Coconut Cream Pie Cupcakes with Meringue Topping

Cake- Sift dry ingredients together, combine with wet and mix on medium for 2 mins. Bake in cupcake tin for 16-18 minutes at 325, or until they spring back when touched. Set aside to cool. Makes 3-4 dozen cupcakes depending on how full you fill the tins. Cream Pie Filling- In top of double boiler combine flour, sugar and salt, add milk and stir until smooth(it helps to add a little milk at a time and stir each time ins. tead of the whole amount at once) Cook over not in boiling water for 10 min. or until thick. Stirring almost constantly to avoid lumps. Once the 10 mins is up dip a spoon in the mixture if it coats the back without dripping of sliding off it is ready, also taste it , there should be no more raw flour taste. Remove it from the heat. In another bowl beat the 3 eggs slightly, while still stirring the eggs add 1/2 the mixture and mix until smooth. Then return egg mixture to rest of mixture and place on double boiler again. Cook another 3 mins until thickened, remove from heat and stir in 2 tbls butter and the vanilla and coconut extract. Let cool slightly and then cover with plastic wrap, making sure the plastic wrap touches the top of the pie filling, this will prevent it from forming a skin in the fridge. Refrigerate until cold. Meringue- Beat egg whites until frothy, sprinkle in sugar 1 tbs at a time whipping in between each addition until stiff peaks form ,careful not to over beat, mix in 1/2 tsp vanilla. Or you can use your own trusted meringue recipe. Once filling is chilled use a tip 230 and fill a piping bag with the filling, fill the cupcakes as full as you can with out them falling apart. I can usually fit 5 fillings in them. Once they are full pipe some meringue onto each one, sprinkle with a bit of coconut and bake in the oven at 350 until lightly browned. You can also brown them individually with a crème brulee torch.