23 Easy Pie Recipes for Low-Effort, High-Reward Desserts
Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise—easy pie recipes should only require a few simple ingredients and minimal hands-on time to become desserts fit for a holiday or dinner-party table. Even if you enjoy the process of cutting butter into dough, rolling it out, and fussing over a neatly latticed top, sometimes you just need something a little more relaxed.
Not in the mood to make a pie crust this time? Opt for store-bought (Note that store-bought crusts will cook faster than homemade ones; if yours browns before the filling is ready, cover lightly with aluminum foil). Short on time to blind bake? Some fruit pie recipes skip that step altogether. Don’t want to turn on the oven? Fridge- and freezer-friendly lemon icebox pie and chocolate pie keep the experience oh-so-chill.
What makes for an easy pie recipe, you ask? It’s all subjective, but the selections below are narrowed down by a few key factors:
- None of them uses more than 10 ingredients (excluding a homemade crust, which we said you could buy pre-made or make ahead and stash in the freezer), plus salt and optional toppings like whipped cream or ice cream.
- None has more than one cooked element.
- Recipes should keep the equipment to a minimum.
- The time spent cooking should be minimal, though we can’t help it if you have to tell yourself to be patient with the cooling, chilling, or baking time.
Now, onto our easiest pie recipes.
Photo by Travis Rainey, Food Styling by Jesse Szewczyk3/23Shoofly Pie
Shoofly pie rolls the elements of a tart, pie, and crumb cake into one buttery, sticky delight. Likely named for the now-gone brand of Shoofly molasses, this Pennsylvania Dutch staple is believed to have sustained families in the winter when fresh fruits were scarce—but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy a slice anytime you darn well please.
Photo by Travis Rainey, Prop styling by Linden Elstran, Food styling by Rebecca Jurkevich4/23Lemon Icebox Pie
When you just can’t bring yourself to fuss over a Lemon Meringue Pie, opt for this no-bake lemon icebox pie. It’s close to a key lime pie recipe (acid, sweetened condensed milk, graham cracker crust) but with a lemon filling.
Photo by Elizabeth Coetzee, Food Styling by Rebecca Jurkevich6/23Vinegar Pie
If you love chess pie, try its punchier cousin. The two bear similarities, but vinegar pie notably swaps out cornmeal for flour and uses apple cider vinegar to achieve its signature tanginess.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Stevie Stewart7/23Blueberry Pie
If you don’t want to blind bake a pie crust (understandable), opt for a fruit pie. (The long bake time is your insurance policy against a soggy bottom.) Crown each slice with a scoop of vanilla ice cream when it’s time to serve.
Photo by Elizabeth Coetzee, Food Styling by Mira Evnine8/23Classic Pumpkin Pie
Conveniently, the crown jewel of the Thanksgiving dessert table is also one of the easiest to make. You’ll want to use canned pumpkin here (not to be confused with canned pumpkin pie filling) so that you can control the balance of sugar and spices. If you’re partial to the holiday’s other orange-hued dessert, check out our sweet potato pie recipe.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Kaitlin Wayne9/23Chocolate Pie
We’ll leave this one to an anonymous reader: “This is the best pie I’ve ever had or made. It is now a holiday must have and several of my kids prefer it to a birthday cake. Great for grown ups too, made it for my sister’s 40th and it was a toss up as to whether she liked seeing Adele in NYC or coming home to this pie. MAKE this pie, EAT this pie, REPEAT as often as necessary.”
Photo by Erin Scott10/23Sour Cherry Pot Pies
Individual pot pies are ideal for when you want dessert, but don’t want to share. (We feel this way often.) Feeling more benevolent? Bake a large-format cherry pie instead.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Kaitlin Wayne12/23Buttermilk Pie
It doesn’t get much simpler than a classic custard pie. This version is flavored with tangy buttermilk, lemon zest and juice, and vanilla. The only fuss? Blind-baking the pie crust—follow our foolproof method and it’ll be a breeze.
Photo by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Liberty Fennell13/23Sour Cherry Pie
First time volunteering to bring a homemade pie to the potluck? No one will guess you raided the frozen foods aisle for pie crusts and sour cherries when they see this beautifully bronzed pie, shimmering with sugar.
Photograph by Rana Duzyol, Food Styling by Jesse Szewczyk, Prop Styling by Marina Bevilacqua14/23Triple Citrus Creamsicle Pie
Think of this as a hybrid between cheesecake and a citrus curd pie. Both the zest and juice of lemons, limes, and oranges give lift to the cream cheese pie filling—and the jewel-toned top elevates the simple preparation, to boot.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, food styling by Rhoda Boone15/23Our Favorite Key Lime Pie
A hint of fresh lemon juice is the secret to our favorite version of this Florida classic. We prefer it with homemade whipped cream to balance the sweet, tart filling, but you can also use a store-bought alternative.
Photo by Noah Fecks. ©The Twisted Soul Cookbook: Modern Soul Food with Global Flavors by Deborah VanTrece, Rizzoli New York, 2021.17/23Chocolate Buttermilk Pie
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Alex Brannian, Food Styling by Ali Nardi18/23Our Favorite Apple Pie
Spiced apples cloaked in an all-butter crust? What’s not to love? But this particular apple pie recipe is particularly lovable—it’s one of four favorite pie recipes overall—because it skips the fussy step of precooking the apples.
Tina Rupp19/23Nutella Pie
Beginners, this no-bake pie is for you: Combine Nutella and mascarpone, fill a store-bought crust (or make your own cookie crust from crushed Oreos), and chill. Come serving time, shower it with chopped hazelnuts.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Anna Stockwell20/233-Ingredient Caramel Apple Hand Pies
Consider these quick and easy hand pies a cross between a caramel apple and a flaky apple turnover. If you prefer the flavors of peach pie, strawberry pie, or even savory fillings—also in an easily portable form—then check out our other favorite hand pie recipes.
