Easy Graham Cracker Crust

This Easy Graham Cracker Crust recipe has only three ingredients!  This is a baked Graham Cracker Crust recipe to use with pies and can also be used with no-bake desserts where you like the crust to be a little sturdier. 

Easy Graham Cracker Crust Recipe

I can’t even tell you the last time I purchased a premade crust at the store. No judgements over here, they certainly have a purpose. However, homemade graham cracker crusts are so much better. They’re buttery and a little bit sweet and it only requires 3 ingredients. Plus I like to control the thickness of my crust- I love the crust, so a thicker one is always better in my opinion. 

If you’ve never attempted this before, I am here to teach you how to make the perfect graham cracker crust that can be uses for pies or cheesecakes. While this recipe is for a baked graham cracker crust, you can certainly use it for your no-bake desserts as well.

This recipe is for a standard 9-inch pie and can also be used with a springform pan (8 or 9-inch pan will work just fine). For more tips of making a crust in a no-bake pan, I suggest you check out my tutorial for no-bake crusts in a springform pan.

Just 3 Ingredients

• Graham cracker: My favorite are the regular honey graham crackers, but any flavor would work with this recipe
• Butter: Either salted or unsalted would work
• Brown sugar: you can use either granulated or brown sugar, but I prefer the taste of brown sugar myself. When baked, the sugar melts and helps to bind the crust together.

How many graham crackers do I need?

One box (14.4) ounces has three sleeves of crackers. Each sleeve has 9 sheets. Once you grind it into a fine crumb, it makes just shy on 1 ½ cups, which isn’t quite enough.

To get a full recipe for the crust, I recommend 10-11 sheets of graham crackers, but if you don’t want to open a second package for one or two extra sheets, just reduce the butter in this recipe by 1 tablespoon.

You can also skip this all together and just buy graham cracker crumbs.

How to Make a Graham Cracker Crust

1. Grind the graham crackers into a fine crumb using a food processor or blender.
2. Combine the ingredients in a medium-size bowl and mix thoroughly until crumbs are well coated. They will resemble coarse sand, but the crumbs should stick together when pressed between your fingers
3. Press the crumbs into the pan until densely packed. It’s helpful to use a measuring cup to press up against the sides of the crust. Be sure to pack the crust nice and tight.
4. Bake at 325°F for 8-10 minutes. Remove from oven and cool completely.

If you don’t have a food processor or blender, you can use a Ziploc bag and a heavy object like a rolling pin to smash the graham crackers. Try to achieve a fine crumb.

Once baked, the crust will have a nice crisp to it, and it will hold together once it’s sliced. It can be difficult to cleanly remove the first slice of any pie, but if you take a knife or angled spatula and gently slide it along the outside edge of the crust, it will help to loosen it up before you lift the slice out.

How to use this crust without baking it

You can use this recipe without baking it, but I recommend adding 1 additional tablespoon of butter and refrigerating or freezing the crust prior to using. This helps turn the butter back into a solid, and therefore it binds the crust together.
If you find the crust is too soggy, then add an additional ¼ cup of graham cracker crumbs.

Can I make this ahead of time?

Yes, this crust can be baked and cooled 1-2 days in advance. Cool completely, cover tightly with plastic wrap and store at room temperature.

Recipes to use with a graham cracker crust:

This can also be used with many of my no-bake desserts. Even though they are not baked, you can opt to bake the crust if you prefer a crunchier crust.

• Chocolate Pudding Pie
• Baileys Ice Cream Cake
• Nutella Marshmallow Pie
• Easy Strawberry Pie
• Pumpkin Mascarpone Cheesecake

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