Return of a Childhood Favorite

I can think of many foods that I loved as a kid...subs, pizza, apple pie, apple dumplings, onion rings, circus peanuts, Zero bars, Twizzlers...the list goes on. One of my very favorite snacks that I would get from time to time as a reward for helping Mom out with grocery runs, especially if we stopped by Mrs. Baird's Outlet Store, was the Mrs. Baird's Coconut Cream Pie. It was an individually-wrapped pie with a thick, glazed crust and a filling of sweet coconut cream pudding, and while it was in no way healthy, it was incredibly delicious. As I grew up, I would find Mrs. Baird's Coconut Cream Pies on occasion at random convenience stores, and I'd usually buy them when I found them since they were pretty hard to find. Then a couple of years ago, I quit seeing them altogether. This past summer, before leaving San Antonio, I stopped in a Mrs. Baird's Outlet Store specifically looking for a Coconut Cream Pie, and to my disappointment I was informed by a worker that the company quit making them, as I feared. Goodbye, coconut cream pie.

But this story has a happy ending! Over the weekend I stopped by a Wawa's convenience store on the way back from getting groceries. My sister always told me Wawa's were wonderful stores, and I think I may have found my personal reason for strongly agreeing with her. As I was in the store, I came across a stand of Tastykake products, and what should I see but individually-wrapped Coconut Cream Pies! Hmm...I wonder if they taste anything like Mrs. Baird's...

Needless to say, I justified the taste experiment in my mind pretty quickly and bought one. The next day, when I was in high mood for a sweet snack, I pulled it out and tried it (sharing a little with my wife). Smile. Chomp. Smile. Chomp, chomp, chomp. That went quick! I am very pleased to say I have found my new replacement for my childhood coconut cream pies (and it's slightly less un-healthy than the Mrs. Baird's version!) Thank you Wawa's, and thank you Tastykake!

www.tastykake.com... You can buy these things by the case!