Need an easy and delicious pie crust? This graham cracker crumb crust only requires three simple ingredients and 15 minutes of prep.
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Once the holidays roll around, I'm ready to eat some pie! The great thing about pie is that it is so versatile. You can use the traditional flakey pie crust, or you can opt for a crumb crust like this.
This graham cracker pie crust is the perfect combination of sweet, crunchy, and delicious. It pairs nicely with a variety of fillings and flavors including apple, sweet potato, cheesecake, and more.
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What You'll Learn In This Recipe
- How to make a crumb crust. This is something you can replicate with gingersnaps, Oreos, or pretzels.
- Helpful tips for troubleshooting the graham cracker crust if anything goes wrong.
- How to bake or freeze the pie crust.
If you're using this recipe for Thanksgiving dinner, don't forget to grab my helpful Thanksgiving planning timeline to ensure you stay organized!
Ingredients You Need
This crust recipe is super simple and only requires three ingredients.
- Graham crackers: I prefer the classic graham crackers, but you could also use the chocolate or cinnamon and sugar varieties.
- Brown sugar: This adds an extra touch of sweetness. Don't substitute with granulated sugar.
- Salted butter: I like to use salted butter in this recipe to add some additional flavor. However, unsalted butter will also work.
How To Make This Recipe
This graham cracker pie crust is really easy to make, which makes it a great option for Thanksgiving! Here's what you'll need to do:
1. Add the graham crackers and brown sugar to a food processor or high-powdered blender. Pulse everything together until a coarse crumb has formed.
2. Stream in melted butter while the food processor is running at low speed.
3. Blend until the butter is well combined and a sand-like texture has formed. The crust should easily hold together when you press it between your fingers. If it doesn't, add more melted butter 1 tablespoon (14 grams) at a time until it holds together.
4. Place the crust in an ungreased 9-inch (23 cm) pie pan. Press the crust evenly onto the bottom and sides of the pan using your hands. Then, go over the bottom and sides of the crust using a small dry measuring cup to firmly and evenly pat the crust in place.
Bake for 7 - 10 minutes until the crust is set and lightly browned around the edges. Allow the crust to cool to room temperature on a cooling rack.
Expert Tips
- Want a different flavor of pie crust? Try using the cinnamon and sugar or chocolate graham crackers with this recipe.
- Be sure to use an ungreased pie pan for the best results. Adding additional oil could cause the crust to become greasy.
- If you use a dark-colored pie pan, you may need to reduce the cooking time slightly.
Recipe FAQs
Double-check that you did not grease the pie pan. You need to leave the pie pan ungreased or it will add too much oil since there is already melted butter included in the recipe.
Depending on the type of graham crackers you use, the crust may need some additional melted butter to help everything stick together.
The crust should hold together when you press it in between your fingers. You may need to add additional melted butter (1 tablespoon at a time) to achieve this consistency.
If you're using this crust recipe for a no-bake pie or cheesecake, you can omit baking it in the oven. Rather, freeze the crust for 15 minutes before adding your desired filling.
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Graham Cracker Crumb Crust
Equipment
- 9 inch (23 cm) pie pan
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups graham crackers (about 10 crackers)
- ¼ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
- 6 tablespoons melted salted butter plus more if needed
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350°F (175°C).
- Add graham crackers and brown sugar to a food processor. Pulse until a coarse crumb has formed. Stream in melted butter while the food processor is running at low speed. Blend until the butter is well combined and a sand-like texture has formed. The crust should easily hold together when you press it between your fingers. If it doesn't, add more melted butter 1 tablespoon (14 grams) at a time until it holds together.
- Place the crust in an ungreased 9 inch (23 cm) pie pan. Press the crust evenly onto the bottom and sides of the pan using your hands. Then, go over the bottom and sides of the crust using the bottom of a small dry measuring cup to firmly and evenly pat the crust in place.
- Bake for 7 - 10 minutes until the crust is set and has lightly browned around the edges. Allow crust to cool to room temperature on a cooling rack.
- Add desired pie filling and bake as directed.
Randy
This recipe worked perfectly for a s'mores cheesecake I just made. Thanks for the easy to follow recipe.