This homemade coconut pie recipe, southern classic, is a favorite for any special occasion. Pair with easy, fluffy meringue or whipped cream!
My great-grandma, Ninny, has handed down this pie recipe through the generations and it’s a favorite during the holidays. I come from a family of women who really enjoy cooking and hosting. I have followed the trend, at least with the cooking, but am still working on the hosting part. But I do believe it’s important and a way to be a good steward of your relationships. That’s ok…I probably won’t get to host a big holiday like Thanksgiving until I’m 60 anyways. I’m sure I’ll have it together by then! Regardless of your feelings on hosting yourself or celebrating at someone else’s home, this coconut cream pie is a dessert recipe everyone at your occasion will enjoy!
See full recipe card for the Best Homemade Coconut Pie Recipe, Southern Favorite at the bottom of the page with detailed ingredients list and full step-by-step instructions. Print to save in your cookbook binder or bookmark this page! This will be a holiday or special occasion dessert that you will return to each year!
Why I Love this Coconut Pie Recipe
I already mentioned how it’s one of our family’s favorite pie recipes passed down from the top home cook herself, Ninny Lewis, but let me tell you more. This recipe:
- Is great all year around. You don’t hear of people eating a pumpkin or sweet potato pie at Easter, do you? But coconut pie is welcomed in the South no matter the season.
- It is chilled in the fridge prior to serving so you can make it early and focus on other holiday preparations
- It can be topped with meringue or whipped cream
- Can be baked in a store-bought shell to save time, or make it homemade
- Regular pie crust, or even graham cracker crust would be good
- The combination of the rich creamy filling paired with the crunchy crust and coconut is a perfect balance
- Pairing this pie filling with a store bought crust and cool whip makes this a SUPER easy coconut cream pie recipe
- My husband is a huge fan of coconut cream pie, and I like to make him happy
Ingredients for Coconut Pie Recipe (Southern Favorite!)
- Pre-baked Pie Crust
- Milk
- All Purpose Flour
- 3 Egg Yolks (reserve egg whites for meringue, if desired)
- Sugar
- Vanilla Extract
- Coconut Extract, if desired
- Coconut Flakes
- Pinch of Salt
This recipe is enough for one coconut pie. If I want to make 2 cream pies, I usually DON’T double the ingredients and cook together. I make another batch to cook separately. It just seems easier to work with the lesser amount of ingredients in your pan for a perfect and rich cream filling every time.
Pie Crust
You can use a store-bought pie crust and bake per its instructions until it looks golden brown and delicious. This is great if you are running short on time. As mentioned before, this recipe would also taste great with a store-bought graham cracker crust.
If you want to try and cut out some of the questionable ingredients and make your own, you can find our simple stand mixer pie crust recipe here. This pie crust also has super simple ingredients and can be prepared ahead of time and the dough left in the fridge for a few days in plastic wrap. You can also make it WAY ahead of time and freeze the dough to use later. It makes a buttery crust that you will really enjoy with your southern coconut cream pie filling.
Pie Topping
A homemade coconut cream pie with a meringue topping is truly a southern classic. Meringue can be a little finicky for someone who isn’t a super experienced baker, sometimes even for someone who only makes pies twice a year…guilty. If the humidity level isn’t right or if you hold your tongue wrong…sometimes it just doesn’t stay big and fluffy. That’s why if I do a meringue, its always this no-fail marshmallow meringue recipe creates the perfect this coconut meringue pie recipe. Not exactly grandma’s finest, but the marshmallow meringue doesn’t collapse and stays fluffy for transportation and DAYS after in the fridge.
An old-fashioned cream pie is fantastic with some homemade whipped cream on top! It is simple and quick to whip up a homemade version with your stand or hand mixer. You literally combine the 3 ingredients in your mixing bowl and beat on high speed for a minute and a half and its perfect. For full, detailed instructions you can check out my homemade whipped cream recipe here. Cool whip is also a just fine option, but the homemade of course will have lesser and better ingredients. The sweetness is also less intense which pairs very well with this rich coconut filling.
Instructions to Prepare
Coconut Pie Recipe, Southern Favorite Filling
Either prepare and pre-bake your homemade pie crust, or use a unbaked 9-inch pie shell you have purchased from the grocery store prepare it per its instruction. Let your cooked pie shell cool to room temperature on a wire rack or the kitchen countertop.
Separate your egg yolks from the egg whites. Reserve your egg whites if you plan on making a meringue topping for your easy coconut pie. Beat your egg yolks just until combined. Combine sugar, vanilla extract, coconut extract, milk and egg mixture in a mixer or in a cold medium to large sauce pan. The addition of a little coconut extract is not in my Ninny’s original recipe, BUT it gives it a real coconut punch. Add in the flour and salt to your sugar mixture.
Turn your stovetop burner on to medium heat and simmer the pie filling mixture while stirring CONTINUOUSLY. Bring the soon to be creamy coconut filling to a boil for 3-4 minutes. Yes a boil and yes at least 3 minutes. You will know when it’s done when it is slow to come back together after scraping bottom of the pan, like shown above.
I remember the first time I made a pie like this, I was scared to death that I was going to ruin the filling with the aggressive boil it made. That was the same pie that my husband calls the community pie…it ran so much it could feed the whole community! It was pudding consistency, not pie consistency. That was my chocolate pie, but same type of filling. Now, I tend to boil towards the 4 minute mark for both of them because of that experience. Just keep boiling and stirring. It will work…I promise…and give you the best coconut cream pie your family will love. Even if only once or twice a year…can’t spoil them, can we?
You will know when your filling is ready when you scrape down the bottom of the pan, the filling separates, and does not quickly come back together. Mix in most of your shredded coconut reserving a few tablespoons to sprinkle on top of your meringue. Stir in a Tablespoon of melted butter if desired at this point as well. It will give your filling a shine, but its not necessary and not in the original recipe, so I don’t do it. Once the filling is done, pour it into your flaky pie crust that has been waiting patiently!
Whipped Cream Topping Instructions
If you plan to use a whipped cream topping with this coconut pie recipe, let your pie come down close to room temperature or sit unbothered for at least 30 minutes, then store in the fridge for about 3 hours until time to serve. Prepare your whipped cream in advance and store in the fridge, or prepare it right before serving. If using Cool Whip, just make sure it is thawed and not frozen.
Top your pie with whatever whipped topping you choose. Make a big blob in the middle, spread it over the whole pie, or pipe it on with a piping bag and tip or a freezer bag with the corner cut off. Remember, we aren’t very fancy around Farmhouse 181. I usually opt for covering the whole pie so you get fluffy whipped cream in every bite! Then I sprinkle on some of the reserved coconut flakes to make it pretty! Either serve right away if it’s time or put uncovered in the fridge until it is time for serving. If you aren’t going to serve it until the next day, you probably want to cover it with plastic wrap. Be sure to use toothpicks or a fancy plastic wrap hack to keep it from sticking to the topping!
Meringue Topping Instructions
Use your reserved egg whites to prepare your meringue per the recipe, for a beautiful meringue that will form stiff peaks. Once you have it mixed how you’d like it, the meringue will go onto the still warm pie. Don’t forget to sprinkle coconut on your meringue to make your southern coconut pie look extra special!. Then baked in the oven, again per the meringue’s instructions. Usually, you will only bake it long enough to put some brown on your meringue, about 10-12 minutes. Once you have taken your beautifully topped coconut pie with meringue from the oven, let it set for about an hour, or until it reaches room temperature. Then put it in the fridge for 3-4 hours prior to serving. It’s a good idea to leave it uncovered while resting in the fridge unless a sweet little hand might end up in the middle of it.
Remove your pie from the fridge and enjoy no matter the topping! The creamy coconut flavor will be the star and a treat for your coconut lovers, regardless of the pie crust or topping you choose!
Click the links below to take you to the full versions of crust and topping recipes mentioned in this post.
- Simple Homemade Whipped Cream: Easy Way to Elevate Your Dessert
- Marshmallow Meringue
- How To Make a Stand Mixer Pie Crust (Recipe with Butter!)
If you loved this coconut pie recipe, I’m sure one of these would be a hit next time! Add them to the list for your holiday preparation!
- Grandma’s Chocolate Pie Recipe
- The Easiest Chunky Gold Mashed Potatoes Ever
- The Best Green Bean Casserole You Will Ever Have (Coming Soon)
Best Homemade Coconut Pie Recipe, Southern Favorite!
Ingredients
- 2 cups Whole Milk
- ⅓ cup All Purpose Flour
- 3 Eggs, separated (yolks for pie filling, whites reserved for meringue, if desired)
- 1 cup Sugar
- 1 Pinch Salt
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 tsp Coconut Extract
- ½ cup Coconut Flakes
- 1 Tbsp Butter (optional)
Instructions
- Bake your pie shell set aside per its instructions.
- Separate your egg yolks and whites, reserving whites for meringue, if desired.
- Beat egg yolks, sugar, vanilla, and coconut extract together.
- Add in your flour and mix until incorporated.
- Add in your milk to your pie mixture and move to a medium-large saucepan.
- Stir mixture continually over medium heat.
- Once the mixture has reached a boil, boil the filling for 3-4 minutes.
- Add in your butter at the end, if desired, and coconut flakes reserving a few tablespoons to add to your topping.
- Pour into your baked pie crust.
If Using Meringue Topping
- If making a meringue topping, continue with that recipe per its instructions, then add it to the of your warm pie and bake for 10-12 minutes.
- Let the pie come to room temperature then put in the fridge for 3-4 hours prior to serving.
If Using Whipped Cream Topping
- If making with a whipped cream topping, let the pie cool to room temp for about an hour, then transfer to the fridge to cool for 3 hours.
- Prepare whipped cream per it's instructions. Add whipped cream to the pie prior to serving.
- Enjoy!
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