Reviewed: Oct. 26, 2009

This is the quickest and most versatile dessert recipe I've seen in a long time. I've made it three times in less than two weeks and each version has been fantastic! First time I made it, I followed the recipe using half pistachio/half french vanilla - it was very good and it pleased my non-pistachio loving family while still providing a hint of the pistachio flavor I love. The second time I made it, I substituted chocolate pudding and because I'm not crazy about the flavor of instant chocolate pudding (cook and serve chocolate pudding is about 1000 times more chocolatey!) I whisked two tablespoons of baking cocoa in with the pudding and milk and it was really very good. The third time I made this dessert I used two boxes of vanilla instant pudding and surprisingly, the straight vanilla version was exceptional! For some reason, the vanilla pudding/cool whip combo was way creamier than the other flavors. I absolutely LOVE "graham flavor" and I adore a vanilla/graham flavor even more. My family of chocolate lovers were surprised by how great the vanilla was and we all agreed that vanilla was the best so far. I can't wait to try all the other flavors I've thought of...coconut cream, lemon and double-decker vanilla/chocolate are just a few!

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
0 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

Freya_B

Cooking Level: Expert

Living In: Erie, Pennsylvania, USA

My Profile | Cooks I Like | Reviews
Photos | Recipes | Blog

Reviewed: Mar. 30, 2009

This was very good. My step daughter made it. I just verified that she did it correctly. It sat in the fridge several hours before serving. The crackers were soft and easy to cut. This is a very quick and easy dessert.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
0 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

Lizzie H

Cooking Level: Expert

Living In: Ravenna, Ohio, USA

My Profile | Cooks I Like | Reviews
Photos | Recipes | Blog

Reviewed: Mar. 28, 2009

Excellent!! I too used two packages of pistachio pudding and it was delicious. I also topped it with cool whip and mini chocolate chips instead of the icing. I think the icing would have made it too rich. It is a nice light dessert after a very filling meal.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
0 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

lau57

My Profile | Cooks I Like | Reviews
Photos | Recipes | Blog

Reviewed: Mar. 20, 2009

This was good- not crazy fantastic, but good. It was so easy and quick to do. As per the other review, I used 2 boxes of pistachio pudding instead of the vanilla and made a chocolate ganache to pour on top. If you have the time, make this the night before- you don't want crunchy graham crackers!!

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
0 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

MelissasMeals

Cooking Level: Intermediate

My Profile | Cooks I Like | Reviews
Photos | Recipes | Blog

Reviewed: Mar. 16, 2009

This is one of my alltime favorite dessert recipes because you can vary the flavors so much. I have used vanilla pudding and added 1 cup of pumpkin to the pudding mixture during the fall,added espresso powder to cheesecake flavor for a "tiramisu" like flavor, and most recently for spaghetti dinner potluck with friends I created a "spumoni" flavor by layering three flavors- chocolate, then white chocolate mixed with about 1/2 c. of chopped marachino cherries, then a layer of pistachio. It came out awesome and the layers were so beautiful. Also, I to feel sometimes the icing on the top can be a bit overwhelming so instead I just melt about a cup of chocolate chips in the micrwavefor a few seconds and then just decoratively drizzle it over the top of the graham crackers. I always keep extra pudding mix, graham crackers and frozen topping on hand so I can throw this go to dessert together any time I need.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
0 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

D.P.

My Profile | Cooks I Like | Reviews
Photos | Recipes | Blog

Reviewed: Mar. 4, 2009

I made this exactly as written. It was really good, and couldn't have been easier. I'm only giving it four stars because it wasn't amazing or anything, but a nice, yummy, change from the usual dessert. It went over well at the church pot luck. My suggestion is to make sure you let it sit in the fridge for at least 5 hours so the graham crackers can soften up if you want a tue eclair-like consistency.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
0 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

Shannon M.

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Rochester, New York, USA

Living In: Provo, Utah, USA

My Profile | Cooks I Like | Reviews
Photos | Recipes | Blog

Reviewed: Jan. 6, 2009

this is a pretty good dessert. i would suggest breaking the graham crackers into smaller pieces for a more bite size dessert. i also omitted the chocolate frosting, but rather but a bit of the pudding on top and garnished it with whipped cream from a can. i also put small chocolate chips on the sides (both white and milk chocolate). this added a nice touch. also, if you use whipped cream from a can in the pudding itself, it comes out just fine. just mix it up completely.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
0 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

mgfood

My Profile | Cooks I Like | Reviews
Photos | Recipes | Blog

Reviewed: Dec. 1, 2008

Super easy and really good. The pistachio gives it more flavor than the original eclair dessert I've had.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
0 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

Stefanie

My Profile | Cooks I Like | Reviews
Photos | Recipes | Blog

Reviewed: Mar. 24, 2008

This dessert is a three-four as written but OFCOURSE it had potential so I took it to another level. I used two boxes of the pistachio pudding mix to enhance the flavor..one box barely tasted like pistachio. I also used half milk/half heavy cream when making the pudding. Such a richer flavor. I finely chopped some pistachios and added those into the pudding. I prefer homemade whipped cream opposed to cool whip so I did 2 cups heavy cream, 2/3 cup conf sugar and a squirt of vanilla and whipped that for 5 minutes and folded it into the pudding. People just LOVED it..but I do feel as did my happy eaters..that the chocolate topping wasn't necessary and kinda took away from the great flavors the pistachio and graham craker offered. Next time(yes there will be) I will just top with some fresh whipped cream. Do make a day ahead of time so the graham crackers get nice and soft.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
9 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

cookiequeen

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Brewster, New York, USA

Living In: Dover, New York, USA

My Profile | Cooks I Like | Reviews
Photos | Recipes | Blog

Reviewed: Mar. 16, 2008

Great recipe! I only gave it 4 stars as I love pistachio pudding but using one pkg of vanilla diluted the pistachio flavor. Next time I make the recipe I will only use pistachio pudding

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
4 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

ADSIMONS

Cooking Level: Intermediate

My Profile | Cooks I Like | Reviews
Photos | Recipes | Blog

Reviewed: Dec. 23, 2007

This dessert is the best! Every time I make it, people always rave about it and ask for the recipie. It's good when you first make it, but gets even better after sitting overnight. Plus, it's super easy to make! I highly recommend it!

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
0 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

marybeth1583

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Living In: Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA

My Profile | Cooks I Like | Reviews
Photos | Recipes | Blog

Reviewed: Oct. 22, 2007

Extremely easy to prepare. The whole family just thought this was the greatest!

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
0 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

SLIMPICKINGS

My Profile | Cooks I Like | Reviews
Photos | Recipes | Blog

Reviewed: Sep. 26, 2007

I was not very pleased with this at all! I don't know what I did different from everyone else but it certainly didn't set-up well enough to be served like the picture. We had to spoon it out so it was just a big glob on the plate. Tasted really good but certainly not eye appealing. Not a recipe I will try again for sure.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
0 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

Carol Sue

Cooking Level: Professional

Home Town: Redmond, Oregon, USA

Living In: The Dalles, Oregon, USA

My Profile | Cooks I Like | Reviews
Photos | Recipes | Blog

Reviewed: Sep. 18, 2007

I'm sure this would have turned out better if I would've remembered to fold the cool whip into it. For some reason I forgot that step, and was wondering why there wasn't much filling to spread onto the graham crackers. So it ended up just being pudding between graham crackers, with frosting on the top, but it tastes ok. Next time I'll have to remember the cool whip! :o)

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
0 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

Jody D.

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Cheyenne, Wyoming, USA

Living In: Dover, Delaware, USA

My Profile | Cooks I Like | Reviews
Photos | Recipes | Blog

Reviewed: Aug. 25, 2007

simple, but still a big hit with the in-laws. used lemon pudding instead (personal preference).

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
3 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

Patty

My Profile | Cooks I Like | Reviews
Photos | Recipes | Blog

Reviewed: Jul. 3, 2007

Wonderful recipe. I take this into offices that I cook for and they absolutely love it!!! Easy to make and you can freeze it and thaw out right before serving and it takes wonderful!!!

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
3 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

Rachelle Ball

My Profile | Cooks I Like | Reviews
Photos | Recipes | Blog

Reviewed: Apr. 17, 2007

Yummmmmmmmmmm!!!!!! I knew we would like this dessert because our whole family loves pistachio everything! I did make a couple of minor changes that most certainly improved this recipe: 1) I always substitute real whipped cream for 'frozen whipped topping', and 2) I used chocolate ganach (equal parts melted chocolate and heavy cream mixed together and cooled) instead of 'canned chocolate frosting'. Additional comments - A) The recipe calls for a whole box of graham crackers, but it only took 2/3 of a box to fit my 9x13 pyrex dish. B) I served this dessert about 2 hours after I assembled it, which only allowed enough time for the for the graham crackers to partially soften. Leftovers the next day were much better once the graham crackers had time to completely soften. C) The pudding layers are pretty thick, next time I'm going to try using twice as many graham crackers to increase the layered look. This is a super yummy recipe if you like pistachio pudding!

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
14 users found this review helpful