HEAVENLY FRESH PEACH CREAM PIE

This Heavenly Fresh Peach Cream pie is a fan favorite with rave reviews! Homemade buttermilk custard, and fresh ripe peaches. It’s the perfect summer dessert! 

How long does this pie take to make?

Since there are two separate cooling times, one for the crust, and one for the custard, this pie will take a MINIMUM of six hours from start to finish. Ideally, 10 hours. I recommend making the crust one day, refrigerating overnight, then making the custard the next day (preferably in the morning) then covering it and letting it refrigerate for at least five hours.

Can I substitute the buttermilk?

Real buttermilk is my first choice, but if you don’t have that on hand, just combine 2/3 cup whole milk with a teaspoon of white vinegar. Let it sit for 5 minutes until it barely begins to curdle. Then use that in place of the buttermilk! 

I missed peach season. What other fruit can I use?

This pie can be super versatile and be made with many fruits or even with chocolate! If you don’t have access to fresh peaches, just ask yourself what other fruit goes well with whipped cream/custard? Frozen peaches, or fresh berries such as strawberries, raspberries, blackberries or blueberries! Bananas would be fantastic as well! or, skip the fruit and it will just be a lemon vanilla custard pie! If you want to totally change the direction, add a drizzle of melted chocolate in between the custard and the whipped cream. Yum!  

Can I Skip the Nuts?

If you have an allergy to nuts, or an aversion to nuts, you can still make this! When preparing the pie crust, Just use an additional 3 to 4 graham crackers in place of the nuts.  

How Do I Make the Sweetened Whipped Cream?

Making sweetened whipped cream is really easy as long as you have a hand mixer or a stand mixer. Simply pour your 1-2 cups of whipped cream in, add a couple tablespoons of powdered sugar and a teaspoon of vanilla and whip your whipping cream! It will start to form peaks, and I like to keep whipping until it is nice and firm. Be careful not to whip it for too long, otherwise it will turn to butter! See here for more specific directions.

Can I Use Cool Whip?

I mean, you can.

It’s possible.

But that doesn’t mean you should.

I recommend making your own sweetened whipped cream just because it is so much better. But do whatever works best for you.

How Do I Store this Pie?

All leftovers should be covered and refrigerated. I recommend only adding whipped cream and peaches to the slices that will get eaten, because the whipped cream tends to deflate over time in the refrigerator. 

directions:

1. Get out a food processor and crush those graham crackers and pecans. Mix the brown sugar and melted butter in there too!
2. Evenly spread out this mixture into a nine-inch pie pan. Make sure that there are no too-thin or too-thick spots as you press it evenly down. 
3. Put the pie crust into a preheated 350° F oven for eight minutes. Remove from oven and let cool, COMPLETELY. Cover with plastic and refrigerate. 
4. In a separate bowl, combine the egg yolks, cornstarch, sugar and salt. Whisk it all together for a minute or two until it is smooth and a pale yellow in color. 
5. In a saucepan over the stove, combine the heavy cream and the buttermilk. Heat over medium heat just until the side of the pan starts to bubble lightly. Remove from heat.
6. Add 1/2 cup of the hot heavy cream mixture into the egg mixture, then whisk. Repeat with the remaining mixture until it is all added in together. Tempering the eggs this way allows them to heat slowly and evenly, preventing them from scrambling. 
7. Return the egg/cream mixture to the stove and heat over medium heat for six minutes, stirring almost constantly. Heat until mixture thickens just enough to coat the back of a spoon. If you overcook it, the filling will become gritty and unpleasant. Be careful not to overcook.
8. *optional* Strain custard just in case the tempering didn’t go smoothly and you may have some scrambled in your eggs.
9. Add the vanilla, lemon zest, and lemon juice.
10. Pour the custard into the cooled pie shell. Cover it with plastic and let it cool completely, refrigerating it for a minimum of five hours. It should be completely set up before you remove it from the fridge.
11. Prepare your sweetened whipped cream. (instructions above) Prepare your peaches by peeling and slicing them. Add a tablespoon of powdered sugar to them if desired. 
12. Remove the pie from the fridge, remove the plastic wrap, and evenly spread on the whipped cream. Then spread out peaches on the top. 
13. Serve immediately and enjoy! Refrigerate any leftovers!

What Others Are Saying

Heavenly Fresh Peach Cream Pie

Graham cracker crust, homemade buttermilk custard, sweetened whipped cream goodness, and fresh ripe peaches. This is the best pie you will ever eat.

Print Pin Rate

Course: Desserts

Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes

Additional Time: 10 hours hours

Total Time: 10 hours hours 40 minutes minutes

Servings: 8

Author: Amber

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup pecans
• 9 whole graham crackers
• 2 Tablespoons brown sugar
• 7 Tablespoons melted butter
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 1/2 Tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 5 egg yolks
• zest of one whole lemon
• juice of one half lemon
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract divided. 1 tsp for custard and 1 tsp for whipped cream
• 2/3 cup buttermilk
• 1 3/4 cup heavy cream – for pie custard
• 2 cups of heavy whipping cream – for topping whipped into whipped cream. (not cool whip!)
• 3 Tablespoons of powdered sugar- 2 tablespoons for sweetened whipped cream and 1 tablespoon to toss on the fresh cut peaches.
• About 4 large or 7 small fresh peaches peeled and sliced

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

• In a food processor, combine graham crackers, pecans, brown sugar, and melted butter. Pulse until there are no chunks. 
• Press graham cracker mixture evenly into the bottom of a 9-inch pie pan. Bake at 350° F for 8-10 minutes. 
• After it has baked, let it cool for a few minutes, then cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate until it has completely cooled. 
• In a bowl, combine sugar, cornstarch, salt, and egg yolks. Beat with a white whisk until the mixture is a smooth dull yellow color, about 1-2 minutes. 
• In a saucepan, combine the heavy cream and the buttermilk over medium-high heat, stirring often. Bring to a gentle simmer and remove from heat.
• In 1/2 cup increments, add some of the warmed heavy cream mixture to the egg mixture, whisking after each addition. Repeat this step until all of the hot mixture has been added to the egg mixture.
• Dump the entire bowl of egg/heavy cream mixture back into the saucepan and onto the stove. Cook on medium heat for about 6 minutes, mixing often. Cook until it is thick and until the custard can coat both sides of a spoon. Remove from heat.
• Strain custard with a wire-mesh strainer (just in case any bits of the egg become scrambled from heating too fast, although this step may not be needed).
• Add the zest of one lemon, the juice of 1/2 lemon, and the vanilla extract. Mix well to combine.
• Add custard to the baked pie shell. Spread evenly. Cover tightly with plastic wrap (to prevent a film from forming on top) then refrigerate 5 hours or until completely cooled and pie is firm and set up. 
• Top pie with sweetened whipped cream, then with plenty of fresh peach slices. 
• Enjoy right away and refrigerate any leftovers.
•       ENJOY!