Jennifer Garner Just Made This Old-Fashioned Dessert with Her Mom That Was a "Childhood Favorite"
“It’s kinda like Eton Mess.”
Jennifer Garner's #PretendCookingShow is back, and her most recent "episode" on her Instagram included a very special guest: her mom.
Together, the mother-daughter duo whipped up a "childhood favorite" dessert that's a recipe from the 1989 issue of Southern Living's annual recipe cookbook. And while they have made the pie countless times, wise words from Garner's mom explain why they still pull out the cookbook for the recipe.
"Even when you've memorized something, it's good to check the original recipe," Garner's mom, Pat Garner, said.
In the video, they're making a Strawberry Chiffon Pie, the perfect vintage recipe to enjoy in peak strawberry season. Want to follow along? Here's how to make the Garner's favorite summer pie step by step.
Related: Jennifer Garner's Go-To Summer Mocktail Is Made with Only 2 Ingredients
Here are the ingredients you will need to make the Strawberry Chiffon Pie:
3 egg whites
1 cup sugar
⅔ cup saltine cracker crumbs (from about 17 crackers)
¼ teaspoon baking powder
½ cup chopped pecans
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup whipping cream
2 tablespoons sugar
2 cups sliced strawberries
First, with the oven preheated to 325°F, Garner beats the egg whites in a large bowl at high speed with her KitchenAid hand mixer until foamy with a "stiff peak." Then, she adds in her baking powder, saltine cracker crumbs, chopped pecans and vanilla extract to the bowl to combine for a crust batter. In a buttered glass pie dish, Garner and her mom press down the meringue mixture to form a smooth crust. Garner's mom then puts the pie crust in the oven for 30 minutes.
While it's baking, the filling is prepared. The original recipe calls for 2 cups of sliced peaches for a Peach Chiffon Pie, but Garner swapped in strawberries for her rendition. She coats the strawberries with sugar before starting on her whipping cream.
Garner's mom has excellent advice on how to make the whipping process much easier.
"Cream whips much better if it's cold. I've found that it whips better in a cold bowl. So I use metal bowls and I put them in the refrigerator," Garner's mom explained. Genius!
So in a cold bowl, Garner beats the whipping cream until foamy, gradually adding sugar and a splash of vanilla extract until soft peaks form. She then folds in her strawberry slices. Once it's all combined and the meringue crust is out of the oven, the strawberry mixture is spooned evenly over the crust. Garner's mom decorated the top of the pie with full and sliced strawberries. Keep chilled before serving.
"It's kinda like Eton Mess," Garner said at the end of the video, referencing the English dessert that includes a combination of berries, meringue and whipped cream.
Try the cold dessert for yourself before the summer sun dims. For more cold pie recipes, check out our Pink-Lemonade Meringue Pie or Watermelon Pie for seasonal deliciousness.
