Creamy Strawberry Orange Pudding Pie

This strawberry orange pudding pie is creamy, light and is ready to serve in an hour. Perfect for BBQs, weeknight treats or a guilt free indulgence.

This post contains affiliate links which means if you click on a link and make a purchase, I will receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!

This recipe was born in my college years. My roommates and I had signed up to bring a dessert to a party and all of us forgot until an hour or so before we were supposed to leave. No time to run to the store, we looked at what we had in our apartment.

Five minutes later, we had a graham cracker crust, a box of pudding, Cool Whip, strawberries and an orange. We mixed it up, put it in the fridge to set and served it at the party. It was a hit and everyone was surprised we’d come up with the recipe for strawberry orange pie ourselves.

Fast forward 15 or so years and I decided to pull this recipe out of my recipe box. It’s been a while since I made it and was skeptical it would taste as good as it did when I was a starving college student. Surprise! It does. My whole family loved it.

Why You’ll Love Strawberry Orange Pie

• Easy to make: Only 5 minutes to mix it all together and pour it in the crust.
• Light and Creamy: The Cool Whip makes it fluffy and smooth.
• Fruity: Orange and strawberry is an uncommon flavor combo that tastes great together!
• Versatile: Basic ingredients that can be substituted to suit your preferences.

Can I substitute the milk for almond or other plant based milks in the pudding?

The short answer is YES. The long answer is that it depends on the type of milk you want to use. Changing the type of milk used will also affect the flavor and texture of the pudding. This may or may not complement the flavor combination of your pie. If you are interested in using almond or other plant based milks for this recipe, I suggest going to the official Kraft website where they outline how to best substitute different milks in both their instant and cook and serve puddings.

*NOTE* This recipe uses less milk than what you would normally use to make a box of pudding. As a result, you would need to make adjustments to the amount of substitute liquid used. According to the above website, they used 1/4-1/2 c less liquid depending on the substitute used. For example, if you used almond milk, this recipe would need about 6 Tbsp, but could vary a little. Keep in mind that you will be going for a thicker frosting consistency with this recipe so adjust accordingly.

How to Make Strawberry Orange Pudding Pie

First, zest your orange. Be sure to only zest the top layer and stay away from the white because it is bitter.

In a medium bowl, combine the milk, instant pudding mix and orange zest. Use a hand mixer to combine until it is fully incorporated. Because you aren’t adding the normal amount of milk, it will be thick, almost like frosting.

Add the Cool Whip and beat together until no white lumps remain. You want it to be totally smooth in order to get that creamy, light texture I mentioned above.

Pour the filling into the graham cracker crust. Put in the fridge for 1 hour.

Before serving, cut up some strawberries and scoop them onto the pie.

*VARIATION 1* Cut up your strawberries and mix them into the pudding filling before pouring into the crust.

*VARIATION 2* Try different pudding, fruit and zest combinations. Lemon pudding and raspberries (with lemon zest instead of orange zest). Chocolate pudding and strawberries.