28 or 9 inch graham or pastry crusts, preparedor 1 large deep dish
8ozcream cheese, softened
114 ozcan of condensed milk
½teaspoonvanilla extractoptional
20ouncecan of crushed pineappledrained and pressed dry
1 ½8 oztubs Cool Whip(or a 12 oz)
1cuptoasted and chopped pecans
Cherriespecans and extra whipped cream for garnish (optional)
Instructions
Prepare the pie shell as directed on the package so that it is fully baked. Let it cool completely.
In a mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese until soft. Beat in the condensed milk and the vanilla, then fold in the well drained pineapple and 1 tub (8 oz) of Cool Whip
Divide the mixture between the two pie shells. Drain and rinse your Maraschino or sour cherries and poke them into the cream (doing this prevents the filling from turning pink. You can use as many cherries as you want or leave them out completely.
Cover the pies with plastic wrap and freeze until firm. When slightly firm, Spread remaining Cool Whip (half tub) over the firmed up filling. Sprinkle with pecans and dot with more cherries. Return to the freezer until ready to serve.
Shortly before serving, remove the pie from the freezer and let sit and room temperature until ready to serve. Depending on the situation, you might want to cut the pie while it's still frozen, plate the frozen pieces and let them sit at room temperature or in the refrigerator until it is time for dessert.
Alternatively, you can cut the pie into pieces, wrap them individually in plastic and put the wrapped pieces in a freezer bag. The cut pieces will last for 2 or 3 weeks (maybe longer) and only need a few minutes to thaw.
Notes
Basic Graham Cracker Crust: 1 ½ cups ground graham crackers, ⅓ cup sugar, 6 tablespoons melted unsalted butter, ⅛ to ¼ teaspoon of salt (omit if using salted butter). Mix all ingredients, press into shallow pie dish, bake at 375 for about 5 or 6 minutes.