I've had excellent results with this one. You can substitue a baked regular pie shell for the Almond Crumb Crust if you like:
COCONUT CREAM PIE WITH ALMOND CRUMB CRUST
Almond Crust
1 1/2 cups vanilla wafer crumbs
1/3 cup finely ground blanched almonds
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 tsp nutmeg
5 TBL butter, melted
1/4 tsp almond extract

Combine all ingredients & pat the mixture evenly onto the bottom & up the sides of a greased 9" pie plate. Bake in a preheated 400° oven for 8 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool.

Filling:
2 cups milk
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup + 1 TBL cornstarch
1/2 tsp salt
2 egg yolks, beaten
1 TBL vanilla
1 TBL butter
1 cup shredded or flaked coconut

Scald the milk in a large saucepan. Mix together the sugar, cornstach & salt in a small bowl. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the heated milk. Cook over low heat just until thickened, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat. Add a little of the hot mixture to the egg yolks & stir to combine. Return to the suacepan along withe the vanilla, butter & coconut. Cook over medium heat 3-4 minutes, stirring.
Remove from heat; cover the mixture with a sheet of waxed paper or plastic wrap placed directly on the surface so the filling won't form a skin. Cool, then chill 2 hours or more. Pour the filling into the pie shell.

Topping:
2 cups heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp sugar

Combine the cream, vanilla & sugar. Whip until the mixture forms soft peaks. Spread over filling.~~ From Heart of the Palms.

My recipe is very similar - but more work - use a fresh coconut, saving the milk. Drill a hole in the eye of the coconut to drain, hammer, etc., to break into pieces, remove shell. Grate (I place small chunks in my coffee grinder) and use coconut milk rather than ordinary milk.As you have probably guessed, this is a verrrry old recipe!!

Mama, who was not my real mother, always used the same cream filling for cream pies, strawberry, banana and coconut, that she used for banana pudding and I have followed suit. Her strawberry cream pies were special, and as I recall she "poked" whole strawberies into the filling. Strawberries weren't available year round like they are now so what she used were the good, sweet berries that were in season.

Her cream filling recipe:

1/2 to 3/4 cup sugar
3 T. cornstarch
1/4 teas. salt

Combinme in top of double boiler.

Add:
2 egg yolks, beaten
2 C. milk

Cook until thickened, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and add 1 teas. vanilla.

She always used a plain piecrust and meringue on top.

The only time she used a graham cracker crust, that I remember, was the lemon "icebox" pie that was so popular in the late '50's and '60's. Generally speaking, I most always prefer plain crust. I have a recipe for peanut butter cream pie, waiting in the wings, that I want to make... waiting for me to get up the courage to make it.

Mama wasn't a fancy cook but her meals, chicken and dumplings in particular, were legendary. I sure miss her.

jude