I've been making this icing for years. My recipe is slightly different (flour/milk/vanilla amts.) Waldorf Astoria Frosting Cook together until thick: 1 c. milk 3 T. flour (Beat until cool) Cream together & beat until light & fluffy. 1 c. butter 1 c. sugar 1 Tablespoon Vanilla Combine the two mixtures, adding the cooked portion gradually. (I always just incorporate the two mixtures & beat it briefly.) Love this frosting but it probably resembles a filling a bit more than a frosting. That is, if you want fancy swirls & peaks, I don't think it's going to work for that. Maybe the other recipes using more flour might be a bit more decorative? Anyway, I love it just cause it tastes good and is just sweet enough w/o being too-too sweet. Oh, I always use salted butter and a 'glug' of vanilla--don't measure. Several posters here rave about KA's 'Fiori di Sicilia' flavoring so maybe that would amp up your frosting? (I haven't gotten around to ordering any of it yet...)

Thanks everyone. The pie was good... rather tart the first day, but afterwards it got much better. Less tart at least! The whippe cream held up well for 3 days. It was still fine, but I froze it anyway (thanks for the link, Lisbet, saying it was OK to do so). I did whip it stiff (with immersion blender whisk, not enough to do in stand mixer), and I think that helped. I used powedered sugar because I was afraid granulated might give it a gritty texture... I didn't even realize there was cornstarch. Duane... I want to lose a few pounds too. But I haven't baked something in such a long time that I just HAD to... especially after watching that show with Julia Child.

I agree........and now there is the Cool Whip Free that is supposed to be sugar free, but whether it is sugar replacement free might be another thing. I've not tried it yet so I don't know. I do have a lot of recipes that call for Cool Whip and lots of times I will use whipped cream depending on the occasion. If I want something to taste especially rich, I will use a little whipped cream instead of a lot of Cool Whip.

Shade the pots with something to prevent the sun hitting the sides of the pots and (if the plants don't already shade it) the soil surface, or Paint the pots white (Krylon Fusion spray paint is made specifically for plastics, and is a good choice), or Wrap the pots in a white or reflective material, or Put the pots in larger pots and fill the empty space with something coarse like mulch (not sure if it's better to do that or to leave the space empty..). Either find a spot in the yard for the pots, so they aren't on pavement, or find something to put under the pots so that they are raised off the pavement with space beneath for air flow. I wrap my black plastic nursery pots with black and white poly film (white side facing out) to keep temperatures down. I also place all of my pots in the yard instead of on pavement to avoid heat radiating from below. Soil temperatures in the pots are about 5° higher than air temperature when in direct sun. Still more than I would like, but far better than doing nothing.