We say it all the time – while we love most desserts, anything lemon will always catch our eye and have us making a beeline for said dessert before we register any of the others. Be they lemon bars, lemon curd, lemon cake…we love it all, and we especially love a good no-bake dessert. In this case, a visually stunning, easy to make, lemon dessert that doesn’t require use of the oven or stove. (Win!)
This is a triple-layer lemon pie consisting of a lemon pudding layer and a pudding-whipped cream layer, all topped with more homemade whipped cream and lemon zest. Talk about yummy! Now, you could use lemon curd as the base layer here, homemade or store-bought, but we love the potency of the flavor of lemon pudding. Plus, it’s a slightly thicker consistency, so you end up with a strong base to hold up the other layers.
The process here is simple, you make your lemon pudding and you make your whipped cream, then it’s kind of a triple Venn diagram when it comes to making the layers; the bottom layer is just lemon pudding, the middle layer is a mix of pudding and whipped cream, and the top layer is whipped cream. And there you have it. What you get is a creamy dessert that looks simple at first, but then you slice into it and realize it’s gorgeous!
The layers work together beautifully and taste amazing – helped by the fact that we made our whipped cream from scratch, though frozen whipped topping would be an easy shortcut. Trust us, this is perfect for any backyard barbecue or brunch, and that it comes together in under 20 minutes is just the icing on the cake.
3-Layer Lemon Pie
15 minutes active; 2+ hours inactive to prepare serves 8-10
INGREDIENTS
1 pre-made graham cracker crust, homemade or store-bought
2 (3.4 oz.) boxes instant lemon pudding mix
2 cups whole milk
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
3 tablespoons powdered sugar
1 tablespoon lemon zest
PREPARATION
In a large bowl, whisk together instant pudding mixes, milk and fresh lemon juice until just combined.
Pour 1 1/2 cups of pudding mixture into prepared pie crust and set aside.
In a separate bowl, beat heavy whipping cream until stiff peaks form, mixing in powdered sugar until incorporated.
Take 1/2 of whipped cream and fold into remaining lemon pudding mixture. Spread whipped cream lemon pudding into pie crust, then gently top with remaining whipped cream.
Refrigerate until thoroughly chilled and set, then top with lemon zest, slice, serve and enjoy!
