Turtle Sundae Ice Cream Pie recipe

This no-bake pie is a delicious treat and so easy to make. The best part about this easy turtle pie recipe is how quickly it comes together with a few simple ingredients. If you are a lover of turtle ice cream sundaes this is the dessert for you.

Why I love Turtle Sundae Ice Cream Pie so much!

You should know by now that I love pie and I’m not discriminating when it comes to the variety.  If it’s in a pie plate my fork is ready! In Michigan we don’t eat a lot of ice cream in the winter because it’s cold and we don’t want to be any colder this time of year. However, in the summer we make up for all the ice cream we passed up in the winter. When the kids were younger we would go to the ice cream parlor at least once a week, now that they are older it’s like herding cats to get them together in one place But if you ask my family they will tell you the one thing I love when going out for ice cream is a turtle sundae. I have a genius turtle sundae hack. Are you ready for this? Butter pecan ice cream. You heard me. If you are thinking only people over 80 eat butter pecan ice cream I think you are going to have to get over your prejudices and give it a try. One small turtle sundae with butter pecan ice cream please. I came up with this idea when I was pondering no-bake pie ideas and Ken asked if I wanted to go get ice cream. Literally a light bulb went on and the next thing you know I was on my way to do some much needed turtle sundae research. Proceed with caution non pie lovers.

Gather these ingredients

How to make a Turtle Ice Cream Sundae Pie

1. Remove store-bought ice cream from your freezer and leave it on the counter to soften up while you start the cookie crust.
2. Place cookies in the food processor and process for a minute until all cookies are broken down into a fine crumb. Drizzle in 4 tbsp of melted butter and process for another minute. Pour crust ingredients into pie plate. Using your fingers press cookie crumbs evenly around the pie plate until you have formed the base for your turtle sundae pie.

3. Measure out hot fudge sauce and caramel sauce into small bowls, microwave for a few seconds just until they become easy to pour or drizzle. Now drizzle 1/4 cup of each of the sauces into the bottom of the crust. Is there anything better?  Maybe we should just stop right here, and smash our face in this.

4. Place 1 cup of pecans with 1 tbsp of butter into a small skillet, turn heat on medium. Move nuts around in the butter as it melts continue to do this for about 5 minutes until pecans have toasted and are covered with butter. Pour them out onto a plate or baking sheet to cool, sprinkle with 1/4 tsp salt. Chop. Sprinkle 1/3 of the crunchy pecans over the sauces in the crust. (If they seem to be burning after 2-3 minutes then remove them from heat and proceed.)

5. Scoop half of the softened ice cream into the pie shell and smooth to the sides with a spatula. Now drizzle 1/4 cup of each sauce and sprinkle 1/3 of the buttered pecans on top. 

 Repeat this step one more time. You’re almost there!

 

No words can describe this.  Except maybe yum.

Place in the freezer for two to three hours before serving.  Garnish each piece with redi-whip and maraschino cherries. Or if you prefer to make your own whipped topping this works too. A sharp knife is needed to cut through this pie, and it works even better if you run the blade under hot water before slicing.

FAQ’s and Tips

• Q: How would you suggest this be made nut free, without losing the crunch of the pecans? A: The pecans are quite a big element of the Turtle Sundae so to take them away does change the whole recipe. If you must, then I would simply leave out the buttered pecans. Or you could substitute English toffee on top of the pie for some crunch. (check your labels if you have a nut allergy; some toffees do contain nuts, or may be made in a factory where nuts are present.)
• Q: How long will the ice cream pie last in the freezer? A: Ice cream pie should be wrapped tightly with plastic wrap. Two or three layers of plastic wrap are best. Then the pie should last up to 3 months in the freezer. It won’t necessarily go bad, however it may start to get freezer burn depending on your freezer.
• Q: What would you suggest I use if I don’t want to have a chocolate crust? A: You could use a graham cracker crust. Diamond nuts makes a pre-made pecan pie crust if you can find it that works well. Or you could purchase sugar cookie dough and make a sugar cookie crust. Press cookie dough into pie a plate and bake it with the blind crust method. Let cool.
• Tip: If you prefer another flavor of ice cream you are welcome to swap it in as a substitute. Creamy vanilla ice cream works best. I think salted caramel ice cream could also be fabulous!
• Tip: Garnishing your ice cream pie- If you would like you can pipe on the redi-whip topping and garnish with the maraschino cherries as seen below. Pop it in the freezer and then when you pull it out to serve it all you will need to do is cut it.
• Tip: I can never have enough topping so I like to serve this pie with hot fudge and gooey caramel sauce on the side or even a bottle of chocolate syrup to drizzle extra over the pie as I serve it.

What a fun dessert! I think this would be the perfect substitution for a birthday cake.

 

That’s all she wrote folks. I hope you love this recipe. We can never have too many easy recipes in our recipe card box. I would be so grateful to you if you could leave a comment, give it a 5 star review, pin it or share it on your socials and mention Eat2gather.net. XO Sheila

 

I sure hope you are enjoying your summer, and of course eating your quota of ice cream! For more summer treats check out Milk Means More pinterest board.

XOX, Sheila

 

 

Disclaimer:  I am proud to be an ambassador for the United Dairy Industry of Michigan.  Thank you for helping support Eat2gather by supporting your local dairy farmers!