Banana-Caramel Coconut Cream Pie with Dark Rum

Prep Time: 46 minutes
Cool Time: 3 hours
Grade: B

Make Again: No

Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (May 2004)

I didn't feel like making this look pretty, so I skipped the whipped cream and coconut on top. It was good, but I don't think it would be my first choice for a cream pie. (That would be the chocolate version.) I love coconut, but I'm not sure if I love coconut cream. I did really like the crust with the bananas and caramel. I actually ended up not eating much of the cream part, because it just wasn't too exciting to me (or worth the calories.)

The prep time would have probably been less, or included a break while waiting for things to cool. I took longer because I burned my first caramel. I've only done caramels two times before (the Turtle Brownies and Caramels) and both times I didn't cook the caramel enough. The problem though, is that this was a small amount, so didn't take much time at all to make.

I tried to use all the correct ingredients since it was my first time with this recipe, but I didn't want to get unsweetened coconut when I had sweetened on hand. Also, my rum wasn't dark.

I should mention I made a half recipe and put it in a 7.5" pie plate. I thought the crust might not be enough so I used a few extra animal crackers. This was a mistake, because the crumbs were a bit too dry and I couldn't make the crust as sturdy as I would have liked. It was also too thick on the sides, so a simple half recipe would have worked fine.

This is a good recipe, but not an "A" for me just because of my taste buds more than anything else.