Last-Minute Pantry Pie

Unexpected guests? No problem. Craving dessert? I gotcha. This last-minute pie is pure pantry magic — rich, creamy and almost effortless. Better still, it's an easy no-bake cheesecake-style pie that's extra-simple to throw together at the last minute with just five pantry ingredients (plus your favorite crust) easily kept on hand for pie on a whim, proof that a well-stocked pantry can save the day—and your sweet tooth—at a moment’s notice. Plus? So good, it moves the table to silence ...

Memorable Homestyle No-Bake, No-Cook Pie, Fresh & Flexible. Little Effort, Big Reward. Extra Welcome When "Supper's a Little Skimpy". Not just easy, Summer Easy. No-Eggs. Budget Friendly. Weeknight Easy, Weekend Special. What're you waiting for?! So Good!!

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Happy Pi Day!

If you missed the news that today is Pi Day – you know, 3.14 aka March 14th (get it?!) and at least according to Google's Home Page, the 30th anniversary of Pi Day, to boot – then I've got the last-minute recipe for you! (And guess what's in my fridge this very minute!)

What's In a Name?

"WHAT'S THIS PIE CALLED?" shouted asked my then 90-year old and hard-of-hearing father when he first came to live with us, scraping up the last crumbs of graham cracker with his fork.

I was non-plussed. Pies DO need names, of course. But how in heaven do you put "pie that you can make at the last minute with pantry ingredients like cream cheese, sweetened condensed milk and canned fruit and yet makes people groan with pleasure" into just a few words? Desperation Pie? Last-Minute Pie? Pie On a Whim?

For the longest while, we just called it "No Name" Pie, not especially original but I knew, from the smiles and scraping forks, that whatever its name, this easy-easy pie makes my people happy and deserved something better.

Last-Minute Pantry Pie it is. It's got a certain cachet – and I do loovvve alliteration – even if half the time, I make it with fresh fruit not canned fruit from the pantry!

But first, let's back up a bit.

Yeah, That Pie Thing Is Still a Thing

It's been ninety weeks now. Ninety weeks! That's how long we've been celebrating #PieDayFriday every Friday around here. And when you do a "repetitive exercise" that often, you learn stuff.

Like you're way more apt to make pie if there's a crust in the freezer or if you make the pie in the morning.

But just like the Five O'Clock Scramble to figure out what's for supper, some weeks I wake up Friday morning with no plan, no crust in the freezer and frankly, no ambition either.

Occasionally I bail, announcing at supper, "Sorry, guys. Pie in the sky tonight, I'll do pie tomorrow." My now almost 92-year old father still lives with us and does his best to hide disappointment. "Tomorrow?" he will confirm, pinning me down, guaranteeing I commit.

Any Pie Is Better Than the Dream of a Perfect Pie

So I've begun collecting last-minute pie recipes.

Lucky break, "Last-Minute Pantry Pie" can be made almost from air with pantry ingredients – and yet wows people, both here at home and when I carry a pie along to Friday-night dinners with friends.

It calls for – I know, from me, the real food cook – canned fruit.

Fresh fruit is great in this pie, wonderful even, below are the combinations I've tried so far. But fresh fruit complicates my Friday-afternoon pie desperation, it would have to be seasonal, perfectly ripe, there would have to be enough, etc.

So canned fruit it is, not always, but often enough.

Either way, canned fruit or fresh fruit, you'll bring happy smiles (and scraping forks) to the people you love.

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Recipe Overview: Last-Minute Pantry Pie

• This pie is a real pantry hero, it whips up fast and disappears fast, too. It starts with your favorite graham cracker crust (or mine). While it bakes and cool, mix the filling (all common ingredients easy to keep on hand, at least in my kitchen, they're always on hand because they're pantry staples and not just for this pie), top with a little extra fruit and chill. That's it!

• Diet Needs & Choices = The recipe is vegetarian.
• Distinctive Ingredients = A Graham Cracker Crust + Cream Cheese + Sweetened Condensed Milk + Canned Fruit
• Short Ingredient List = all the above + cream + lemon juice +
• For Garnish = a little bit of that canned fruit, it looks pretty
• Kitchen Tools = A Pie Pan + a Hand Mixer or Stand Mixer
• Hands-On Time = Allow about 20 minutes, not including the crust if you're making that too.
• Time-to-Table = Allow about 2-1/2 hours, that includes two hours of chill time.
• Does It Keep? It does! The pie stays fresh at least three or four days, just keep it refrigerated.
• Tasting with our Eyes = That little bit of fruit on top makes a difference, atop the creamy-white cheesecake filling.
• Texture = The texture is soft and creamy like pudding, interrupted only by bits of fruit.
• Taste = The taste is sweet and creamy and a little bit fruity.
• Time Friendly = This recipe is definitely time-friendly, just 20 minutes up front and then the chill time.
• Shop Your Pantry = This recipe is definitely pantry-friendly, it calls only for pantry staples.
• Watching Our Waistlines = This pie is rich, for sure. But to minimize the calories, skip the crust and fill ramekins or mini mason jars for small servings.
• Makes = a deep dish pie plus a few extra ramekins or jars.
• So good! I hope you love it!


• Here's another no-bake cheesecake-y pie, this time with homemade pie filling, Blueberry Cheesecake Pie
• Not quite what you're looking for? Check out my other recipes for Pies & Tarts.

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You'll Love My Pantry Pie If ...

• you're keen on creamy, cheesecake-style pies
• you're short on time but still want to make a pie
• you keep your pantry stocked with certain ingredients all the time
• you love the silence when the people at your table take that first bite of something really good

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LAST-MINUTE PANTRY PIE

Hands-on time: 20 minutes
Time to table: about 2-1/2 hours
Makes 1 deep-dish pie or 1 shallow pie plus 3 mini pies

CRUST
• Graham Cracker Crust, I use My Favorite Graham Cracker Crust, be sure it's cooled before

FILLING
• 1 or 2 cans of fruit (mandarin orange, peaches, fruit cocktail, etc.)
• 8 ounces (225g) low-fat cream cheese (Neufchatel)
• 14 ounces (400g) sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 cup (125g) heavy cream
• 1/3 cup (85g) fresh lemon juice

CRUST If you're making your own crust, make it first, bake and then pop in the fridge to cool down. You can mix the Filling while it bakes and cools.

FILLING Drain the canned fruit well, reserving the juices for another purpose. (Hello, morning smoothies!) If the fruit pieces are large, cut into bite-size pieces.

In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to whip the cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk on high until very full and smooth, working out all the lumps.

Add the cream and continue to whip, the mixture will become even fuller.

Mix in the lemon juice and again, it will continue to become fuller.

With a spatula, gently fold in the drained fruit (reserve some fruit for the top, if you like) and pour into the prepared pie shell.

Garnish with the reserved fruit and refrigerate for about two hours to firm up the filling.

SERVE in thin slices (it's rich!) and enjoy! The pie stays fresh in the fridge for several days, the crust starts to get soggy about Day Three but the filling remains great for longer.

ALANNA's TIPS Size-wise, cans of fruit are all over the board. Mandarin oranges (a favorite for Last-Minute Pantry Pie) come in 11 ounces so I tend to use two cans. Peaches come in 15-ounce cans and pineapple in 20-ounce cans. You'll want the fruit from about 25 to 30 ounces of canned fruit though don't worry, a single can, even a smallish one, will still work – though you might want to chop up a banana to supplement. It helps if the cream cheese is at room temperature but isn't obligatory, you'll just need to mix it a little longer. Here's a great trick. A carton of cream will keep for weeks, so long as it's not opened. That makes cream a pantry staple! Once it's open, the cream needs to be used within a week or so before it goes bad. This trick has been a game-changer in my kitchen. Depending on the fruit, the filling makes about 5 cups, that's a lot of filling, even for a deep-dish pie. Some times I make a shallow pie and then a few mini pies (with store-bought crusts) on the side. Other times, I fill mini Mason jars with the filling, it's really pudding-like. Hmmm, would frozen fruit work? I think so. I'm not sure which would better though, (1) thawing and draining first or (2) folding in the frozen fruit. No cream? No problem. Cool Whip works, about 8 ounces. Just thaw it first, then gently fold it in with the fruit. FOR MORE INFO If you "skipped straight to the recipe," please scroll back to the top of this page for ingredient information, ingredient substitutions, tips and more. Confused about salt, these days? No wonder, it is confusing. Check my FAQs for an explanation. If you print this recipe, you'll want to check the recipe online for even more tips and extra information about ingredient substitutions, best results and more. See https://www.kitchenparade.com/2018/03/last-minute-pantry-pie.html .

MORE LAST-MINUTE PANTRY PIE IDEAS WITH FRESH & CANNED FRUIT! Here are the variations I've tried so far.

• Last-Minute Pie with Fresh Peaches – Wonderful! I use a full pound of ripe peaches (skins on if they're tender, save a few slices for the top) although with so much wet fruit, the pie slices are a little bit more droopy and don't stand up as straight.
• Last-Minute Fresh Mango & Banana Tropical Pie – Wonderful! I used about 8 ounces of mango plus a chopped banana. The banana needed no lemon juice to prevent browning! The banana does mean the pie stays fresh-tasting and fresh-looking though, plan to eat it up within a couple of days.
• Last-Minute Pie with Fresh Pineapple – Good! Grate a whole pineapple, you'll end up with about 250g of fruit. This is really good pie but honestly? There is no telling the pineapple is fresh so canned pineapple would work beautifully, just be sure to drain it really well.
• Last-Minute Cherry Filling Pie – Great! St. Louis' local grocery chain Schnucks sells cans of low-sugar sour cherry pie filling at a great price, a couple of dollars less than the name brands. We love this, especially my husband. A single 20-ounce can was just enough cherries, a little more would have been okay but two cans way too much. Do save a few cherries to garnish the top.
• Last-Minute Mandarin Orange Pie – Great! This idea is from my sister, who really loves the orange flavor and in fact would bump it further with some orange zest.

NUTRITION INFORMATION Per Slice, assumes 8 slices, My Favorite Graham Cracker Crust and 120g of drained mandarin oranges packed in juice drained from two 11-ounce cans: 452 Calories; 26g Tot Fat; 15g Sat Fat; 59mg Cholesterol; 238mg Sodium; 44g Carb; 1g Fiber; 33g Sugar; 9g Protein. WEIGHT WATCHERS Old Points 11 & PointsPlus 12 & SmartPoints 21 & Freestyle 21 & myWW green 21 & blue 21 & purple 21 & future WW points Yeah, the calories add up. But all is not lost. Skip the crust and serve the filling in small mason jars. A quarter cup of the filling all by itself adds up to only 117 calories, for Weight Watchers, that's just 3 Old Points or PointsPlus or 6 SmartPoints. It's not pie, per se, but I think you'll find it most satisfying!

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Seasonal Cooking: Early Spring in the Midwest

KITCHEN PARADE
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A VEGGIE VENTURE
Cook’s Illustrated Foolproof Oven-Baked Brown Rice Broccoli Rabe with Peppers Cabbage Sprouts Pride of Erin Soup (< this week's St. Patrick's Day favorite!) Wine-Glazed Brussels Sprouts Alsatian Cabbage The Danger of Convenience: Birdseye Steamfresh Frozen Vegetables Potato & Poblano Pepper Gratin Farm Pie with Whole Wheat & Lard Crust Swedish Pickled Beetroot Salad Parsnip Pear Purée Chayote Soup with a Kick Baked Sweet Potatoes (< hello, meal prep) Beer-Soaked Crispy Baked Fries Spinach Pancakes Crazy-Good Cooked Cabbage Carrot & Chickpea Salad with Tahini-Lemon Dressing
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If you like Kitchen Parade's recipes, you'll love A Veggie Venture, my food blog about vegetables with more from-scratch recipes using whole, healthful ingredients, home to the famous Alphabet of Vegetables and vegetables in every course, seasonal to staples, savory to sweet, salads to sides, soups to supper, simple to special.

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More Pies That Provoke Silence & Fork Scraping

• THE RECIPE Blueberry Cheesecake Pie Cheesecake topped with homemade blueberry pie filling. No bake!
• ANOTHER TAKE Mini Blueberry Tarts With a "pop" of fresh blueberry right in the middle.

• THE RECIPE Upside-Down Rhubarb Cheesecake Layers of sour rhubarb and creamy cheesecake in a simple pie or ramekins.
• ANOTHER TAKE No-Bake Pumpkin Cream Pie Part pie, part cheesecake in a gingersnap crust.

• THE RECIPE Fresh Strawberry Pie Fresh glazed berries in a homemade chocolate-cookie crust, a real crowd pleaser. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Strawberry Rhubarb Cobbler A simple dessert that sings of spring. (PIN This)

• THE COLLECTION Pies & Tarts, Crusts & More from a life-long pie-baker.
• SOME FAVORITES 10 Favorite Recipes for Early-Spring Pies & Tarts for Pi Day on March 14th These pies lean on pantry ingredients and early-spring supermarket fruit. (PIN This)
• HOW TO CELEBRATE #PieDayFriday week in, week out.

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Shop Your Pantry First

(helping home cooks save money on groceries)

~ cream cheese recipes ~
~ sweetened condensed milk recipes ~
~ lemon recipes ~

~ All Recipes, By Ingredient ~
~ How to Save Money on Groceries ~

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Kitchen Parade is written by second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences. Quick Suppers are Kitchen Parade favorites and feature recipes easy on the budget, the clock, the waistline and the dishwasher. Do you have a favorite recipe that other Kitchen Parade readers might like? Just send me a quick e-mail, you'll find my current address in the FAQs. How to print a Kitchen Parade recipe. Never miss a recipe! If you like this recipe, sign up for a free e-mail subscription. If you like Kitchen Parade, for more scratch cooking recipes using whole, healthful ingredients, you're sure to like my food blog about vegetable recipes, too, A Veggie Venture. If you make this recipe, I'd love to know your results! Just leave a comment below.

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