No-Bake Pineapple Cream Cheese Pie Recipe

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No-Bake Pineapple Cream Cheese Pie Recipe

It’s summertime! That means plenty of hot days, and a hot summer day needs a cold dessert to go with it. My grandmother made this easy recipe for many years. The pineapple, cream cheese, and lemon Jello create a delicious treat with a creamy texture that, when paired with a homemade graham cracker crust, make the perfect no-bake pineapple pie recipe.

A Bit of Background

Every day, my mom and I read from my grandmother’s 1966 journal. It’s fun to see what she was up to each day. Mostly, it’s the same stuff she did throughout her life: cleaning, baking, and swimming! And keeping track of my grandfather’s antics here on the farm, of course. 

One thing we noticed was how hot it was in 1966. For several days in a row, the temperatures were in the 90s, and most were up to the 80s. Based on her daily notes, that summer was much hotter than this one.

Thanks to all that heat, she wrote several times about making this no-bake pineapple cheesecake dessert for get-togethers at church and any special occasion with family. Also known as a no-bake pineapple dream dessert, this pineapple cream cheese pie was a favorite recipe that she made for most of her life. When my mom grew up and moved out, Grandma gave her a copy of the recipe, and she made it for us.

How to Make a No-Bake Pineapple Pie

Making the Crust

Making your own graham cracker crust takes just a few simple ingredients and makes all the difference. You could try using a pre-made graham cracker crust from the store if you don’t have any graham crackers on hand, but it won’t turn out quite the same.

When making the graham cracker pie crust, make sure you grind your graham crackers into very fine crumbs. We tend to put them in a bag and give them a few whacks (or let the children have at it), but for the best results you should use a food processor. Better grinding helps the crust stick together better and keeps little chunks of cracker from floating in the middle of the filling. 

Once you’ve ground up the graham cracker crumbs and added the 1/4 cup sugar and 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil, you can press it down into a 9″ glass pie plate to form the pie shell. Don’t worry about greasing it first, as the vegetable oil and texture will keep it from sticking

For the Pineapple Pie Filling

Note that the recipe only takes 8 oz. of crushed pineapple. If you’re like us, you might be used to getting the full-size 20 oz. cans. Since this requires a specific amount of both pineapple and syrup, it may be easier just to pick up an 8 oz. can of pineapple. Due to the syrup, you wouldn’t easily be able to substitute fresh pineapple.

Though we’ve never tried it, you could add a few pineapple slices or pineapple chunks to the top before the final chilling stage for extra pineapple flavor!

Once you have an 8 oz. can, drain the pineapple, reserving the excess juice in a separate dish. You’ll also need to take out two medium sized clean bowls and a large bowl. That’s where it gets a little involved (but only a little):

In the first bowl, dissolve the lemon jello mix in the boiling water. Add the reserved pineapple juice (it should be about a 1/2 cup worth) to the bowl and stir. 

In the second bowl (the large mixing bowl), use an electric mixer to combine cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until they’re smooth. You can use a stand mixer or regular handheld electric mixer, although the hand mixer will have a high speed that will combine the mixture more efficiently.

In the third bowl, combine a 1/2 cup of the jello mixture from bowl 1 and add the drained pineapple bits. Set it aside.

Gradually blend the remaining jello mixture from bowl 1 into the cream cheese mixture in bowl 2 until it’s smooth, then fold in the sour cream.

Once combined, pour the cream cheese and pineapple mixture into the prepared graham cracker crust, then cover it with plastic wrap and chill until it’s lightly set.

Once it’s lightly set, pour the contents of bowl 3 over the top of the pie and return it to the refrigerator until it’s firm – usually around 6 hours. Serve this creamy pineapple pie cold for the best tropical flavor!

Enjoy this Wonderful Dessert!

Have fun enjoying this delicious pineapple pie! While we usually have it on warm days in summer, it’s the perfect dessert any time of year, and makes a great dish for birthdays, Easter, football parties, and the like. It’s often the best part of the meal!

If you want an easy stovetop supper to make with it, try our zucchini beef skillet recipe.