Strawberry Icebox Pie

Strawberry pie… a perfect end to any meal.

I am loving the fact that warmer weather has finally arrived. With the warmer weather I have been seeing some of the summer fruit in the grocery stores. I have been buying some strawberries that actually taste like strawberries, not the tasteless ones that you see earlier in the spring.

I had decided to try my hand at making a strawberry pie; I don’t think I have ever made one before. When I found one by Martha Stewart I decided to give it a try. I did misread the recipe, I was supposed to use two quarts of sliced strawberries, but I used one.

Does that ever happen to you? I do it every once in a while, when I am finished making a recipe and I go back and I see that I was supposed to have added something that I didn’t or I didn’t add enough of one thing or another. Actually sometimes the recipe works out just as well even with the mistake.

I am not sure if two quarts of strawberries would have fit into the pie shell, it was quite full the way it was. I served it with more whipped cream than what the recipe called for. You can never have too much whipped cream in my book.

I brought a piece of the pie for my mom and she asked me for the recipe… she said that it was one of the best strawberry pies she had ever eaten. So I guess it turned out fine even with my little oops.

Strawberry Icebox Pie (Source: adapted from marthastewart.com) 
Ingredients:
1 prepared pie crust (I used a basic pie crust; the original recipe used a graham cracker crust)
1/2 cup orange juice
3/4 cup sugar
1 quart strawberries hulled and thinly slice
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
Sugar to taste for the whipped cream
Directions:
1. In a medium saucepan combine 3/4 cup sugar, orange juice, 2 cups strawberries, cornstarch, and salt. Using a potato masher gently mash strawberries. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to a simmer and cook, stirring continuously, until very thick, about 30 seconds to a minute. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Stir in the remaining strawberries. Pour into a baked pie shell. Refrigerate until set, at least 4 hours (or up to 1 day).
3. In a large bowl, beat cream until soft peaks form. Sprinkle with sugar (I add sugar until it taste sweet enough, so add about a tablespoon at a time) over top and continue to beat until soft peaks return. (Do not over beat). Spread whipping cream over pie. Garnish with whole strawberries if desired.