Strawberry Icebox Pie

Even the name sounds delicious, doesn't it?!

Start with 6-8 C fresh strawberries.

We picked ours at Froberg's Farm on Monday and while they are THE yummiest, fresh picked strawberries won't last any time in the frig, so it's a good idea to have some recipes lined up!  This is one of our family's favorites!

To determine how many strawberries you need for the pie, fill your empty pie pan up with strawberries and consider there will be a little more room in there once they are washed and hulled.  I also like to really pack mine down as much as possible, so I throw a few more in for good measure!

In your 8-9" pie pan, cook a single pie crust according to the recipe. 

This morning I decided to try a new (to me) pie crust recipe I came across in a Junior League cookbook my aunt passed on to me.  If I like it,  I'll be sure to share it with you here!  Set the cooked crust aside to cool completely before filling.

Wash and hull your strawberries and set aside to air dry while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

Place your remaining strawberries, that have also been washed and hulled, into a saucepan with:

1/4-1/2 cup of sugar

1/4 C water and

1 tablespoon of cornstarch. 

Mash your strawberries in the saucepan (which gets easier to do as the mixture heats up) and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until the mixture thickens, usually 5-10 minutes depending on how much juice your strawberries made when you mashed them!  once mixture begins to thicken, remove from heat and set aside to cool.  if you're in a hurry, you can pop it into the freezer to speed things along!

**Notice that you are cooling everything completely before putting the pie together. 

This will help keep your fruit from weeping too much, which can make your pie filling runny.

Once your pie crust is cool, spread softened cream cheese over the bottom to keep your crust from getting soggy.  Then add your strawberries.  As I mentioned before,  I like to really cram mine in there so my filling is packed with fruit!!  Spread your cooked AND cooled strawberry mixture over the top, letting it run down between the whole berries.  Return the pie to the 'icebox' to set up, which takes about an hour.  As the name implies, this pie is served chilled!

Top with whipped cream and enjoy!