Line half the strawberries on the pie crust, pointy-side up.
Mash the remaining strawberries, stir in the sugar, and let sit for 15-30 minutes.
Place this in a pot and set to boil.
Whisk the cornstarch and water until fully dissolved.
Slowly stir in the cornstarch mixture into the boiling strawberry mixture.
Reduce heat and let simmer until thick, approx 10 minutes
Pour the mixture over the berries in the pie shell, and refrigerate until chilled and set, at least 3 hours.
Before serving, whip up the cream until soft peaks (optional 1-2 tsp sugar sugar and 1/4 tsp vanilla extract), and serve a dollop on each piece of pie.
