This pie is cool and creamy, filled with caramel flavor, and loaded with pecans and chocolate. As many of you know, I like to mark the National food holidays. National Pecan Pie Day is July 12th, and when I saw that I wanted to know who is in charge! Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy pecan pie as much as the next person, but shouldn’t pecan pie day take place in November or December? When I think of pecan pie I think of warming spices and sweet treats enjoyed by the fire. Pecan pie is a Thanksgiving favorite.
As much as I want to celebrate Pecan Pie Day, I don’t want to turn on my oven right now. July 12 is the middle of the Summer, and much of the country is enjoying some pretty warm weather. In July I want cool and creamy desserts. I want a no bake dessert.
This Cool Creamy Caramel Pecan Pie with Chocolate Ganache is the answer. This is pecan pie for the summertime!
A side note…
Cool Creamy Caramel Pecan Pie with Chocolate Ganache is a very looong title for a recipe. Why not just call it a “turtle pie” since a turtle candy is chocolate, caramel and pecan? Sure, that would make sense, but the candy gets it’s name from a slightly turtle-ish shape or appearance. This pie looks nothing like a turtle. Also, when I think of turtle pie, I imagine a pie with actual turtles baked in. People eat turtles, and I should know.
So, this is the completely unrelated side note. When my kids were young we lived in rural Pennsylvania. We lived on a very tight budget, but decided to take the kids for a long weekend in Philadelphia so we could pack in all the historic/cultural things the city had to offer. Vacations were all about education back then. Due to said tight budget, we rarely ate out, and living in rural PA our options were pizza or the local Chinese buffet. We decided to splurge on one meal at a fancy restaurant in Philly. We made reservations at a place that did NOT have a kids menu and showed up with our 4 and 5 year old in tow. When we arrived, the staff looked at us in a confused manner and asked if they could help us. Clearly, they had not expected two very small diners that night.
They seated us reluctantly, and the kids started ordering oyster shooters and snapper turtle soup. They ate it all up, and when we were done with our meals the waitstaff said we had the coolest kids ever! I already knew that. So, anyhow, Connor loved the snapper turtle soup, and I can’t possibly name a dessert a turtle anything.
Back to Cool Creamy Caramel Pecan Pie.
Speaking of Connor, he also loved this pie I created. He took a bite and said, “Damn, that’s really good!” When he was 5, I would not have tolerated that language; my kids were raised in a profanity free home where they learned that “hate” was a bad word. Once they got into high school, however, the rules seemed to change and I’m Ok with “damn” as a compliment. He immediately took another bite, and another… I think he may bring his friends over this evening so they can finish up the pie.
Anyhow, as I mentioned, warm summer weather calls for no-bake desserts, and this pie fits the bill. I also wanted to maximize the use of pecans to celebrate National Pecan Pie Day. We start with a graham cracker pecan crust. This can be baked for 8 minutes, or you can freeze the pie crust to set it. Follow with a layer of chocolate ganache that gives a nice semi-sweet balance to the sugar sweet of the caramel. This is topped with a no-bake caramel cheesecake layer. You can then add whipped cream, pecans, chocolate, and caramel as garnish as you like.
Here’s what you will need:
As with most of my recipes, this pie uses just a few simple ingredients. The photo indicates everything you will need to make this Cool Creamy Caramel Pecan Pie from scratch, but there are some store bought short cut options you may want to consider.
Pro Tips:
As mentioned above, there are short cuts. While from scratch is my preferred method, sometimes you want something that comes together extra quickly and easily. The first short cut is to use a store bought pie crust. Obviously, the pecan aspect is important for celebrating pecan pie day, and Diamond Nuts has a ready made pecan pie crust available at most grocery stores.
Caramel sauce is basically cooked sugar and cream, but it can be a bit fussy and it takes a few extra minutes. Feel free to grab a jar of caramel sauce at the store. You will need a total of about 1 cup of caramel sauce if you want to add some to the top of the pie.
I like having some larger pieces of nuts in my pie crust. When making the crust I start with graham cracker, sugar, and 1/2 of the pecans. Once these are blended to a fine texture I add the other 1/2 cup pecans and mix a bit more before adding the melted butter. This allows for a few larger pieces.
To up the pecan quotient, I’ve topped the pie with pecans. The pecans are good plain, but I liked them even more with a little extra sugar. Melt 2 Tablespoons of butter in a skillet and toss in 1/2 cup pecans. Once the pecans are coated, add 2 Tablespoons of sugar and cook until the sugar is dissolved and the nuts have a toasty aroma. Pour the nuts out onto a piece of waxed paper to cool. As they cool, they develop a crunchy toffee like coating which is super yummy and addictive. I used some of the whole pecans as garnish, and I chopped some sugared pecans into a sprinkle. There will be extra that you can eat as is, or use as a topping for ice cream.
While I made this to celebrate the nuts, this pie is really good without them. Use a standard graham cracker, or even Oreo crust for a yummy caramel no-bake cheesecake.
As always, you want regular, full fat cream cheese for this dessert. Reduced fat or spreadable cream cheeses just won’t cut it. Also, bring the cream cheese to room temperature before mixing. This will give you the smoothest possible blend.
Cool Creamy Caramel Pecan Pie with Chocolate Ganache
A cool and creamy caramel pie with a graham cracker pecan crust and a layer of chocolate ganache, topped with sweet whipped cream, caramel, chocolate, and pecans.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes plus chilling
- Yield: 10–12 servings 1x
- Category: pie
- Cuisine: dessert
Ingredients
For the Crust:
1 sleeve graham crackers
1/2 cup melted butter
1 cup pecans
2 Tablespoons sugar
For the Ganache Layer:
1/2 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup chocolate chips
For the Caramel Layer:
8 oz cream cheese
3/4 cup caramel sauce
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup heavy cream, whipped
Optional Garnishes:
pecans, melted or shaved chocolate, caramel sauce, sweetened whipped cream
Instructions
For the Crust: In a food processor, crush 1 sleeve of graham crackers and 1 cup pecans with 2 Tablespoons of sugar to fine crumbs. Add melted butter and mix to combine. Press into a 9″ pie plate and either bake at 350 for 8 minutes, or freeze for 10-15 minutes to set the crust.
For the Ganache: Heat 1/2 cup heavy cream in the microwave until hot. My microwave heats this in about 30 seconds. Add the 3/4 cup chocolate chips and swirl the bowl so liquid covers the chocolate. Let sit for a few minutes to melt and then stir the chocolate until smooth. Spread the ganache onto the bottom of the pie crust. Allow the ganache to cool before adding the next layer.
For the Caramel Filling: In a medium bowl, mix 1/2 cup heavy cream until stiff peaks form then set aside. In a large bowl, mix room temperature cream cheese to fluffy. Add 3/4 cup caramel sauce, vanilla, and mix until well blended. Fold in the whipped cream that was set aside. Spoon the caramel mix over the ganache and spread gently. Refrigerate the pie for at least 4 hours before adding any garnishes. The pie is best served after chilling for 6 hours, preferably overnight.
Garnish with sweetened whipped cream, chocolate, caramel, and pecans.
Notes
For homemade caramel sauce: Place 1 1/4 cup sugar and 1/4 cup water in a sauce pan. Stir to make sure sugar is wet. Cook sugar over medium high heat. As the sugar becomes golden brown at the edges of the pan, swirl the pan to even out the color. When a nice caramel color has been reached, add 2 Tablespoons of butter and stir as the butter melts. To this caramel mix, carefully add 3/4 cup heavy cream, watching out for steam and splattering. Cook for an additional 3 minutes. Remove from heat and add optional flaky sea salt.
For whipped cream garnish: mix 1/2 cup heavy cream with 1 teaspoon sugar until stiff peaks form.
Keywords: caramel, pecan, no-bake, cheesecake, chocolate ganache
More Pie:
When Fall comes around and you are ready to turn that oven back on you might want to try my Five Spice Pecan Pie which is traditional with a twist. For warmer weather treats I have some other no-bake pies you might like. Try my No Bake Blueberry Cheesecake or my Washington Pie.
I am very jealous that Connor got to eat this and I didn’t. Would you consider making it when I come home?
★★★★★