Pistachio Lush

Prepare yourself for a nut-TASTIC taste sensation in this pistachio flavored dessert. Very easy to make!

New Ideas

Whenever I’m in the market for some new ideas and additions to my regular meal rotations, it always seems my friend Maria, from Maria’s Mixing Bowl, posts something on her Facebook page that’s just perfect. This is one of those things!

I’d recently made a Lemon Lush that was totally no bake. This one you have to bake the crust. Believe me, it’s worth it!

But you could always substitute a graham cracker crust if you don’t want to bake it.  In the summer, that’d probably be the best choice, especially in parts of the country that see triple-digit temps during those months. Only thing I’d do if I were switching out the crusts, is I wouldn’t add any extra sugar to the crumb mixture. A crust made out of pecan sandies would go nicely here too.

This dessert in the photos was served to my guests that same evening for dinner. They really loved the crust. It’s quite special! It’s loaded with chopped nuts and butter. Now what can be better than that!  For the main course I served my Chicken Fried Steak

Watch The Video

MAKE IT TOTALLY NO-BAKE–Reader Monica emailed me about making this with a crust made of pecan sandies. Just follow a recipe for a graham cracker crust (you can probably eliminate any added sugar in the crust recipe) and substitute the pecan sandies for the graham crackers. Totally AWESOME idea–thanks Monica!

The Recipe

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Pistachio Lush

Prep Time1 hr

Cook Time20 mins

Total Time1 hr 20 mins

Servings: 12

Author: Judith Hannemann

Ingredients

• Crust:
• 1 cup flour
• 1 stick 1/2 cup butter (cut up)
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• Cheese Layer:
• 8 oz cream cheese at room temperature
• 1 cup confectioner's sugar
• 1 cup whipped topping
• Pistachio Layer:
• 2 pkgs instant pistachio pudding
• 3 cups milk
• Topping:
• 2 cups whipped topping
• 1/2 cup toasted almonds optional, but recommended

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
• In a large bowl, add the flour and the cut up butter. Using a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut the butter into the flour until the mixture looks like small peas.
• Stir in the walnuts
• Press into a 13 x 9-inch pan.
• Bake for 20 minutes.
• Remove from oven and cool completely
• Beat cream cheese, confectioner's sugar and the 1 cup of whipped topping until the mixture is smooth and silky.
• Spread this across the cooled crust in the pan.
• Prepare pistachio pudding by whisking it into the milk--whisking for 1-2 minutes until the pudding begins to thicken.
• Spread the pudding on top of the cheese layer.
• Chill for about 2-3 hours
• Top with the 2 cups of whipped topping and sprinkle with toasted almonds (if using)

Tried this recipe?Mention @midnitebaker or tag #midnitebaker!