Ponchatoula Strawberry Pie

Every April, New Orleans heads across Lake Pontchartrain for the Ponchatoula Strawberry Festival where, in addition to flats of strawberries, you can enjoy strawberry shortcake, deep-fried strawberries, strawberry daiquiris and more. With this pie recipe, which we think tastes a lot like Shoney’s Strawberry Pie, you can have your own festival at home.

Ingredients:

• 1 9-inch frozen pie crust
• 1 pint of fresh Ponchatoula strawberries, hulled and sliced
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 tbsp. cornstarch
• 1/4 cup strawberry Jell-O
• 1 cup water

Directions:

1. Pre-bake the pie crust as directed on package and cool to room temperature.
2. Wash and hull your Ponchatoula strawberries, then cut them in half (if your berries are huge, you may want to cut them even smaller).
3. In a sauce pan, over medium-high, combine water, sugar, cornstarch and strawberry Jell-O for glaze.
4. Whisk continually to prevent scorching or clumping.
5. When the mixture comes to a gentle boil, remove from heat and allow to cool and thicken slightly (it should still be pourable).
6. Whisk occasionally while cooling.
7. Add your sliced berries to pie crust. Pour glaze over berries.
8. Chill pie in the refrigerator for at least 2-3 hours.
9. Top with whipped cream and serve.