Graham Cracker Pie Crust
This easy Graham Cracker Pie Crust is buttery, lightly sweet, and sturdy enough to hold your favorite pie filling. Bake it or chill it for pies, cheesecakes, and no-bake desserts.
Servings: 8
Calories: 183kcal
Ingredients
- 10 Honey Graham Crackers about 10-12 full cracker sheets, or 1½ cups graham cracker crumbs
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- 6 tbsp butter salted and melted
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon or ½ tsp pumpkin pie spice for pumpkin pie with graham cracker crust
Instructions
- Preheat the oven (optional): If baking the crust, preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Make fine graham cracker crumbs: add the graham crackers to a food processor. Pulse the graham cracker pieces in a food processor until finely ground for the best texture.
- Add the pie crust ingredients to a bowl
- Mix the ingredients to look like wet sand: In a medium bowl, stir together the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, cinnamon (or pumpkin pie spice), melted butter, and vanilla until all of the crumbs are evenly moistened. The mixture should resemble wet sand.
- Press firmly into a 9-inch pie plate: Pour the crumb mixture into a 9-inch pie plate. Use the bottom of a measuring cup or glass to firmly press the crumbs into an even layer across the bottom and up the sides of the pan. A flat-bottom measuring cup helps create a compact crust that slices cleanly.
- Follow your recipe's instructions for determining the next step. For a no-bake dessert: Bake for 8–10 minutes, or until lightly golden and fragrant. Let the crust cool completely before filling. You can also skip baking and refrigerate the crust for at least 1 hour, or freeze it for 20–30 minutes, before adding the filling. For a baked dessert (ex: my pumpkin pie with graham cracker crust): I do not pre-bake the crust. I just add the filling to the crust after it's been pressed in the pie plate and bake it with the filling.
Notes
- Use 10–12 full graham cracker sheets, or 1½ cups graham cracker crumbs.
- Grind the crackers finely so the crust packs together evenly.
- Press firmly, but don’t overpack or the crust can become hard.
- For a no-bake dessert, chill the crust until firm before filling.
- If your filling will be baked, follow that recipe to determine whether the crust should be pre-baked first.
- Swap the cinnamon for pumpkin pie spice for a warmer fall flavor.
Nutrition
Calories: 183kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 23mg | Sodium: 183mg | Potassium: 35mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 263IU | Vitamin C: 0.01mg | Calcium: 18mg | Iron: 1mg
