
Ayda said: on May 10, 2011
I’ve tried the pie. My kids said it’s the best dessert ever. I’ve even changed the sugar to the same amount of maple syrup still works.
Ayda
Jules said: on May 12, 2011
Ayda – yum! What a brilliant substitution – so glad to know that change works! Thanks for posting!
Janine Brune said: on April 24, 2011
I am so excited about this recipe. I wish MOM’s was open today. I’m out of Jules flour.
Deb C said: on May 3, 2011
Whole Foods carries it too!
Amber K said: on May 2, 2011
Oh baking is so frustrating sometimes! I’ve tried to cut out dairy, but it seems to be impossible to find certain things that are gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, and coconut-free!
Cindy said: on May 3, 2011
Can you do almond, oat, cashew, hemp, or sunflower? You can always google recipes for how to make the “milks”, many of which are really easy. Good luck and hang in there! Sounds like a pain, you poor thing!
Charlotte Moore said: on May 2, 2011
This sounds like a french coconut pie to me. It looks delicious.
Beth said: on May 2, 2011
Any suggestions to make this recipe egg free?
Cindy said: on May 3, 2011
I’d probably go with Ener-g egg replacer for this one. Although tofu or flax, sweet potato, or banana might work nicer than you’d think to. Play around and have fun!
Good luck!
Oh, maybe even tapioca, arrowroot, or agar agar might be enough in this, but I’d personally try the the first three mentioned first.
Kaye said: on May 3, 2011
I am also interested in finding out if there is an egg free option for this – four large eggs is alot to substitute. I have my best results with crushed flax seed and warm water but don’t know about using this for the coconut pie. Help please!
Jules said: on May 3, 2011
As for an egg sub for this recipe, I agree and try to stay clear of subbing for eggs in recipes that call for 3 or more eggs. I have not tried egg subs in this recipe because of that, but my first guess would be to use a combination of a couple egg replacers (as I discuss in Free for All Cooking), including tofu — sounds odd, but it will come closest to the proper consistency. I’d love to hear if anyone does get time to try this yummy recipe egg-free … please come back and share your results!!!
BJ said: on May 2, 2011
OK, I am the GF one and would love to make Coconut pie but husband hates coconut. Can I just make this and have pie like egg custard? Thanks so much for all you do!
Pam said: on May 3, 2011
Jules, this pie was so good at the Charlotte expo.
Armed with my new flour I will try this soon!
Cathy E said: on May 3, 2011
Yea!! I’ve been craving a coconut cream pie for three years!!!
Also used ‘your flour’ to make a B-day cake this week which came out perfect(NOT crumbly). Thank you, thank you.
Cathy E said: on May 3, 2011
By the way, can I freeze this coconut pie?
hedy l troyano said: on May 3, 2011
does anyone know if this can be frozen?
cindy said: on May 14, 2011
mine doesn’t last long enough to freeze it! but i would think it would be ok, maybe cook it a little longer initially!
it is fantastic!!!
Barbara said: on May 3, 2011
I would like to know how you get a good pie crust from your flour. I have tried several times and it always looks good and shapes good, but when I try to cut it, it is as hard as a rock. I follow your recipe in the book to a T and it is just not working. Please help!
Jules said: on May 3, 2011
Hi Barbara – there are some great helpful hints in my pie crust blog, video and comments to it from other readers. One mistake I see people making a lot is overcooking the crust, waiting for it to brown. If you brush on some milk before baking, that can help it brown, but overcooking the crust will definitely cause it to be too hard. Also, although I say to leave the dough sit out for 30 min before rolling, it should not be warm – if the fats have melted before rolling, then there won’t be any pockets of fat left to melt during baking and give off steam, causing the air pockets and flakiness we all want in our crust. If your dough is getting warm before rolling, or if you work it too much when rolling out, that could cause problems too. Don’t give up!!! You will have amazing crust, I just know it!
Fatcat said: on May 3, 2011
This is especially good if you drizzle melted chocolate on it when you serve it.
Jules said: on May 3, 2011
Fatcat – that sounds A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!
Cindi said: on May 3, 2011
How can you make this sugar free?
Jules said: on May 3, 2011
Cindi – I’d love to try this with Coconut Palm Sugar! I bet using that unrefined sugar would be wonderful in this recipe!
Karen S said: on May 3, 2011
Has anyone tried this recipe egg-free yet? Love to know if you had success. A friend suggested adding 1/2 – 1 tsp of vinegar with baking soda at the last. Anyone know if this works?
Niv said: on May 4, 2011
I recently came across a pound cake recipe that called for 4 eggs and the substitute used for 4 eggs was 1 cup pureed Mori Nu silken Tofu (firm) or any other silken Tofu.
I am planning to give this a shot in this recipe, if anyone else does please do post.
Frances D’amato said: on May 10, 2011
I done that coconut pie.It is not impossible.It is possible.It is so delicious every one likes it.Thanks so much.
Jules said: on May 12, 2011
I like the way you put that, Frances!
Douglas said: on May 11, 2011
This recipe sounded wonderful until I saw that it takes eggs. While I am aware that there are egg alternatives I do not find them to be very effective especially in baked goods. The end result is often heavy. The egg alternatives don’t provide the lift that real eggs do. Any suggestions?
Jules said: on May 12, 2011
Douglas – scan through the comments below — there are lots of egg subs discussed that might work well in this recipe!
T. Earp said: on May 17, 2011
Hi,
Can this be cooked in regular pie pans? I do not have ramekins.
Thanks,
Teresa
Jules said: on May 17, 2011
T. Earp, you can absolutely bake this pie in regular pans – you’ll need 1-2 pie pans per recipe and they will need to bake longer.
Kim said: on November 10, 2011
Thank you so much for posting this. It’s just like the Bisquick Impossible Coconut Pie that I loved as a youngster! I ended up pouring it into a 9×13 inch baking dish and it only took 40 minutes. Good stuff!
Jules said: on November 13, 2011
Fantastic Kim! It’s such an easy recipe and turns out great no matter what the pan – a family favorite!
Emelia said: on November 17, 2011
Ahh that looks so great! But it just reminds me of Creamed horns (odd but childhood memories tend to be….). Proper puff pastry with GF flour seems to be a no go zone. A bit like international shipping… Jules you need an Australian Distributor!!
Jules said: on November 20, 2011
Emelia – yes! an Australian distributor would be great!!! By the way, I have made gluten-free puff pastry and it is delicious — just time consuming, as with any puff pastry! I firmly believe that ANYTHING is possible gluten-free. Never give up on that!
Marsha C. Baxter White said: on November 20, 2011
I have made this pie twice, once with egg substitute mentioned above, yuck went in the garbage. Next with silken tofu, better but not pretty. I used gluten free flour and tofu, it rose beautifully, looked great but would not firm up so I had to cook it for 2 hours. It lost it’s uniform appearance, but the flavor was great.. Just not a show piece.. Any suggestions will be appreciated… I have found that gluten free baking takes more time, much longer in the oven…
Jules said: on November 20, 2011
Marsha, I’m glad you liked the taste of the pie with tofu as en egg substitute, but I’m not surprised that it doesn’t hold its shape well with that substitute though. I don’t recommend this pie for those who can’t tolerate eggs because it’s fundamentally a custard base. If you really want to try it again, pehaps vegan tapioca pudding as a sub? I haven’t tried it, but it sure would taste good and you could bake it in ramekins and serve with a spoon if if doesn’t hold together completely!
Marsha C. Baxter White said: on December 4, 2011
I made the pie again for Thanksgiving. I drained the tofu almost dry and reduced the milk.. The result was much better and was more attractive in appearance..
Jules said: on December 6, 2011
Marsha – that’s great news! So glad it worked out for you. I love that recipe – I think I’m going to have to try it your way next time!
Allison Ahearn said: on April 4, 2012
Hey- I was wondering if instead of a pie pan- I could pour the “batter” into a pie crust and bake it- would it have the same time in the oven?
Thanks
Jules said: on April 5, 2012
Hi Allison- should be about the same unless your crust requires extra time. Great question! Just test with a knife to see if it’s done – probably cover the crust with a pie saver, too, so it doesn’t get over-done. Let me know how it goes!
Mary said: on January 23, 2013
Can you use any flour, I have bob red mill and better batter and bis quick. Thank you.
Jules said: on January 23, 2013
Hi Mary, unfortunately I can’t promise that the recipe will turn out using another gluten-free flour, as they are all so different. Bob’s Red Mill flour, for example, uses bean flour and tends to leave a funny aftertaste that wouldn’t be ideal in a coconut pie. Other flours like Better Batter apparently require additional liquid in recipes in order to turn out, so I wouldn’t know how much to tell you to use. You could certainly experiment and try – fortunately there’s not a lot of gluten-free flour in this recipe. If they don’t turn out as pictured or described though, I would say to try again with my flour, since that’s what I used to develop the recipe. Here’s a bit more information on what sets my flour blend apart. I’m glad you asked about using another ingredient – believe it or not, lots of people think that gluten-free flour blends are interchangeable, and they are not all the same. I hope you get to try this recipe one way or another – it’s a wonderful (and easy!) pie that everyone seems to love!
Elizabeth said: on April 14, 2013
I make this all the time. Got my recipe back in the 70s or 80. Same one but just calls for 1/4 cup melted butter. And you can just use 3/4 cup of sugar and it is plenty sweet. And 45 minutes is all it takes in my oven. Great recipe. You can omit the coconut and add some nutmeg and have a custard pie too.
Jules said: on April 15, 2013
Yum, Elizabeth! Great tip about the custard pie version – thanks!