I am always looking for fresh and light dessert for the summer time and this layered lemon delight hits the nail on the head. It is soo good. It’s actually a very popular dessert recipe of ours. After you try it, it might even become your favorite family dessert recipe!
My mom used to make something like it all the time during the summer, a similar type of layered lemon dessert. I wanted to remake it with a little bit more of a crunch which is where the chopped pecans come into play.
The pecans give this recipe even more depth to the flavor profiles. It makes it so tasty, that it’s hard to only have one piece of the lemon delight dessert.
Ingredients Needed For Layered Lemon Dessert
- Flour
- Chopped pecans
- Butter
- Cream cheese
- Powdered sugar
- Cool Whip
- Lemon instant pudding mix
- Milk
Equipment Needed
For this recipe, you only need a few simple kitchen tools. We recommend using the following equipment:
How To Make This Layered Lemon Dessert
- Preheat the oven to 375℉.
- Combine flour, ½ cup pecans and butter in a medium bowl and mix well. Press onto the bottom of an 11 x 8-inch baking dish. Bake until lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Let stand to cool.
- Place cream cheese in a medium bowl. Beat with an electric mixer set at medium speed until fluffy. Add confectioners’ sugar and beat until mixture is light and fluffy.
- Add 1 cup whipped topping to cream cheese mixture and fold in gently. Spread over cooled crust.
- Combine pudding mix and milk in a medium bowl. Beat until thickened. Spread on top of cream cheese layer. Top with the remaining whipped topping. Sprinkle with remaining pecans. Chill, covered, for 1 hour. Store any leftovers in the refrigerator.
Storage Instructions
Fridge: Place the Layered Lemon Dessert in the fridge covered and store for up to 3 days.
Enjoy More Delicious Puddings and Mousse Recipes
Puddings are easy enough for home cooks at any level, and they make a great dessert for any occasion. Check out our comprehensive list of all our pudding recipes!
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Layered Lemon Dessert Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup flour
- ¾ cup chopped pecans
- ½ cup butter, softened
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 8 ounces Cool Whip, thawed, divided
- 2 (3.4 ounce) lemon instant pudding mix
- 2 ⅔ cup milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375℉.
- Combine flour, ½ cup pecans and butter in a medium bowl and mix well. Press onto the bottom of an 11 x 8-inch baking dish. Bake until lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Let stand to cool.
- Place cream cheese in a medium bowl. Beat with an electric mixer set at medium speed until fluffy. Add confectioners' sugar and beat until mixture is light and fluffy.
- Add 1 cup whipped topping to cream cheese mixture and fold in gently. Spread over cooled crust.
- Combine pudding mix and milk in a medium bowl. Beat until thickened. Spread on top of cream cheese layer. Top with the remaining whipped topping. Sprinkle with remaining pecans. Chill, covered, for 1 hour. Store any leftovers in the refrigerator.
Notes
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?We’d love to hear your thoughts! Leave a review or a question in the comment section below the post.
I don’t need another dessert recipe, I think this one beats them all 🙂 thank you for sharing and hope you’re all enjoying January 🙂
Dear Lord…you are killin me! Killin me! Sigh. This one is on the list of delactable things of your site to make!
This has always been a favorite of mine as I was growing up. I can’t make it because I would eat the whole pan! I have a friend that will make it once a year for us at Christmas time. That’s the only time I’m allowed to have it!
Now that is a perfect treat for treat day!! It looks so good. We may just need to make this 😉
That doesn’t look like the pudding mix you combine with milk…that looks like the cooked pudding mix you make lemon meringue pie out of???
That looks delicious!
It is just milk. You don’t use as much milk so it is a little thicker and more yellow. Hope this helps
The picture looks like it was really made with COOK n serve pudding mix cause it has the more clear look, sorta like lemon curd or lemon meringue pie filling. it doesn’t look like it has milk in it as the lemon INSTANT pudding does! Maybe it is just the lighting, or photography, but, my instant lemon pudding never looks like that!
HaHa! I obviously didn’t look at the previous comment; at least I know that I am not the only one that thought this…LOL!
I have made this chocolate for years. Can also make it with coconut or butterscotch pudding. Lemon is a favorite of mine too but I don’t do much lemon because I would eat it all.
I am like a couple others. The lemon pudding I have used is milky looking, not this clear pretty look.
Good lord this looks delicious, I am definitely going to have to try this. Thanks for sharing!
Sincerely,
Happy Valley Chow
Wouldn’t you be able to use the cook kind of pudding for this recipe? Is there a reason why not?
You want instant pudding. You would have to totally change the recipe up if you use cook n serve pudding.
Just be sure to follow the recipe and not the box directions. 🙂
omg – these look amazing and soo easy!
Made this for my hubby and he sat there eating it saying “Oh My” in between bites. When he was done he looked at me and said “Honey!” “You Can Definitely Make This As Much As You Want!”
Have you tried this with low fat cream cheese, whipped cream, or with sugar free pudding? Just wondering what that would do to the consistency.
I don’t think there would much difference with low fat cream cheese. As for the whipped cream and sugar free pudding, we haven’t tried them. Hope this helps. 🙂
I love this recipe, and always use low fat cream cheese and light cool whip. It turns our great! Also, I make a homemade lemon pudding and it puts it over the top! I love your website! Thanks for all the great recipes!
Love this recipe! It is a big favorite at our house! Thanks so much!
That is definitely not instant lemon pudding. I make the instant lemon for my husband and it is not clear yellow like that.
Making this now and it is not turning out right by combining the instant lemon pudding with milk, does NOT thicken (:
I would like to make it in a 9×13 pan. Anyway I can do this?
You are fine to make this in a 9 x 13 inch pan. Each layer will not be as deep. Be sure to watch the crust layer that cooks. It may not take as long to cook.
Where do you find an 8 x 11 pan? I have 7 x 11 pans. The only place I found one was on Amazon for $25!!!!!!
7 x 11 will work fine too!
I’m going to make this soon! It looks delicious! I made one almost the same using a can of pumpkin and everyone loved it…..but we have a granddaughter who doesn’t like pumpkin, so I was hoping to find something to replace the can of pumpkin. Butterscotch sounds good too! I’m new to pinterest, but have been finding so many tasty and fun things to pin!
Made this recipe for my husband who loves anything made with lemons. Fantastic!
I used low fat cream cheese and instant lemon pudding . Taste and texture were great.
Thanks.
I’ve always made it with chocolate pudding too. My sister has made it with butterscotch pudding, but I’ve never thought that was as good as the chocolate….but I LOVE lemon, so I will have to give this version a try.
We are nut allergic here so would a graham crust do for the bottom ok do you think?
Am planning to try with it.
Can this be frozen ahead of time?
This should freeze well in an airtight freezer container.
Can you mix up dream whip instead of cool whip
Hi Nellie, We have not tried Dream Whip in this luscious lemon delight. So not sure how it would all turn out.
I’m thinking ground up golden oreos would be good to use for the crust with melted butter, just not sure about how many cookies to use
How long will this dessert last in the refrigerator?
It should be great for about 3 days.