Creamy, cool, light & refreshing! This root beer float pie is the perfect treat on those hot summer days. Only a few minutes of prep and then some freezer time and you have an easy, no bake pie that tastes EXACTLY like a root beer float!
As you can probably tell by this blog, I bake & cook A LOT! I am happy & stress free when I am in the kitchen making a treat for the kids, baking up a dessert, or making dinner. I am always making some sort of treat or snack for the kids to munch on as well.
Why do I tell you this?? Because sometimes there are things that I make that are way too good to not share right away with y’all! Like this pie! And trust me when I say that I have TONS of recipes waiting to share and this one was bumped to the top of that list!
I literally made this while my kids were getting their pajamas on. It took just minutes and then I stuck it in the freezer overnight. Easy!
We ate some the next day, maybe for breakfast or not 🙂 , because I was so anxious to see if it actually tastes like a root beer float. I was not let down. It’s frozen, creamy, cool, and tastes so light and refreshing.
You could also very easily make this pie low sugar/calories as well. Just use fat free cool whip, 1% or lower milk, diet root beer, and sugar free pudding mix. I can’t vouch for the taste or texture using ALL fat free/sugar free products, but it is nice to know that this could be a “health(ier)” summer dessert.
I will say that I prefer the full-fat regular versions in this pie. It adds a richness and creaminess that you just can’t get with the lite & low-calorie products.
Serve with some additional whipped cream and maraschino cherries. My husband is actually the only one that likes maraschino cherries so whenever I make this he is always the one who has to eat everyone’s cherry off their slice of pie!
I hope you love this frozen and creamy cool treat! Perfect way to cool off on a hot summer afternoon!
Creamy, cool, light & refreshing! This root beer float pie is the perfect treat on those hot summer days. Only a few minutes of prep and then some freezer time and you have an easy, no bake pie that tastes EXACTLY like a root beer float!
- 3/4 cup root beer
- 1/2 cup milk
- 2 tablespoons root beer concentrate
- 1 box (3 oz) instant vanilla pudding mix
- 1 tub (8 oz) Cool Whip, thawed
- 1 ready-to-use graham cracker or Nilla wafer crumb crust
- additional whipped cream & maraschino cherries, for garnish (optional)
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In large mixing bowl combine the root beer, milk, and root beer concentrate. Sprinkle the vanilla pudding mix over it. Whisk together for 2 minutes and let it sit for a few minutes to thicken up.
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Fold in the thawed cool whip and mix together until it is combined together well. Pour into the prepared crumb crust and evenly spread it out.
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Cover with enclosed lid and place in the freezer for at least 8 hours, preferably overnight. Eat & serve straight from the freezer. Store any leftovers in the freezer.
Do not prepare the Instant Pudding Mix! Just sprinkle the dry powder straight from the box over the liquids as called for in the recipe.
A lot of people are having trouble finding the root beer concentrate. You will find it by the other extracts (vanilla, almond, etc) at the grocery store. It comes in a small bottle and will say 'root beer concentrate' on the front. You must use this for the pie to taste like a root beer float. So don't try to substitute it with anything else.
I don't like the taste of this pie using the sugar-free pudding and diet root beer. If you want to use anything with reduced calorie, then I would use lite Cool Whip and like 1% milk. When I make this pie, I use whole milk and regular Cool Whip. Use the low calorie options at your own discretion, as it may affect the texture/thickens of the finished product.
38 Comments
Carlee
July 30, 2015 at 9:34 am Oh yum! You have been killing me with all of your delicious treats lately!Together As Family
July 30, 2015 at 12:45 pm haha :) I know, I'm sorry! This one was just way too yummy to not post a.s.a.p!!Joanna @ Everyday Made Fresh
July 30, 2015 at 8:16 pm Yes!! This is exactly what I need at this moment. I love root beer floats and haven't had one in a very long time. And I love pie, so pair these two things together and I've got a major craving!Tammy Comstock
July 31, 2015 at 10:40 am I'm anxious to try this - love root beer floats!!Melissa
August 9, 2015 at 6:40 pm I can't find the root beer concentrateTogether As Family
August 9, 2015 at 8:40 pm Hi Melissa! Not every store sells it. I usually have to go to Walmart to find it. It is by the spices/extracts (like vanilla extract, etc). I had to go to 3 different stores before I finally found it. Good luck :) Thanks for stopping by and commenting!Denise
April 1, 2017 at 10:58 pm I tried this using the 1 box of pudding the big box is only 1.5 oz so used 2 boxes thickened up real fast not good so I will try using just 1.5 oz box. I will let you know how it goes. ThanksTogether As Family
April 2, 2017 at 12:23 pm It sounds like you may have used a sugar-free box of pudding?? The regular jello pudding has the 3.4 oz box. The smallest size. I've never made this pie with sugar free pudding so I am not sure if it would work out. It should work but like you mentioned, I would just do the one box of sugar-free pudding mix. I will clarify in the recipe. Thank you for your comment. I hope you enjoy this and that it works out for you.Jamie
April 19, 2017 at 12:41 am I just put mine in the freezer and it definitely wasn't the color in the picture! Ha ;) Do you think it will come out okay?Together As Family
April 19, 2017 at 12:30 pm I am sure it's fine. It's supposed to be a light tan color. The picture is probably slightly brighter/more white than it is in real life. I hope you love it!Jamie
April 20, 2017 at 12:30 am Thanks for the response! It came out okay. Flavor is good but it's a little bit icy . . . I was expecting it to be a little creamier. I wonder if I didn't thicken the pudding enough? Any ideas?Together As Family
April 20, 2017 at 4:05 pm You got it right. If you let it sit out for some time it will be creamier. It is supposed to be a icy type texture which is why it goes in the freezer overnight. I also always use whole milk to mix pudding. If you did use a lower % milk that could make it not as thick and creamy. Or if you used a box of sugar-free pudding that could also make it less creamy. So sorry it was not what you were expecting! :)Jayme
April 24, 2017 at 5:24 pm I had trouble getting my root beer, milk, extract and pudding to thicken at all - so when i finally added the cool whip in, it still felt pretty liquidy and I'm nervous about it turning out to be one big ice block. I used 2% milk bc we don't keep whole milk typically, but I didn't think it would make it so thin.Together As Family
April 26, 2017 at 10:45 pm 2% should be fine to use. It's been several months since I made this last but I know that it will be fine once it's frozen overnight. The pudding mixture will not be super thick like traditional pudding when you add milk to it. I hope it turned out ok :)Kristi
May 6, 2017 at 10:23 pm I just made this tonight for tomorrow's Sunday dinner!!! It looked so good, I just had to try it myself!!!200 Cheap and Easy No Bake Desserts - Prudent Penny Pincher
May 11, 2017 at 12:36 pm […] Root Beer Float Pie from Together as Family […]Richard Hooker
May 22, 2017 at 1:49 pm If you are looking for that midnite brown color that you associate with root beer, you can purchase brown coloring gel or powder at cake specialty stores. If you do a lot of baking, like me, you can use caramel coloring that is used in soda. It is what makes root beer and cola that deep brown.Together As Family
May 22, 2017 at 3:29 pm Thank you for the suggestion. That's a great idea. The very light color of this pie I think throws some people off sometimes.Katie DeCosse
August 6, 2017 at 7:42 am I am not a fan of root beer so I am a poor judge of flavor so I fed it to my husband! He liked it but thought that 2 T of root beer concentrate was too much. After sampling it myself I agree and am glad I did a test run before serving it to my card club! I will either use just 1 T of root beer concentrate and am wondering if you meant 2 tsp of root beer extract? Otherwise it turned out very well; nice consistency and easy to make! Thank you!Together As Family
August 10, 2017 at 2:26 pm The 2 tablespoons is correct. You could always reduce that amount if you make this again. Not sure that the pie will actually taste like root beer with less as I've never tried that. But then again it might be just fine with less concentrate. Thank you for visiting the blog. Sorry it did not turn out...Suzanne Marzano
August 30, 2017 at 6:12 pm The pie is perfect. Especially for my picky son and grandsons who are root beer fanatics. I found that using the root beer flavoring sold at my cake decorating store gave the best flavor. I also splurged and used half and half, the second time I made it. Really gave it the ice cream float flavor.Together As Family
September 1, 2017 at 4:52 pm I'll have to look for that root beer flavoring. I've never seen that. And yes, the higher fat content milk you use the better :) I use whole milk but half-n-half sounds amazing in this pie. I'll try that next time.Jackie Reed
September 17, 2017 at 6:40 pm I wished you said what size pie shell to get,my was the small size so i could only use half of it!Together As Family
September 18, 2017 at 4:40 pm Oh I'm sorry. I have only ever seen the one size in the store. I don't have one here but it's the standard size graham cracker crust that you buy at the store. I'll have to get the size next time I am at the store.heather nykiforuk
October 2, 2017 at 9:37 am When you saw root beer concentrate do u mean extract? In Canada we gave a company called Watkins. They sell various flavors of extracts. Wondering if I would use their root beer extract? But 2 tbsp might be a bit strong? Thanks.Together As Family
October 3, 2017 at 8:51 pm I just looked in my pantry and mine says 'root beer concentrate'. It's actually the Watkins brand that you mentioned. If you are using extract then yes it would be a lot less than 2 tablespoons.heather nykiforuk
October 4, 2017 at 10:23 am Thanks for response. I checked and mine says imitation extract. So perhaps one tsp. My apologies for spelling errors in previous question! I did not proof read before sending. I look forward to trying this recipe.Together As Family
October 5, 2017 at 1:53 pm You can also just taste it before you add it into the pie shell too. Add more of you can't taste the root beer flavor enough.Nancy
January 25, 2018 at 11:03 pm Where do you get root beer concentrate?Together As Family
January 29, 2018 at 5:04 pm You will find it by the other extracts and the spices, in the baking aisle. It comes in a small bottle just like the vanilla extract and almond extracts do.Brian McGovern
April 10, 2018 at 5:16 pm Made this the other day with a homemade graham cracker crust and whipped cream topping. Had to buy the Kool Whip but had everything else on hand. Everyone in the family loved it. Thank you.Bob Waxon
July 22, 2018 at 6:44 pm Hi: I would like to use sugar free pudding because my daughter is diebetic and trying to cut down on sugar. Did you ever try this recipe with sugar free pudding? BobTogether As Family
July 24, 2018 at 10:36 pm I have never tried it but I think it would be fine. I have had readers comment (on another pie recipe that uses instant pudding mix) that they have successfully used sugar-free instant pudding with great results. I hope that helps.Cindy Plaster
September 29, 2018 at 9:56 am I made this! I love root beer, the 2 Tbsp. Of extract was way too much. Are you sure it wasn’t suppose to be 2 tsp? Will make again sometime but with lots less extract. You can get the extract at Walmart.Together As Family
October 2, 2018 at 1:31 pm I always use 2 tablespoons. But yes, the amount of extract can be reduced depending on preference. Some say this pie has no root beer flavor while others say it does. So use less if that's what you prefer and it will turn out just fine.Janice Camacho
October 8, 2018 at 2:55 pm 2 Tablespoons of root beer extract is too much, I made it using the 2 tablespoons as stated in the recipe and it was inedible. I tried it again using 2 Teasoons of the extract and it was perfect!Lisa
April 20, 2019 at 11:00 pm Do you think I could make real whipped cream as opposed to Cool Whip? We are not big Cool Whip fans. Thanks!Together As Family
April 22, 2019 at 3:21 pm Yes, that would work fine. An 8 oz Cool Whip tub is equal to 1 cup heavy whipping cream + 2-3 tablespoons powdered sugar. Beat that together until stiff peaks form.