Food Friday: Strawberry Pie

(Photo by Sara Owens, Virginia Farm Bureau)

I’m not a huge fan of cake, so when my parents asked me what I wanted for my birthday dessert when I was growing up, most years I requested a strawberry pie from Shoney’s.

As an adult, I tend to make my own birthday dessert and invite my parents over, but a giant piece of pie full of plump strawberries is still one of my favorites—birthday or no birthday.

My husband and I went strawberry picking a couple of weeks ago at Chesterfield Berry Farm. We try to go each year, and we always end up picking way too many strawberries (Doesn’t everyone?).

This year I purposely picked too many berries, because I wanted to make my own version of Shoney’s pie. I wanted mine to be a little healthier, but also very simple.

This recipe ended up being so simple that I’m almost embarrassed to post it. But it was too tasty not to share. I fooled my family into thinking I had some awesome culinary skills. Go impress your friends and family too. After all, you can always make it more complicated by making your own whipped topping, glaze and pie crust. But I like simple. And I like this pie.

Simple Strawberry Pie

(Based off this blueberry pie recipe I posted a few weeks ago.)

1 quart fresh strawberries, de-stemmed, washed and halved

half a packet of strawberry glaze (in your grocer’s produce department) OR a 10-ounce jar of strawberry jelly

1 pie crust of your choice

8 ounces non-dairy whipped topping

Place strawberry halves in a large bowl. Pour glaze or jelly on top of the strawberries, and mix thoroughly. Once strawberries are well-coated, place mixture in the pie crust, and top with whipped topping until the pie is completely covered. Refrigerate immediately for at least 1 hour before serving.

Note: I used a graham cracker crust, strawberry glaze and fat-free Cool Whip.