My orange creamsicle Kool-Aid pie recipe is super easy! This no bake icebox pie is a great way to make a delicious, creamy, and refreshing dessert without turning on your oven or buying a lot ingredients. Although the base recipe only has 4 ingredients, my Parnell The Chef version adds just 2 more things to really take this dessert to the next level. If you want to learn how to make my updated version of this southern treat, keep reading!

What is a Kool-Aid Pie?

Even though Kool-Aid is a popular drink mix, it has many other uses as well. In southern states, many people use the drink powder to make frosting, cookies, ice cream…even pickles!

Kool-Aid drink mixes are unsweetened, so if you just add the drink mix to water without adding sugar, the resulting beverage will be very tart–probably too tart for most people to drink.

However, acidity helps thicken dairy products, as is the case with millionaire pie. By adding Kool-Aid mix (in this case orange) to sweetened condensed milk and Cool Whip, you can make a pie filling that thickens up on its own. Put this filling in a graham cracker crust, and you have a super easy icebox pie for summer.

Who Invented Kool-Aid Pie?

A Vintage Recipe

Like most foods, the origin of Kool-Aid Pie isn’t fully clear.

Although Kool-Aid drink mixes were introduced in 1927, it isn’t until 1974 that we have the first confirmed mentioned of a Kool-Aid pie in writing. According to a wideopeneasts.com article, Kool-Aid pie was mentioned in the Chicago Defender newspaper in 1974, but a South Carolina newspaper found some evidence that the pie may have existed as early as the 1950’s.

Social Media Rebirth

Even though the pie was likely somewhat forgotten towards the end of the 20th century, Kool Aid pie made a comeback in 2009 when the recipe went viral in southern states like Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee. The pie is still popular on Instagram and YouTube, so more and more people are learning about this delicious dessert.

I experimented with using Kool-Aid to make pies when I made my billionaire pie, so when I stumbled upon this recipe on YouTube, I was very curious. I wasn’t sure which flavor to use, but since I had heard that orange Kool-Aid pie was good, I decided to make it.

As I will explain later, my original intention was to make an orange pie, but the flavor turned out to be more like an orange creamsicle. Although it wasn’t what I had in mind originally, it was absolutely fantastic, so I want to share this recipe with others.

How to Make Orange Creamsicle Kool-Aid Pie

Orange Creamsicle Kool-Aid Pie Recipe — Kool-Aid pie is a vintage southern dessert that’s making a comeback, and the orange creamsicle version with my Parnell The Chef touch is fantastic.

Ingredients for the Filling

Like I said earlier in this article, making the filling is super easy. The base recipe calls for just a packet of orange Kool-Aid, a can of sweetened condensed milk, and a tub of Cool Whip. Although I’m sure your pie would be great with just those ingredients, I wanted to make the orange flavor stronger.

To give the vintage orange creamsicle Kool-Aid pie recipe a Parnell The Chef touch, I added:

2 tablespoons of orange juice – I used Minneola tangerine juice, but regular orange juice would be fine.
1 teaspoon orange zest – Zest has a lot of oils, so it really enhances the citrus flavor.
1/8 teaspoon salt – A pinch of salt helps to balance out flavors in desserts.
Red and Yellow food coloring – 6 drops of red + 6 drops of yellow – I wanted my pie filling to have a bright orange color to reflect the flavor.

In the video I suggest adding a combination of orange, lemon, and sugar to make a “substitute” Minneola orange juice, but honestly, regular navel juice and zest is fine.

With these few additions, I was able to really take this pie to the next level.

Mixing the Filling

When combining ingredients of different densities, it’s best to not stir them together normally. Instead, fold them together. Using a spatula or large spoon, dig down to the bottom of the bowl and lift upwards, turning in a half-circle motion.

By folding instead of stirring, you can incorporate a dense ingredient (sweetened condensed milk) and a lighter, airy ingredient (Cool Whip) without deflating the lighter one. Honestly, I think this recipe is very forgiving, and it’ll probably be OK if you stir normally, but it’s better to be on the safe side.

Graham Cracker Crust

After making the filling, pour it into a prepared graham cracker crust. Although I highly recommend my homemade graham cracker crust recipe, a storebought crust is fine. If you do decide to use a storebought crust, I recommend dusting the bottom with maybe a pinch of cinnamon to give it more flavor.

How Long to Chill Kool-Aid Pie in the Refrigerator?

Chill your orange creamsicle Kool-Aid pie in the refrigerator for a minimum of 4 hours to make sure that the flavors have time to marry and the pie cuts nicely. I chilled mine overnight to be on the safe side, but 4 hours should be fine.

If you’re not sure, touch the top: it the top is very sticky and wet, the pie will probably fall apart if you cut it. However, if it seems firm when you touch the filling slightly, it should be fine.

Also, just so you know, I did NOT cover my pie. Many storebought graham cracker crusts come with a plastic lid, but since my crust was homemade, I didn’t have a lid. Although you could wrap it in plastic, I didn’t think that chilling it uncovered negatively affected the pie.

Orange or Orange Creamsicle Kool-Aid Pie?

Orange Creamsicle Pie — Although I originally intended this to be an orange pie, the Cool Whip came through strong enough to make this an orange creamsicle pie.

When I took my first bite of this pie, I knew it was a great success. Although it was delicious…it wasn’t quite what I had expected.

My intention was to make an orange Kool-Aid pie, but this turned out to be more of an orange creamsicle Kool-Aid pie. I knew that this pie contained Cool Whip, so I was expected some level of creaminess…but honestly, I didn’t think that the Cool Whip flavor would come through so strongly.

Don’t get me wrong–this pie definitely had a strong orange flavor–but since the vanilla-infused creaminess of the Cool Whip was so strong, a better way to describe this flavor would be orange creamsicle.

Is that a bad thing? No, not in my opinion. I like orange creamsicle ice cream, so I loved this pie. However, if you’re looking for an icebox pie with a very strong orange flavor that dominates the dessert, this recipe isn’t for you

Variations of the Recipe

The base recipe for Kool-Aid pie can be made with any flavor of the drink mix, so I will have to make more pies in the future. I am especially interested in figuring out how I can add my “Parnell The Chef touch” to each vintage recipe.

In regards to orange creamsicle Kool-Aid pie, the only other version I found mentioned on the Internet contains cream cheese. I think that adding cream cheese would turns this into a cheesecake version, so that would definitely be good, too.

Possible Changes to the Recipe

Honestly, this orange creamsicle Kool-Aid pie was fantastic, so I wouldn’t change a thing. My original intention was to make an orange pie, so maybe I’ll try to come up with a more “orange” icebox pie recipe in the future.

However, if you make this pie as is, I’m sure that you and your family will love it.