Mile High Strawberry Pie

Well it's strawberry time on Long Island, at least from my garden. This weekend my strawberries were ready for picking. I couldn't believe they were ready, I wasn't expecting them till June. Now with that said the big decision was do I make jam or pie...as you can see the pie won out. Now was it to be Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie or Mile High Strawberry Pie. I was in the mood for Strawberry-Rhubarb, I haven't had it since last year but my hubby requested Mile High so the Strawberry -Rhubarb will have to  wait. This pie really brings out the fresh flavor of the strawberries. The shell is pre-baked then half the filling is cooked on the stove top and fresh strawberries folded into that. It is topped of with whipped cream that is both stabilized and flavored with instant vanilla pudding. So if your game give this pie a try...you will not be disappointed!

Mile High Strawberry Pie


Ingredients:


Pastry for one crust pie (10") pre-baked according to directions

Filling:


1 1/2 quarts of strawberries washed, hulled then mashed
1 1/2 cups sugar
6 Tlbs cornstarch
2/3 cups cold water
1 1/2 quarts of whole strawberries


Topping:
2 cups heavy cream
3 Tbls instant vanilla pudding (must be instant)

In a sauce pot combine cold water and cornstarch.Mix to  remove all lumps. Add sugar and mashed berries mix well. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Cook and stir till mixture comes to  a boil. Cook 2-5 minutes longer, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat and pour into a large bowl. Chill 20 25 minutes in the refrigerator. Stir a few time while cooling.
Remove mixture from fridge and fold in whole berries.

When I am cleaning my berries I mash the larger ones and keep the smaller berries to fold in. If you only have large berries you will want to  halve or quarter them. Pour mixture into the pre-baked pie shell. Chill for at least 5 hours.

In a large bowl or stand mixer pour in the 2 cups of heavy cream and 3 tablespoons of instant vanilla pudding. Whip till soft peaks form.

Spoon onto pie. Garnish if desired. Serve and enjoy!