Raspberry Cream Pie

Once again it is raspberry season and I am in the thick of it. My freezer is filling with raspberries. I am infusing two pints of raspberry vinegar. I made a batch of raspberry chipotle barbecue sauce and liked it so much that the next day I made a double batch and canned it. I’ve made two raspberry pies, one of them is this Raspberry Cream Pie that I’m going to tell you about. I found it here (Taste of Home) and it’s really good. It’s light and airy and not too sweet. I used a graham cracker crust instead of the vanilla wafer one called for in the original recipe because I don’t have any vanilla wafers. Sorry about the dearth of pictures. I didn’t think I’d be posting it, but it’s just SO good!

Graham Cracker Crust:

Mix together 1-1/2 cups crushed graham crackers with 3 Tbsp. sugar and 1/3 cup melted butter. Press into greased 9″ pie plate. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Allow to cool.

Cream Filling:

• 1 cup heavy whipping cream, whipped
• 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
• 2/3 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons orange liqueur (Grand Marnier)
  
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

I prepared the whipped cream in my mixer first, then scraped it into a bowl and set it aside. Mix the softened cream cheese, powdered sugar, orange liqueur, and vanilla extract until smooth. Fold in the whipped cream. Spoon the filling into the pie crust and chill.

Raspberry Topping:

• 1 cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 3 tablespoons water
• 1-1/2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries

Stir sugar and cornstarch together in small saucepan. Add water and raspberries. Bring to a boil, stirring, and boil for 2 minutes or until somewhat thickened. Transfer to a small bowl and chill.

Spoon the raspberry topping over the pie filling. Chill until serving.