VANILLA CREAM PIE

8-INCH

     8-inch Baked Pie Shell

1/2 cup sugar

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups milk

3 egg yolks, slightly beaten

1 tablespoon margarine or butter, softened

1 tablespoon vanilla

   Sweetened Whipped Cream

9-INCH

     9-inch Baked Pie Shell

2/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 cups milk

4 egg yolks, slightly beaten

2 tablespoons margarine or butter, softened

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon vanilla

  Sweetened Whipped Cream

Bake pie shell.  Mix sugar, cornstarch and salt in 1 1/2-quart saucepan.  Stir in milk gradually.  Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and boils.  Boil and stir 1 minute.  Stir at least half of the hot mixture gradually into egg yolks.  Blend into hot mixture in saucepan.  Boil and stir 1 minute.  Remove from heat; stir in margarine and vanilla.  Pour into pie shell; press plastic wrap onto filling.  Refrigerate at least 2 hours but not longer than 48 hours.  Remove plastic wrap; top pie with whipped cream.

Banana Cream Pie:  Prepare 9-inch pie as directed except--press plastic wrap onto filling in saucepan; cool to room temperature.  Slice 2 large bananas into pie shell; pour filling over bananas.  Refrigerate until serving time; top pie with whipped cream an garnish with banana slices.

Butterscotch Cream Pie:  Prepare 9-inch pie as directed except--substitute 1 cup packed brown sugar for the sugar; decrease vanilla to 1 teaspoon.

Chocolate Cream Pie  Prepare 9-inch pie as directed except--increase sugar to 1 1/2 cups and cornstarch to 1/3 cup.  Stir in 2 squares (1 ounce each) unsweetened chocolate, cut up, after stirring in milk or stir in 2 envelopes (1 ounce each) premelted chocolate with the vanilla.  Omit margarine.

Coconut Cream Pie:  Prepare 9-inch pie as directed except--decrease vanilla to 2 teaspoons and stir 3/4 cup flaked coconut into pudding.  Sprinkle whipped cream with 1/4 cup flaked coconut.