Creamy Lemonade Pie

Creamy lemonade pie is the no-bake summer dessert that practically makes itself. A can of frozen lemonade concentrate carries the entire flavor, delivering that puckery, refreshing tang you remember from the powdered drink stand. Whisked into instant vanilla pudding and folded with whipped topping, it sets into a cool, airy filling somewhere between a chiffon and a frozen pie.

The trick to getting that perfect cloud-like texture is whisking the pudding into the cold milk before adding the lemonade. Cold milk activates the pudding faster, and the still-frozen-around-the-edges concentrate gives the filling a head start on thickening. Within a minute it goes from soup to spoonable.

A store-bought graham cracker crust keeps prep at five minutes, but a homemade crust takes it from picnic table to dinner-party respectable. Four hours in the fridge is the minimum, longer is better, so make it the night before.

Pro Tips

• Use undiluted frozen lemonade concentrate, never bottled lemonade or fresh-squeezed, the concentrate’s sugar density is what helps the pie set
• Whisk the pudding for the full minute, undermixing leaves grainy lumps
• Fold the whipped topping in gently to keep the filling light, stirring deflates it
• Garnish with thin lemon slices just before serving so they don’t bleed color into the filling

Variations

• Swap pink lemonade concentrate for a soft rosy color
• Use limeade concentrate for a key-lime style version
• Fold in fresh blueberries before chilling for a lemon-blueberry twist