Blueberry Delight (aka Blueberry Lush Dessert) is a summertime favorite made with a no-bake cheesecake-style filling over a graham cracker crust, and topped with blueberries and whipped cream. It’s fruity, refreshing, and fun, and it’s near impossible to resist a second slice!
Blueberry season gives us all the feels. We just love all the delicious things you can make with them! Some of our other favorite blueberry recipes are a Blueberry Custard Pie or Homemade Blueberry Pie (don’t ask me to choose a favorite because I can’t!), and Bakery Style Blueberry Muffins with Streusel Topping (these get rave reviews – you should check out the comments).
If you have never had blueberry delight before, this light, fruity dessert recipe is so gosh-darn delightful, it literally has the word “delight” in its name. You might even recognize some of the components of this dessert bearing striking similarities to my Arkansas possum pie, which is in the same family of no-bake desserts.
So what is blueberry delight?
You may know this type of dessert by one of its other names: blueberry lush, blueberry yum yum, or blueberry bliss. I’m partial to the “blueberry lush” name since it sounds like it’s a shortened form of the word “luscious”, which accurately describes this summer dessert concoction that is essentially a no-bake cheesecake made for a crowd!
Blueberry delight is an easy recipe for a no-bake layered dessert with a graham cracker crust, creamy no-bake cream cheese layer, flavorful fruit, chocolate or pudding layer (in this case blueberry pie filling), and whipped cream on top. It’s something of a hybrid of a cheesecake and a pie, except a bit fluffier and made in a rectangular baking dish.
It’s quick and easy to whip up, although blueberry delight does require at least 2 hours in the fridge to set up. We think it’s even better the next day, which is why it’s a great option to make ahead and take with you to a summery social function like a backyard cookout.
Letting it chill makes it more sliceable into squares, but even then this is a soft, creamy dessert so keep in mind that not every slice will be picture perfect. We find that’s part of the charm of this homey, unpretentious dessert!
How to make blueberry delight
I have nothing against taking a few shortcuts when it comes to this type of summery dessert. But each component of this recipe can be made from scratch, from the whipped cream to the pie filling. The choice is up to you!
Make the crust in a food processor or a blender
I love the addition of finely chopped pecans in the graham cracker crust here. They give it a wonderfully nutty, interesting flavor and texture. Add some melted butter and sugar, then press this into the bottom of a 9×13-inch baking dish.
You can either freeze or bake the crust to help it set up before moving on to the next layers. For this dessert to be truly no-bake, freezing the crust saves you the trouble of heating up your oven. But you can bake the crust in the oven instead for 8-10 minutes at 350°F for a slightly crispier, toasted texture and flavor. It’s delicious either way!
Make the creamy cream cheese layer
The next layer is essentially a no-bake cheesecake made slightly fluffier by mixing softened cream cheese and confectioners sugar with half of a 16-ounce container of thawed whipped topping, like Cool Whip. You can absolutely use 3 cups of homemade whipped cream in place of the Cool Whip here. Just whip 1 ½ cups of heavy cream with 3-4 tablespoons of powder sugar until soft peaks form. Spread the cream cheese mixture over the set crust, making sure to nudge the filling all the way to the edges of the pan.
Top with blueberry pie filling
This is an easy summer dessert, so canned blueberry pie filling certainly makes things simpler. But you can always make the blueberry pie filling from scratch using fresh or frozen blueberries. I will often double or triple batches of pie filling and store them in the freezer to have on hand for quick and easy summer desserts like this. You want to be careful not to disturb the other layers by spooning the pie filling over the top and spreading it into an even layer.
Whipped cream on top
Finally, spread the remaining whipped topping (another 8 ounces) over the blueberry layer, sprinkle with a few chopped pecans for garnish, then pop the whole thing in the fridge for 2+ hours or overnight.
If you are going the real whipped cream route, I recommend holding off on this final layer until right before serving. Real whipped cream isn’t stable like Cool Whip is and will melt in on itself overnight, so I would hold off adding that until shortly before serving.
Blueberry Delight Variations
The above approach is the classic way of making blueberry delight, but the recipe is easily adaptable to your tastes and what you have on hand.
For the crust, you can leave out the nuts and use all graham crackers. Or use Biscoff cookies, Oreos, Nilla Wafers, Pecan Sandies, or other cookies for your crust for a different flavor experience!
And when it comes to the filling, you don’t have to limit yourself to just blueberries. Use any kind of pie filling like cherry, peach, raspberry, blackberry, strawberry, or apple can all be purchased premade. Or go with chocolate or lemon pudding!
With having all these options you will be making this dessert again and again!
More creamy, cool dessert recipes you’ll love
- No-Bake Chocolate Eclair Cake
- Raspberry Pretzel Salad
- Strawberry Pretzel Icebox Pie
- Lemon Icebox Cake
- Creamy Grape Salad
- Fresh Strawberry Pie
- Cottage Cheese Jello Salad
Did you make this recipe?
Let me know what you thought with a comment and rating below. You can also take a picture and tag me on Instagram @houseofnasheats or share it on the Pinterest pin so I can see.
Blueberry Delight
Ingredients
Crust
- 1 1/2 sleeves graham crackers 13-14 sheets
- 1 cup pecans
- 10 Tablespoons salted butter melted
- 4 Tablespoons granulated sugar
Filling
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar divided
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
- 5 cups blueberry pie filling two 21-ounce cans or one batch [homemade blueberry pie filling]
Topping
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
- 3-4 Tablespoons powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 Tablespoons chopped pecans for garnish
Instructions
- Process the graham crackers and pecans in a food processor (affiliate link) or blender until they are fine crumbs. Add the butter and sugar and process again to combine. Press into a 9×13-inch baking dish and freeze for 10 minutes while preparing the middle layer.1 ½ sleeves graham crackers, 1 cup pecans, 10 Tablespoons salted butter, 4 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- Beat cream cheese, vanilla and 1 cup of the powdered sugar in a medium bowl using an electric mixer until smooth. In another bowl, whip the cream and remaining ¼ cup of powdered sugar until soft peaks form, then add to the cream cheese mixture, beating until smooth. Spread over the crust, making sure to go all the way to the edges of the pan.8 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature, 1 ¼ cups powdered sugar, 1 ½ cups heavy cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Spoon the blueberry pie filling over the cream cheese layer.5 cups blueberry pie filling
- Chill in the fridge for 2+ hours or overnight to set up.
- Beat the remaining 1 ½ cups of heavy cream with the powdered sugar and vanilla until soft peaks form. Spread over the blueberry layer and sprinkle with the chopped pecans.1 ½ cups heavy cream, 3-4 Tablespoons powdered sugar, 2 Tablespoons chopped pecans, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Slice and serve.
Notes
- If desired, bake the crust at 350°F for 8-10 minutes for a firmer texture, then cool completely before filling.
- I almost always make fresh whipped cream, but you can also substitute two 8-ounce containers of thawed Cool Whip topping in place of the whipped cream and powdered sugar. Use one container for the filling and the other for the topping. You can top the blueberry filling with the second container immediately before refrigerating for 2 hours since it is more stable than freshly whipped cream.
Nutrition
This post first appeared on Noshing with the Nolands where I am a contributor.
Is this double crackers or just the single squares?
Full size (so I guess 2 squares?) rectangular graham crackers.
How can I make it gluten free
I rarely make dessert for 15 so I successfully halved this recipe for 6. Instead of buying pecans which were a pricey $7 a bag, I substituted ground cinnamon in the crust and to decorate the top, I scattered fresh blueberries. These were the only changes I made…. it was otherwise perfect. A delicious velvety cream dessert loved by all!
yummy