Pistachio Delight is a layered dessert with creamy pistachio pudding, ice cream, and a buttery RITZ Cracker crust. It’s a no-fuss treat that’s all kinds of nostalgic.
Perfect for Pistachio Pudding Fans
The 1970s loved a good layered dessert, like Chocolate Delight and Lemon Lush. This Pistachio Delight Dessert recipe is yet another layered treat from the ’70s that’s simple to make but looks like you spent more time and effort than you really did.
It has a buttery Ritz cracker crust, a creamy pistachio pudding and ice cream center, a light layer of whipped topping, and crunchy bits of chopped Heath bars on top. One cookbook where I spotted this recipe recommended the Heath bars, and the other one recommend chopped walnuts for the top. I’m partial to the Heath bars. They really did add the perfect sweet, chocolatey crunch on top.
Enjoy! Kate
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Why You’ll Love It
- It’s packed with pistachio flavor. Pistachio pudding really had a moment in the 1970s, with Pistachio Salad and Pistachio Cake with Pudding Mix as two other popular desserts from that period. It’s sweet, nutty, and has a distinct flavor that’s easy to see why it was so popular.
- You can make it ahead. Make it a day or two before you’re ready to serve it to keep dessert easy.
- You can freeze it OR refrigerate it. I tried it both ways. Freeze it for a sweet, ice-cream-like treat. Refrigerate it for a fluffier, creamier version of the same dessert. For what it’s worth, I preferred the frozen version.
What You’ll need
- Two boxes of pistachio pudding mix create the gorgeous green hue and are the primary flavor here. You can substitute any flavor of pudding that you like to customize this dessert.
- The crust is a simple mix of RITZ Crackers and butter. Honestly, it’s an unexpected crust for an ice cream dessert. When I told my 6-year-old what the crust was made of, he blurted out, “well THAT’S a surprise!”. Hahaha I have to agree. But it just works!
- Chopped Heath bars add a bit of crunch to the top. You can use chopped walnuts or chopped pistachios if you prefer.
How to Make Pistachio Delight
- Blitz the RITZ crackers in a food processor until fine crumbs form.
- Mix the RITZ crackers crumbs with melted butter.
- Press the mixture firmly in a 13×9-inch dish.
- Whisk together the pistachio pudding mixture and milk in a bowl.
- Fold in the ice cream and 1 cup whipped topping.
- Spread the pistachio mixture over the crust.
- Freeze for one hour, then top with the remaining whipped topping and chopped Heath bars.
- Cover and freeze for at least four hours, or until ready to serve.
Tips for making Pistachio Delight
- If you don’t have a food processor, place the RITZ crackers in a resealable freezer bag (gallon size) and pound them with a rolling pin until fine crumbs form.
- When you’re pressing the crust into the pan, press firmly but there’s no need to really smash it in (smashing it in will make the crust too brittle to cut nicely).
- If you choose to freeze the dessert (versus refrigerating it), take it out of the freezer 20–30 minutes before slicing so you can cut it easily. It gets quite firm in the freezer.
📖 Recipe
Pistachio Delight
This classic layered dessert features pistachio pudding ice cream in a buttery RITZ Cracker crust.
Ingredients
- 50 Ritz crackers (a little less than 2 sleeves)
- ½ cup butter melted
- 2 boxes (3 oz each) instant pistachio pudding mix
- 1½ cups milk
- 1 quart vanilla ice cream slightly softened
- 8 oz Cool Whip defrosted
- ½ cup chopped Heath bars (or chopped pecans or chopped pistachios)
Instructions
- Take the ice cream out of the freezer to let it soften while you make the crust.
- Use a food processor to pulse 50 Ritz crackers until fine crumbs form. You could also place them in a resealable freezer bag and pound them with a rolling pin.
- In a large bowl, mix together the RITZ crackers crumbs and ½ cup butter. Pat into a 13×9-inch pan and freeze.
- In a large bowl, whisk together 2 boxes (3 oz each) instant pistachio pudding mix and 1½ cups milk. Fold in 1 quart vanilla ice cream (softened), then fold in 1 cup of the Cool Whip. Freeze for one hour.
- Top with the remaining Cool Whip and garnish with ½ cup chopped Heath bars, pecans, or pistachios.
- Freeze for at least 4 hours, or until ready to serve.
Notes
One spiral-bound cookbook recipe that I found for this dessert called for putting it in the refrigerator instead of the freezer (even though it has ice cream in it). I tried that and it worked just fine! It’s was fluffier and creamier that way. I did prefer the frozen version though.
Make ahead instructions: you can make this 1–2 days ahead of time and store in the freezer (covered) until you’re ready to serve it. Be sure it take it out of the freezer 20–30 minutes before cutting it so it’s not too hard to slice.
One recipe I found said to put a maraschino cherry on top of each slice of the dessert. I think that would be really pretty.
Nutrition
Calories: 355kcalCarbohydrates: 42gProtein: 4gFat: 19gSaturated Fat: 11gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0.4gCholesterol: 57mgSodium: 336mgPotassium: 194mgFiber: 1gSugar: 33gVitamin A: 596IUVitamin C: 0.4mgCalcium: 147mgIron: 1mg
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