This No-Bake Lemon Icebox Pie is made with sweetened condensed milk, cream cheese and fresh lemons.
It's a delicious, make-ahead dessert that takes less than 10 minutes to put together. The perfect pie for lemon lovers and lazy bakers!
Lemon Icebox Pie is a classic, no-bake pie recipe that is a very popular spring and summer dessert. The graham cracker crust tastes amazing paired with a smooth and creamy filling that has the perfect amount of lemon flavor. It's super quick and easy to make and it will become one of your favorite lemon recipes!
How to make a no-bake lemon icebox pie from scratch
This is one of the easiest pies you'll ever make thanks to a pre-made 9" graham cracker crust. These crusts come in their own little tray and you can use the plastic cover to keep your pie protected while it's in the fridge.
To make the lemon icebox pie filling, use an electric mixer to blend the cream cheese until smooth. This will help to ensure there are no lumps in the filling. Add the sweetened condensed milk, lemon juice and lemon zest and continue to beat the mixture until completely smooth and creamy. (step 1)
Pour the filling into the pie crust and use a spatula to smooth out the top. Cover the pie with the plastic lid and place in the fridge to chill for at least 2 hours before serving. (step 2)
Top the pie with dollops of cool whip or homemade whipped cream. (step 3) Serve this pie ice cold right out of the fridge!
Tips for making the best lemon icebox pie
- Fat-free cream cheese or full fat cream cheese both work well in this recipe. The fat-free cream cheese gives this lemon icebox pie more of a sherbet taste and feel.
- Make sure the cream cheese is at room temperature before mixing in order to get a smooth filling.
- I recommend using Philadelphia Cream Cheese and Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk for this recipe because I prefer the taste and consistency of these products. At room temperature, the name brand cream cheese seems to be easier to blend with less lumps versus the store-brands I've tried. (this is not a sponsored post!)
- Fresh lemon juice is best but, if you can't find fresh lemons, bottled lemon juice works just fine. I've tested this recipe with fresh lemon juice and bottled lemon juice and no one could tell the difference!
- A pre-made graham cracker crust make this even easier to put together but you can always make a homemade graham cracker crust like the one in this Easy Cheesecake Recipe.
- Make this dessert up to 2 days ahead of time. Cover with the plastic cover that came with the crust or use plastic wrap. Leave in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve.
- This pie can be frozen for up to 3 months.
- A food processor or stand mixer can also be used to make the lemon pie filling.
More dessert recipes to try:
Did you make this No Bake Lemon Icebox Pie recipe? Let me know how it turned out by ★★★★★ RATING this recipe and leave a comment below!!
No-Bake Lemon Icebox Pie
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Ingredients
- 1 (9") graham cracker crust
- 8 oz. cream cheese (room temperature)
- 14 oz. (1 can) sweetened condensed milk
- ½ cup fresh lemon juice (5-6 lemons depending on size)
- zest of two lemons
Instructions
- Place the cream cheese into a mixing bowl and use an electric mixer to blend until smooth and creamy. Add the sweetened condensed milk, lemon juice and lemon zest and blend again until the ingredients are fully incorporated and completely smooth.
- Pour the filling into the pre-made graham cracker pie crust, smooth the top and chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours to set.
- Top with cool whip and serve cold.
Notes
- Fat-free cream cheese can be used in place of full-fat cream cheese. The fat-free version gives this lemon icebox pie more of a sherbet taste and feel. Using fat free cream cheese and fat free condensed milk will bring the calories down to 187 per slice.
- Make sure the cream cheese is at room temperature before mixing in order to get a smooth filling.
- Bottled lemon juice can be used if you can't find fresh lemons. I tested the recipe with both options and my taste testers could NOT tell the difference.
- Make this dessert up to 2 days ahead of time. Store covered in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve. This pie can be stored covered in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- This pie can be frozen for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
This recipe is from Amy in the Kitchen. All images and content are copyright protected. Please do not use my images or republish this recipe without prior permission. Thank you.
This recipe was originally published in June 2018 and updated with new photos and expert tips in April 2019.
Regina Pitts says
Easy and wonderful
Samantha says
This is a WONDERFUL recipe. We used to drive 30 minutes to another town to get one. Dont have to now. Worth every ingredient.....❣
Kathy says
So easy and wonderful flavor!!!!
Carole A Roper says
It is so easy to make and it Delicious! I keep making it over and over. Great Summer Pie.
Quicia says
This turned out perfect. I was able to get just over 1/2 cup of lemon juice from 4 lemons. Thank you for sharing.
Mike says
I'm a guy, not especially a "cook", but I love lemon icebox pie and had a bad hankering for one. This recipe looked easy enough even for me, and it was! I added some extra lemon juice and zest cause I love lemony deserts, and gosh did it turn out good!
Michelle oliver says
The pie was to liquid. I went exactly by the recipe. It seemed to have to much condensed milk. Do you have any suggestions to make it set. And yes I left it 4 hours. Although it was super delicious. Eating with a spoon was not a problem.
Elisabeth says
I’m a fan of all things lemon and this is delicious!
I was searching for a lemon pie recipe that didn’t call for half a dozen egg yolks, so this was clutch for my hankering for lemon pie. Thank you!
Maria G. says
Hi Amy! I'm a Texas native living in Richmond, Virginia and I can't get the idea of an icebox pie featuring *grapefruit* out of my head. I know grapefruit has a different flavor profile and lower acidity than lemons but would be interested to hear your suggestions if I were to try it! Thanks!!
Amy Duska says
I think it sounds pretty good! I would just replace the lemon juice with grapefruit juice.
Rebecca says
I’m not sure what I did wrong, but the pie was super runny and very tart (not sweet at all). I followed the directions exactly and let chill in the fridge about 8 hours. 🙁
Amy Duska says
Hi Rebecca, I'm not sure what could have gone wrong. Are you sure you used sweetened condensed milk and not evaporated milk? Sweetened condensed milk is very thick and very sweet.
Jodi says
This caught my eye in not having to do cheese cake the old fashion way. OMG OMG delish full of flavor. I love lemon desserts and this is over the top. Wish I could eat right away but it has to be refrigerated a good while. Was worth the wait, wanted to eat the hole pie by myself but had to share. It’s a keeper.
Karen Davis says
I use two 8 oz packages of cream cheese. 1 can of sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup of fresh squeezed lemon juice. I dont like the grated peel in my pie. It sort of reminds me of finding seeds.. how ever I do drop a little lemon extract into the mix for the tart flavor.
Yvette says
The bottled lemon juice left a subtle after taste; perhaps it was the brand i used-otherwise this recipe is a keeper!
Felicia says
I think all bottled lemon juice leaves an aftertaste. It's the way they prices the fruit to get the juice. Can never go wrong when juicing your own lemons though.
Sonia Atkinson says
So delicious. One of my favorites.
Sharon B says
Can you use frozen lemonade instead of or in addition to actual lemon juice? And if so, how much to use? Thanks, Sharon
Amy Duska says
Hi Sharon, I think the frozen lemonade would make the pie way too sweet because of the condensed milk!
RayeAnn says
I have made this recipe for years except I use 1/3
Cup lemon juice. I put cool whip over the whole top of the pie. This is a favorite at my house. So easy to make.
ELISE says
HOW DO YOU GET THE PIE TO SET? MINE COMES OUT LIKE A BANANA PUDDING CONSISTENCY.
Amy Duska says
How long did you allow it to set up in the fridge?
Shauna says
I’ve always wondered if I could use bottled lemon juice. Thanks for testing it so we don’t have to!
Amy Duska says
I had to eat A LOT of lemon pie to get this recipe right LOL! You're very welcome!
Anne says
The lemon flavor is perfection! I literally could not stop eating this pie!
Amy Duska says
Hi Anne! I had the same problem LOL!
Fran says
Lemon dreaminess!! Yummy!
Amy Duska says
So creamy and dreamy ... I agree!
Ana says
Everyone loved this! Definitely making this for my next party.
Amy Duska says
It's definitely a keeper! 🙂