Miss Carroll's Kitchen

by Addie Echols, student writer

After teaching at Harding for 25 years, Dr. Clara Carroll, emeritus associate dean and professor in the Cannon-Clary College of Education, was ready to retire when an unusual opportunity arose. Paul Guess, the owner of Guess and Company, asked if Carroll would work at his Christmas store in Des Arc, Arkansas, doing food demonstrations during the holiday season. She accepted the offer, not knowing it would lead to publishing her first combination cookbook and devotional.

Carroll first found her love for cooking from her grandmother, whom she helped in the kitchen as a child. She saw how her grandmother showed hospitality to her big family through homemade meals and service. Carroll knew that hospitality was one of her gifts to make people feel loved and to show others Christ.

 “My love language was  . . .  cooking for people and loving them well,” she said. “Feeding people was my way of loving them. It is just part of my DNA to be hospitable to people.” 

While working at Guess and Company, Carroll was constantly asked for her recipes. She had recipe cards made at the Watson Center on campus but ran out quickly. She decided to start posting her recipes on Facebook and Instagram to share them more efficiently. Eventually, her husband, Charlie, encouraged her to write a cookbook so people could have all her recipes in one place. It took a year and half to write, and, along the way, she felt called by God to include devotionals in the book as well.

“The Holy Spirit spoke to me and said this cookbook was going to be a devotional book too and that God was going to walk with me every step of the way,” she said.

She gathered and tweaked recipes from her grandmother, family and other chefs all while enduring  knee replacement surgery and recovery. Throughout the past year, she stayed up late and wrote her recipes while she did exercises to heal her knee pain which in turn helped her write the cookbook quicker. One of her favorite recipes was her grandmother Eula's coconut cream pie, which is included below. Clara’s book, Miss Carroll's Kitchen: Recipes for Home and Entertaining with Godly Devotionals, can be purchased on Amazon or at Barnes and Noble. She had her first book signing on March 7 at Guess and Company.

Grandma Eula’s Coconut Cream Pie

Grandma Eula, from Princeton, Texas, was a grocer and farmer’s wife. She and my Grandpa Virgil raised four boys in a small town and fed them and their growing family exceptionally well!

As a young girl, I remember seeing my Grandma mixing pie pastry ingredients on a wooden board in her kitchen. The board was next to Grandma’s Sears Kenmore gas stove. Grandma measured the flour and salt by handful and cut in just enough lard to make pea-size clumps. With her hands, she added just enough water to pull the pastry together to create a tender ball. Then, Grandma rolled out the pastry using a drinking glass and gently placed it into her glass pie pan. Then, she baked it to golden perfection in her (now vintage) gas oven.

I tried often to estimate Grandma’s measurements but failed. So, over the many years, I believe this recipe best captures the tender yet flaky pie pastry crust. A homemade pie pastry elevates the deliciousness of pies. So, go for it and make this pie pastry and Grandma Eula’s Coconut Cream Pie.

Remember, it's not just about the end result, but the journey of making Grandma Eula's Coconut Cream Pie. Embrace the joy of baking Grandma Eula’s Coconut Cream Pie with your family. It's not just a recipe; it's a tradition. Enjoy every moment of it!

My Grandma loved me, and I felt her love. God loves me, too. He is patient when I am anxious. He is kind when I am unkind. His love never fails when I have doubts. God is always with me. “Love is patient. Love is kind. Love never fails,” Corinthians 13: 4,8.

Prep Time: 20 mins - Cook Time: 20 mins - Assembly Time: 5 mins - Total Time: 45 mins

Servings: One pie.

Grandma Eula’s Coconut Cream Pie Ingredients

Pie Pastry

• 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp salt
• ¾ cup plus two tablespoons Crisco, cold
• 5 tablespoons ice-cold water

Grandma Eula’s Coconut Cream Pie Pastry Directions

• Preheat oven to 425℉.
• In a medium bowl, mix the flour and salt. Add the Crisco to the flour mixture. Combine the ingredients with a pastry blender in an up-and-down chopping motion until the dough forms coarse, pea-size crumbs.
• Add the ice-cold water, mixing with a fork one tablespoon at a time. Delicately incorporate each tablespoon of ice-cold water into the flour mixture before adding the next.
• Roll out the dough to fit the pie plate using a pastry mat. Crimp the edges and prick the pastry with a fork. Be gentle when handling the dough to prevent it from becoming too wet or sticky. 
• Place the pie plate into the refrigerator for 30 minutes. This step is important as it prevents the sides from falling and makes a more tender and flaky pie crust.
• Bake at 425℉ for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.
• Allow to cool before adding the cream mixture. If the pie pastry is hot when adding the cream filling, it will get “wet,” so let it cool completely.

Grandma Eula’s Coconut Cream Pie Ingredients

Cream Filling

• ½ cup pure cane granulated sugar
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ⅓ cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 ⅓ cup whole milk
• ¾ cup coconut milk
• ¼ cup coconut cream
• 3 large egg yolks, beaten
• ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon coconut extract
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• ½ cup sweetened shredded coconut

Grandma Eula’s Coconut Cream Pie Directions

• Whisk together the sugar, salt, and flour in a medium saucepan.
• Mix in the milk, coconut milk, and coconut cream.
• Place the saucepan over medium heat and whisk until the mixture begins to simmer, the cream thickens to the point where you can insert a spoon into the mixture, and the cream sticks to the spoon when removed.
• Remove from heat.
• Place the egg yolks in a small bowl and gradually stir in ¼ cup of the hot cream, whisking constantly until evenly combined. Whisk constantly, or you will have scrambled eggs in your cream mixture!
• Return to medium heat and simmer for 3-4 minutes, whisking constantly. Remove from the heat.
• Add the vanilla extract, coconut extract, and butter. Stir until evenly combined.
• Add the sweetened coconut and mix evenly. 
• Pour into the prepared pie crust.
• *If topping with whipped cream, refrigerate for 1 hour before adding the whipped cream. Pat wax paper over the cream mixture before placing it in the refrigerator, preventing thick skin from forming. See the Whipped Cream recipe below.
• **If topping the pie with meringue, add the whipped meringue to the hot cream mixture. Do NOT refrigerate. See the Meringue recipe below.

Grandma Eula’s Whipped Cream topping

• Using an electric mixer on high speed, combine two cups of heavy cream, ¼ cup confectioners’ sugar, and one teaspoon of pure vanilla extract in a medium bowl.
• Mix for about one minute on high speed or until a creamy consistency and stiff peaks are achieved.
• Toast ⅓ cup of sweetened shredded coconut under the oven broiler. Check often for a golden color. Watch carefully because the coconut will burn easily.
• Top Grandma Eula’s Coconut Cream Pie with the Whipped Cream Topping and toasted coconut.
• Serve immediately and refrigerate any leftovers.

Grandma Eula’s Meringue topping

• In a medium bowl, using an electric mixer on high speed, combine three egg whites, ½ teaspoon vanilla, ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar, and beat until soft peaks form.
• Gradually add six tablespoons of pure cane granulated sugar, beating until stiff and glossy peaks form and all sugar is dissolved.
• Spread meringue over the hot cream filling, sealing to the edges of the pie pastry.
• Bake at 350℉ for 12-15 minutes or until the meringue is golden.
• Cool. Dip a dinner knife in water to easily slice the pie.
• Cool. Serve at room temperature. Refrigerate any leftovers.
• Share the love and the pie with your friends. They will appreciate your thoughtfulness and the delicious taste of Grandma Eula's Coconut Cream Pie.

ENJOY! Make memories with the ones you love! 💗