This Old Fashioned Cherry Delight Dessert is so delicious you simply can’t have just one helping. Not too sweet, and simple with ingredients, who can resist a graham cracker crust topped with pecan studded cream cheese, Cool Whip and cherry pie filling. Easy! Let’s take a look.
Don’t miss my recipe for the best Cherry Pie. It’s a recipe from the Culinary Institute and one that will wow your crowd.
What is Cherry Delight?
This Cherry Delight Dessert is a popular old fashioned layered cherry dessert made with a butter Graham Cracker Crust, a cheesecake filling of cream cheese and pecans, cherry pie filling and cool whip.
The combination of tart cherries, savory cream cheese and a whipped topping that’s not too sweet, makes this a irresistible flavor combination.
I’ve been making this recipe since the 60’s or 70’s. It’s a recipe that my mom made on a regular basis and it’s been a family favorite for decades.
I make this recipe year round, but since it’s a red dessert it’s a great recipe for Christmas or Valentine’s Day.
Ingredients You’ll Need
This super easy Cherry Delight recipe is made with just a few simple ingredients.
- Whole Graham Crackers
- White and Brown Sugar
- Cream Cheese
- Pecans
- Cool Whip
- Cherry Pie Filling
Ingredient Substitutions
- Purchase pre-ground graham crackers on the baking aisle.
- Switch it up. Make this dessert using Blueberry Pie Filling
How To Make Cherry Delight, It’s Easy
Cherry Delight Dessert is one of those “oldies-but-goodie” recipe that probably came off of either a Cool Whip container or a package of Cream Cheese. And It’s really so, so, so very good.
The only baking part of this recipe is making the graham cracker crust. From that point, this is a no-bake dessert that everyone will love. And oh-so easy.
Let’s get started.
- Step 1: Use your hands to break up the crackers in a food processor.
- Step 2: Using the pulse function, grind the graham crackers into a consistent granulated state. Add the sugars and pulse to combine.
- Step 3: Add the melted butter and pulse until combined. Press the crust into a 9 x 9 casserole dish and bake at 375 degrees for 7 minutes.
- Step 4: In the meantime, using a fork, combine room temperature cream cheese with chopped pecans.
- Step 5: Place large dollops of cream cheese/pecan mix over the baked crust.
- Step 6: Using your index fingers, gently spread the mix over the graham cracker crust. Be gentle and patient. It will eventually cover the crust.
- Step 7: Use a small spatula to spread a healthy layer of cool whip over the layer of cream cheese.
- Step 8: Add the cherry pie filling on top of the layer of Cool Whip. Again, work gently as to not combine much of Cool Whip with the pie filling.
- Step 9: Top with another generous layer of Cool Whip and garnish with rough crushed Graham crackers. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
Common Questions About Cherry Delight
Yes. Simply double the recipe to feed a larger crowd.
Yes. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and then cover that tightly with foil. It will keep in the freezer for up to three months.
Tips For Success
- Crust: You can purchase pre-crushed graham crackers on the baking aisle to make a pie crust, but try making your own. Purchase a box of graham crackers, It’s easy to make using a food processor. Plus you’ll have extra crackers left over for snacks.
- Preparing Crust: When pressing the graham cracker crust into the pan, don’t pack it too tightly. This will cause it to harden and become hard to remove from the pan when ready to serve. Just press it into the pan until it’s well formed to the bottom.
- Cream Cheese: Allow an hour for the cream cheese to come to room temperature. You’ll really have problems combining it with the pecans and spreading it if you don’t.
- Cool Whip: Make sure the Cool Whip has completely thawed. Place it in the refrigerator for a 4-5 hours or leave it at room temperature. You can also remove the lid and place it in the microwave for 30 seconds. Important: Use the setting for defrost.
- Refrigerate: For best results, once assembled, make sure to refrigerate Cherry Delight for at least one hour before slicing. This will allow the dessert to set up a bit. An overnight rest in the refrigerator is best.
- Slicing: As with any cheesecake type dessert, use a sharp knife for slicing and serving. Each time you start a new slice, dip the knife in warm water and wipe clean with a paper towel. This will insure easy neater slices.
- Garnish: Top Cherry Delight with some crushed graham crackers, or even some shaved chocolate.
Storage
- Store Cherry Delight Dessert in the refrigerator covered tightly with plastic wrap. It holds up remarkably well, keeping for about 5 days.
I hope you give this old fashioned Cherry Delight Dessert recipe a try. It’s a wonderful crowd pleasing cherry cream cheese dessert that is bound to make you very popular.
More Luscious Dessert Recipes
And if your sweet tooth needs more ideas, don’t miss my Dessert Category. You’ll find lots of sweet treats, including the most popular on my site for Gelatina con Tres Leches, (Mexican Jello).
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Cherry Delight, Cream Cheese Cherry Dessert
Equipment
- 8 x 8 casserole pan
Ingredients
- For the Graham Cracker Crust
- 1 ½ cups Graham Cracker Crumbs 10 sheets of of Graham Crackers
- 2 Tablespoons sugar
- 2 Tablespoons Brown sugar
- 7 Tablespoons butter melted
- To Make The Dessert
- 8 ounces cream cheese room temperature
- ½ Cup pecans chopped
- 21 ounce Canned Cherry Pie Filling
- 8 ounce Cool Whip Original
Instructions
- In a food processor, grind the graham crackers into a consistent granulated state. Add the sugars and pulse to combine.
- In a microwave safe bowl, melt butter in the microwave in 15 second increments until melted. Add the melted butter to the graham cracker mix and pulse in the food processor until just combined.
- Press crust into a 8 x 8 square casserole pan. Bake at 375 degrees for 7 minutes. And then refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- In the meantime cream together cream cheese and pecans.
- Place dollops of the cream cheese on the graham cracker crust. Use index fingers to gently spread the mixture to cover the crust. Be gentle and patient, the cream cheese will eventually cover the crust.
- Spread one heaping cup of Cool Whip over the cream cheese mixture.
- Use a spatula to cover the Cool Whip with the Cherry Pie Filling. Again go slow, you don't want to combine the Cool Whip with the pie filling.
- Top with another heaping cup of Cool Whip. Garnish the top with with rough chopped Graham Crackers. I use my hands.
- Chill overnight.
Notes
- Crust: You can purchase pre-crushed graham crackers on the baking aisle to make a pie crust, but try making your own. Purchase a box of graham crackers, It’s easy to make using a food processor. Plus you’ll have extra crackers left over for snacks.
- Preparing Crust: When pressing the graham cracker crust into the pan, don’t pack it too tightly. This will cause it to harden and become hard to remove from the pan when ready to serve. Just press it into the pan until it’s well formed to the bottom.
- Cream Cheese: Allow an hour for the cream cheese to come to room temperature. You’ll really have problems combining it with the pecans and spreading it if you don’t.
- Cool Whip: Make sure the Cool Whip has completely thawed. Place it in the refrigerator for a 4-5 hours or leave it at room temperature. You can also remove the lid and place it in the microwave for 30 seconds. Important: Use the setting for defrost.
- Refrigerate: For best results, once assembled, make sure to refrigerate Cherry Delight for at least one hour before slicing. This will allow the dessert to set up a bit. An overnight rest in the refrigerator is best.
- Slicing: As with any cheesecake type dessert, use a sharp knife for slicing and serving. Each time you start a new slice, dip the knife in warm water and wipe clean with a paper towel. This will insure easy neater slices.
- Garnish: Top Cherry Delight with some crushed graham crackers, or even some shaved chocolate.
Nutrition
Cherry Delight Dessert …It’s what’s for the Holidays
Why Trust My Recipes? I am a Culinary School Graduate and a lifelong student of home cooking. I hope to inspire you try to cook as often as you can. I’ve been cooking for 50 years, and my recipes are tried and true tested and tested and then tested again before published. To read more take a look at my About Page.
reminds of my childhood. & simple to make.
So good!!! This is one of those summer desserts that you would enjoy eating in the middle of the night too by the refrigerator light.
Velva
We called it 4-layer chocolate pie. The pecan flour crust was one layer; cream cheese/powdered sugar blend was second; with chocolate fudge pudding, next, topped Cool Whip! Most requested dessert I make. I’ve tried to go with homemade pudding and whipped cream, but everyone prefers the original….but, adding a layer of cherry pie filling, topped with Cool Whip sounds wonderfully over-the-top wicked! May need to drop the powdered sugar.
Now this is the kind of dessert that Im talking about!
I grew up eating this dessert on special occasions. The only deviation was my parents used chocolate pudding (?) instead of the cherry pie filling. Either way, it’s delicious and extreme comfort food. ~ You’ll love the lights. I have three of them, except they don’t fit in the ‘Jimmy Rockford.’ I’ll occasionally go grab one from our (nearby) storage building and set it up outside. I’ve received some pretty interesting looks and comments from people walking by. I can only imagine that they think I’m odd. (And they’re right!) ~ Happy 2017 to you and yours.
Adam, now that you mention it, I’ve had this with chocolate pudding also. It’s all delicious and a blast from our past. Happy 2017 to you and your family.
I love a good set of lights. I have a set of 3 with translucent umbrellas but only use one of them for food photos. Now you get to play around with the best angles for your light. My standard is me shooting at 6 o’clock, the light at 10 o’clock and a white reflecting board at 4 o’clock.
1200 watts? Holy SMOKES you have a system, you aren’t messing around. Mine just uses 29 watt CFL bulbs.
Thanks for the positioning Chris, I’ll try the 6-10-4 Theory. I don’t know why it’s billed as 1200 watts. I’ve for four different bulbs that are around 80 each. Hopefully I can play around this weekend.
Mmm I love how simple this is, yet you know that with these ingredients it’s going to come together into a delicious dessert! The photos are looking good!
Simple and really good Joanne. As always thanks for stopping by and the comment.
I have a similar set from Cowboy studios.. it will change your life, lol!! Sometimes I shoot my food pics at 3am, no noise.. no kids, lol! I love this cherry treat my big sis makes it for Vday and I coull pretty much eat the ENTIRE pan, lol!! Happy holidays!
Right, I can tell it’s going to change my life…especially until I learn how to use them. Good grief, I thought this was going to be easy. 🙂
Aren’t those desserts the best! Sounds like you had a nice Christmas… Happy New Year!
I’ve got a couple oldie but goodie desserts like this. I love them and hardly make them. Happy New Year Karen.
I guess I must have been living under a rock because I have never had your dessert before. I’ll have to remedy that soon. What a wonderful gift…you can really see a difference in the photos. All of my photos are done at night and it is a real challenge to get a nice photo. By the time you think you might have a good shot, the food is cold.
Well maybe you just weren’t tuned into “Cool Whip”. Could have something to do with it. I grew up thinking that’s what whipped cream was. It wasn’t until my 20’s that I actually learned that you could actually whip cream to make the real stuff. 🙂
Well now you’ve done it . . . you’ll have the best photos out there, and you were already setting the bar pretty high! 🙂
Seriously, the lighting assist is the only way I got through my winter blogging last year. Mine is only a homemade job that Dana and I put together, but does it ever make a difference when it gets dark at 4:30!
Back to that delicious looking pie! Great recipe – I love those holiday goodies. And that adorable pie plate is the perfect pallatte. And that first photo? I could go on and on. Love, love, love that red rimmed plate and the reflection of the pie in the shiny fork. Gorgeous!
Well goodness, best photos out there? I don’t think so, but thanks for the compliment. I didn’t even notice the reflection until you said something! Thanks for pointing that out. I love that pie plate. As always, something that I drug home from my mom’s years ago. 🙂
Gots to love the lighting system! It’s amazing how many folks don’t realize that light is 90% of a picture. (Well, technically, it’s 100%.) Anyways, cheers and happy 2012!
I agree Steve. They’re not that easy to learn how to use. Will take practice. One little move of the tri-pod changes mood, color, etc.
This is one of the very first desserts I made 🙂 It still looks delicious! I bought myself a couple of umbrella lights before Christmas but haven’t had time to play with them yet.
Susan, I need lots of time to play with mine. Maybe this weekend.
I’ve always loved cherries, so my my mom used to make this for my birthday every christmas – great memories!
I’m not a dessert fan, so I like this because of the savory cream cheese …. and those cherries. 🙂
That’s what I call a terrific gift! I could surely use a lighting kit. I’ll have to put it on my birthday wish list. In the meantime, my husband’s birthday is next week, and your dessert is his all time favorite treat. I’ll be making this for him, but my pictures won’t be nearly as good. 🙂
Have a wonderful New Year!
Thanks Kristi, Happy New Year to you.
My mom used to make a similar dessert and it was always a family favorite. I’m looking forward to reading about your new lights, Lea Ann. That sure would make taking pictures easier in the winter. Happy New Year!
It will take some practice to learn how to use them. Happy New Year to you too Cathy.
Just about the time you thought you knew what you were doing, new lighting comes along. I am now struggling with learning to use mine too, but it will pay off in the end. You photo looks great and so does your recipe. I can’t wait to try it. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and yours!
I’ve used them twice now and I agree, it’s somewhat of a struggle. You’ve had yours longer, you’ll have to teach me. 🙂
Awesome pictures! This looks so so good. Congrats on the new lighting system!
Thanks Jane!
Very cool gift! My grandma makes this for Christmas EVERY SINGLE YEAR. Ever since I can remember. My grandpa and my mom will complain if she doesn’t…however, hers is always in a 9×13 pan. I like the look of it circular. 🙂 Hope you had a great Christmas 😀
The original recipe calls for double of what I’ve listed here and to be made in a 9 x 13 pan. I opt for a smaller amount for a pie plate. That way there’s not so much leftovers and my Holiday calorie count isn’t so out of this world. I love the stuff and can eat … eat… eat it.
Ivve had this or a similar dessert and really like it. Your shots look very good – maybe that’s what I need – I’m going to look into it.
Yup, that recipe is an oldie but goodie. I’m sure it made it’s rounds through the kitchens of America. Only the top photo is taken with the new lights, the bottom two are in daylight and the day before. Bob spent around $125.00. When I click on that website, I don’t see the exact set I have. Let me know if you want me to get you exact information.