This Custard Pie recipe is so simple to make. With a creamy egg custard filling and flaky buttery crust, it's a delicious holiday dessert!
Old fashioned egg custard pie is great for the holidays, or anytime you're looking for a simple sweet treat to make!
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- It's a classic old fashioned dessert. This is a recipe that has gone through many generations! Classic and delicious!
- A make-ahead dessert. Everyone knows how busy the holidays are. You'll be glad to know that custard pie freezes well for up to a month.
- An easy and affordable homemade gift to share. Pies make fantastic food gifts for the holidays. I also like to gift jars of homemade apple pie filling and cranberry pie.
Ingredients
See ingredient substitutions in the next section. ⬇️
- Homemade pie crust: Be sure to read my tips for success below, because I do not recommend using a store-bought crust.
Substitutions and Recipe Variations
- Pie crust: If you want to use a premade crust, it's important to only use refrigerated pastry sheets. This is because store-bought crusts are known to shrink, a lot.
- Eggs - Egg yolks are a necessary ingredient for egg custard. There are no substitutes that will work for this recipe.
- White sugar: To cut down on the calories of the custard pie, feel free to use a cup-for-cup granulated sugar substitute. Monkfruit sugar is a good option.
- Heavy cream: The way to create a creamy egg custard is to use high amounts of fat. If you need a substitute for heavy cream, half and half is a workable option. The custard pie will be less creamy, but still delicious!
- Whole milk: You can substitute milk with half and half, a lower fat milk, or non dairy milk. But again, keep in mind that they will affect the richness and creaminess of the pie.
- Ground nutmeg: In a pinch, ground cinnamon is a workable substitute for nutmeg.
Helpful Kitchen Tools
I recommend and personally use these tools when I make pies:
- Rolling Pin: This is my favorite pin, because there are discs that allow you to adjust the thickness of the dough!
- Pie Crust Shields - These are great for protecting your pie crust from getting burnt.
How to Make My Custard Pie Recipe
Summary only. The complete recipe instructions are in the card at the bottom of this post ⬇️
- Line a pie plate with the crust. It's a good idea to grease the pie plate, to prevent the crust from sticking.
- Make the egg custard filling. Making custard is super simple - no electric mixer is needed. Just whisk the ingredients well, to combine.
- Pour the custard into the crust and sprinkle nutmeg on top.
- Bake in preheated 350° F. oven for 40 minutes. Do a toothpick test to be sure that the custard pie is fully baked. Chill the pie before serving.
Liz's Tips for the Best Pie
- Slowly pour the filling into the crust. To avoid air bubbles and an eggy mess, pour the egg custard mixture slowly into your pie crust.
- Cool completely and chill before serving. You'll want to eat this dessert right away, but it's essential to allow the filling to chill and set completely before slicing.
- Slices are easier to cut when the pie is cold.
Storing and Freezing
Storage: When the pie is cool, cover it tightly in plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Check out this post on how to store pies.
Do I need to keep custard pie in the refrigerator? Yes, because custard pie is made with eggs and dairy, it should not be left out of the refrigerator for longer than two hours.
Freezing: You can freeze this pie, but it really does taste best when it's fresh. As it thaws out, some of the custard ingredients may separate, and the filling will lose some of its creaminess.
If you are going to freeze the pie, allow it to cool, then wrap it in plastic wrap before freezing it. Do not freeze it for longer than a month.
Before serving, defrost it in the refrigerator.
Custard Pie Recipe FAQs
Custard pie is best when it cools down slowly. When your pie is finished baking and there's still a jiggle in the center of your pie, turn the oven off and prop the door open. Allow the pie and the oven to cool together. Cooling a custard pie this way prevents sinking and wrinkling. After this cooling process, it's okay to chill your pie in the refrigerator to set up the rest of the way.
If properly refrigerated, the custard filling shouldn’t be runny. Plastic wrap tends to collect moisture, so avoid covering the pie with it, if at all possible. It will also become watery if the pie is placed in the fridge while it's still too hot. This is why it’s important to let the pie cool at room temperature for a while before placing it in the fridge.
Bake this egg custard pie at 350° for 40 minutes.
While both are custard desserts, the difference between them is that chess pie usually includes cornmeal in the filling.
Other Pies and Pie Fillings to Make
- Homemade Peach Pie Filling
- Fresh Peach Pie
- Sweet Potato Custard Pie
- Mini Cherry Pies
- Blackberry Pie Recipe
- Easy No Bake Peanut Butter Pie
Custard Pie Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 homemade pie crust *See Notes for using a store-bought crust.
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 ⅓ cups whole milk or half and half
- ¾ cup granulated white sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg or more, if desired
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉ and spray an 8-inch pie pan with nonstick cooking spray, or grease with butter. Set aside.
- Add the pastry dough/pie crust to the prepared pan, crimping the edges as you desire.
Make the Egg Custard
- Combine all ingredients except the nutmeg, in a large mixing bowl and whisk well to combine.
- Pour filling into the prepared crust and sprinkle the top with the desired amount of nutmeg.
- Cook in preheated oven for 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the custard pie comes out clean.
- Let pie cool on a wire cooling rack for 1 hour, then place in the fridge for 2 hours, or until it's chilled through.
Helpful Notes and Tips From Liz
- Storage - Store in a sealed container or covered in the pie pan, in the fridge, for up to 4 days. Store in an airtight container, in the freezer for up to 2 months.
- Reheating frozen pie - Reheat using the microwave after letting the pie thaw a bit on its own.
- I do not recommend using a store-bought crust - Store-bought crusts have a major shrinking issue. If you really need to use a store-bought crust, be sure to use the kind you roll out and shape on your own. This way, you can ensure it’s got plenty of extra room on all edges before crimping. This way, if it shrinks, it won’t mess up the pie.
Virginia Roberts
fantastic web site
Juanita
I luv egg custard pie my mom and grandma makes the best and so do I and I grew up using only Watkins flavors it makes everything u bake POPS Delicious off to kitchen to make one Happy Cooking.