Strawberry Slab Pie

By CJKK

Ingredients

• Crust
• 1 1
• box Pillsbury™ refrigerated pie crust, softened as directed on box
• Filling
• 3/4 3/4
• cup sugar
• 1/4 1/4
• cup cornstarch
• 1/2 1/2
• cup water
• 1 1
• tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 6 6
• cups sliced fresh strawberries (about 2 lb)
• 1 1
• package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
• 1 1
• tablespoon finely grated lemon peel
• Sweetened whipped cream, if desired

Details

Servings 16
Preparation time 45mins
Cooking time 240mins

Preparation

Step 1

Heat oven to 450°F. Remove pie crusts from pouches. On lightly floured surface, unroll and stack crusts one on top of the other. Roll to 17x12-inch rectangle. Fit crust into 15x10x1-inch pan, pressing firmly into corners and sides. Fold extra crust under, even with edges of pan. Using fork, prick all over bottom and sides.
2
Bake 9 to 12 minutes or until golden brown and completely baked. Cool completely on cooling rack, about 15 minutes.
3
Meanwhile, in 2-quart saucepan, beat sugar, cornstarch, water and lemon juice with whisk. In small bowl, mash 1 1/2 cups of the sliced strawberries with bottom of whisk or fork to make 1 cup finely mashed strawberries; stir into pan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and boils. Boil and stir one minute. Pour into medium bowl; cool 5 minutes. Stir remaining sliced strawberries into cooked strawberry mixture.
4
In small bowl, mix cream cheese and lemon peel until well blended. Spread in bottom of cooled baked crust. Spoon strawberry mixture into pan; spread evenly.
5
Refrigerate until set, about 3 hours. Just before serving, top pieces with sweetened whipped cream. Cover and refrigerate any remaining pie pieces.
Expert Tips

Be sure to soften cream cheese to room temperature; if cold, filling will be hard to spread.
You can use cooking parchment paper or waxed paper to roll out the dough for easier cleanup.