Eclair Cake - an easy no bake eclair cake recipe that is always a hit! (2024)

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4 hours hours 15 minutes minutes

Sweet Treat

Karly Campbell

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I’ve been making this no bake eclair cake since I was a kid! It’s such an easy recipe, but it’s always a big hit! This recipe was originally published in April 2010 and has been updated with new photos and a video. Enjoy!

Eclair Cake - an easy no bake eclair cake recipe that is always a hit! (1)

When I was in high school I decided to learn to speak French. I signed up for French class and I proceeded to learn how to say, well, not a lot.

I can easily say “I don’t know” and “Where’s the beef?” Other than that, I don’t know much French. That probably has something to do with how often I skipped class in favor of a long lunch break.

Even back then, food was important to me. Even cafeteria food.

Our school had the best chicken sandwiches, baked potatoes, and salad bar around. Seriously. I sometimes dream about those chicken sandwiches.

Eclair Cake - an easy no bake eclair cake recipe that is always a hit! (2)

Anyway, French class wasn’t high on my list of priorities, except for the one or two times a year when we had a food day.

Each student had to bring in enough food for the rest of the class and the food had to be, you guessed it, French food.

And, no, our teacher wouldn’t allow us to bring in French fries from McDonald’s. I asked.

Each food day, I made this same chocolate eclair cake. It’s sort of an éclair, which is totally French, only this éclair is decidedly not French at all. It’s still tasty as all get out, though, and I still make it every now and again and pretend that I’m wandering around Paris asking people where’s the beef.

How to make no bake eclair cake:

Eclair Cake - an easy no bake eclair cake recipe that is always a hit! (3)

This starts with a couple boxes of pudding mix and some Cool Whip. I know I’ll get some flack from a few of you, but you know what? I don’t care. This recipe is perfectly easy and convenient and sometimes Cool Whip is delicious.

Whisk all that goodness together and you’ll have a nice thick mixture to spread between layers of graham crackers.

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The pudding does magical things to the graham crackers. The crackers soften up so perfectly and take on this amazing cake like texture. It’s seriously so good.

I like to soften up a jar of chocolate frosting in the microwave just enough to get it to a pourable consistency. Pour that frosting right over the top of your cake and spread it out.

This needs to chill in the fridge for a bit and then you’re ready to dig in!

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More easy dessert recipes you might like:

7 Layer Bars: These aren’t your traditional bars – they’re my chocolate peanut butter version!

Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies: No chilling the dough, ready in 20 minutes, thick chewy perfection!

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies: If you need a dose of chocolate, this is where to go.

Caramel Ritz Bars: These start with a bunch of Ritz crackers and some caramel sauce. Heaven.

Eclair Cake - an easy no bake eclair cake recipe that is always a hit! (6)

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Eclair Cake - an easy no bake eclair cake recipe that is always a hit! (7)

Recipe

Éclair Cake

I’ve been making this no bake eclair cake since I was a kid! It’s such an easy recipe, but it’s always a big hit!

3.62 from 306 votes

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Prep15 minutes minutes

Cook4 hours hours

Total4 hours hours 15 minutes minutes

Serves 16 servings

Ingredients

  • 1 package graham crackers
  • 2 packages 3.4 oz instant French Vanilla pudding mix
  • 8 ounces Cool Whip thawed
  • 3 cups milk
  • 16 ounces chocolate frosting

Instructions

  • In a large bowl, mix together the pudding mix, Cool Whip, and milk. Beat well.

  • Arrange graham crackers in a single layer on the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish.

  • Pour half of the pudding mixture over the graham crackers.

  • Add another layer of graham crackers and pour remaining pudding on top.

  • Add the final layer of graham crackers and spread with chocolate frosting. You may need to soften the frosting up a bit in the microwave to help it spread easily.

  • Refrigerate for at least four hours before serving.

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 315kcal (16%)| Carbohydrates: 54g (18%)| Protein: 3g (6%)| Fat: 9g (14%)| Saturated Fat: 3g (19%)| Cholesterol: 6mg (2%)| Sodium: 326mg (14%)| Potassium: 178mg (5%)| Fiber: 1g (4%)| Sugar: 36g (40%)| Vitamin A: 100IU (2%)| Calcium: 89mg (9%)| Iron: 1.5mg (8%)

Author: Karly Campbell

Course:Dessert

Cuisine:American

Keyword:easy dessert recipes, kid-friendly recipes, no bake dessert recipes

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Eclair Cake - an easy no bake eclair cake recipe that is always a hit! (12)

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  1. Lori says

    Eclair Cake - an easy no bake eclair cake recipe that is always a hit! (13)
    Made this sugar free by using unsalted saltine crackers, sugar free vanilla pudding and frosting and cool whip. Divided in half and used 9×6 meal prep aluminum pans. This is my second time doing it this way. It taste just like an eclair, it’s especially good the second and third days, so yummy!!! Sharing this one with a neighbor who is sugar free. You should add the sugar free version and I love your recipes, have used alot of them?

    Reply

    • Karly says

      Sounds amazing! Never would have thought to use Saltines for this. Thanks for sharing, Lori.

      Reply

  2. Jeanie says

    EXCELLENT!!!

    Reply

  3. Stacey S. says

    Eclair Cake - an easy no bake eclair cake recipe that is always a hit! (14)
    My Mom back in the 1990’s made this all the time and she would make my hubby this ( when he was stationed at our navy base here) to take back to his barracks ,he lives it so much! I ‘m going to make this for a event in two weeks and for Christmas day. I might make a sugar free one for my day too in a smaller dish.

    Reply

    • Stacey S. says

      Dad, not day. Sure autocorrect on my kindle. Lol.

      Reply

    • Karly says

      So glad it’s such a hit with your family. We just love this recipe! 🙂

      Reply

  4. CJ007 says

    Eclair Cake - an easy no bake eclair cake recipe that is always a hit! (15)
    I did this in individual serving cups.. like a layered-ish thing. Any idea if it can be frozen? It sure would nice if it could. YUM!

    On another note, I posted a reply a few minutes ago to another comment, all my emojis we converted to question marks.. Lol, just to clarify any confusion because it sure made my comment seem very odd. #questinableemojis

    Reply

    • Karly says

      I think that it would freeze just fine, but I’ve never tried it so I can’t say for sure. 🙂

      As for the emoji thing…I have NO IDEA why the site does that. It lets me put them in the blog post, but not the comments. So weird!

      Reply

Older Comments

Eclair Cake - an easy no bake eclair cake recipe that is always a hit! (2024)

FAQs

What is eclair cake made of? ›

To make an éclair cake, simply top layers of graham crackers and creamy French vanilla pudding with a decadent homemade chocolate ganache before popping it into the fridge for a few hours to set. That's it!

What exactly is an éclair? ›

An éclair is a long French pastry made from choux pastry, filled with pastry cream or custard and dipped in fondant icing. The most popular éclair is probably the chocolate éclair, which is topped with chocolate fondant and filled with chocolate custard or pastry cream.

How many calories are in an eclair cake? ›

One serving of (3.5 oz / 100g) Eclair Cake has 215 calories (120 calories from fat). One serving has about 78mg cholesterol, so as tempting as it looks, do not indulge. 100g of Eclair Cake has 247mg sodium, 71mg potassium, 19.5g total carbohydrates (11.2g sugar) and about 5g protein.

What is éclair filling made of? ›

Assembling the Éclairs

Chantilly cream (French whipped cream for éclairs) – Simply beat together cream, vanilla, icing sugar (powdered sugar) and, if using the stabilised cream option which I highly recommend (see below), mascarpone as well until firm peaks form.

What is the filling of an éclair called? ›

Once cool, the pastry is filled with custard (crème pâtissière), whipped cream or chiboust cream, then iced with fondant icing. Other fillings include pistachio- and rum-flavoured custard, fruit-flavoured fillings, or chestnut purée.

Why are eclairs so expensive? ›

As Serious Eats reported, luxury eclairs are the result of French chefs facing competition, and putting their skills to the test, which explains the high-end fillings and intricate decoration. For now, the Maitre Choux versions are made in the tiny kitchen beneath the shop.

What does the French word éclair mean in English? ›

Translation of éclair – French–English dictionary

a flash of lightning. lightning [noun] a flash of electricity between clouds or from a cloud to earth during a storm, usually followed by thunder.

What is the origin of the éclair cake? ›

A classic French pastry, the invention of the éclair is credited to Marie-Antoine Carême, the same chef known for the croquembouche. Both desserts hinge on pâte à choux—fun fact, choux translates as “cabbage,” which is what the dough looks like when it bakes up, sort of.

How much sugar is in an eclair sweet? ›

Nutritional Information
Typical ValuesPer 100 gPer 1 sweet (7.2 g)
Carbohydrate71 g5.1 g
of which Sugars48 g3.4 g
Protein4.2 g0.3 g
Salt0.48 g0.03 g
5 more rows

Can chocolate eclairs be frozen? ›

Light and puffy eclairs might take several hours to make, but you can make them in advance and freeze them for later use. Like cream puffs, eclairs are made with choux pastry, but are filled with pastry cream and topped with rich chocolate ganache.

How many carbs are in an eclair dessert? ›

Cream Puff, Eclair, Custard Or Cream Filled, Iced (1 eclair (5 in. x 2 in. x 1-3/4 in.)) contains 24.7g total carbs, 24.1g net carbs, 16g fat, 6.5g protein, and 267 calories.

What kind of pastry is a classic éclair made from? ›

Classic Eclairs. Light and crisp golden brown shells made with French choux pastry encase smooth vanilla pastry cream in these Classic Eclairs that are finished with a rich chocolate ganache. They are a delicious French treat, always a crowd pleaser, and easier to make at home than you might think!

Is an éclair a chocolate or sweet? ›

Cadbury Eclairs: Cadbury milk chocolate encased in a chewy caramel. Launched 1965. Cadbury Eclairs Orange Twist: Orange flavour Cadbury milk chocolate encased in a chewy caramel.

What's the difference between cream puff and éclair? ›

The main differences between the three include the shape and serving method. Eclairs: Oblong choux pastry filled with cream and topped with a glaze or icing. Cream Puffs: Round choux pastry puffs filled with pastry cream and topped with icing or dusted with powdered sugar.

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