Moon Pie Cake
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You will be over the moon about this Moon Pie cake! It’s a refreshing refrigerator summer cake recipe with multiple layers, starting with soft Moon Pies, then creamy vanilla pudding, sweet caramel syrup, fresh banana slices, and whipped topping.
There aren’t many snacks as synonymous with the South as a Moon Pie. If you have no idea what a Moon Pie is, you’re in for a treat! Chattanooga Bakery has made these little treats since 1917. They include a marshmallow filling sandwiched between two graham cracker cookies with a flavored coating. The five main flavors are banana, strawberry, chocolate, vanilla, and salted caramel. Plus, during , you can get orange and coconut flavors too.
With the center, they’re similar to a (here’s my homemade whoopie pie recipe with instead of ). Traditionally, they were accompanied by an RC Cola and this was called “the working man’s lunch” because they were cheap, filling, and gave hardworking men the energy to get back to it. Moon Pies make many things awesome including childhood. So I thought hey, let’s make a Moon Pie cake recipe! I totally made this recipe up as I went along but it turned out awesome!
Which flavor to choose…
Now, I am using banana-flavored Moon Pies because they are my favorite (closely followed by vanilla and chocolate). Any flavor you want works perfectly well in this cake, so go with whatever cranks yer tractor. This is a no-bake cake with multiple layers. We start with the Moon Pie pieces, add the pudding, and then refrigerate. Then we add caramel syrup, banana slices, whipping cream, and more caramel because why not?
This Moon Pie cake recipe is so easy to make and a great refrigerator cake for your next gathering. It’s a surprisingly light-tasting dessert that isn’t as kill-you-sweet as you think it is, but oh my goodness is it good! The flavors complement each other perfectly and you keep going back for just one. more. bite.
If you like this, try my caramel banana pie recipe, Homemade Banana Pudding, Banana Pecan Bread, or Banana Crumb Cake next.
Recipe Ingredients
- Moon Pies
- Bananas
- Caramel syrup
- Cook & Serve Vanilla Pudding (here’s my homemade pudding recipe if you prefer)
- Whipped topping
- Cherries (optional garnish)
Helpful Kitchen Tool
How to Make Moon Pie Cake
To start with, unwrap six or seven Moon Pies (A box contains six but it takes about 7 to fill the bottom of my 9×13 dish) and cut them into four strips each like this.
Arrange all of those strips, cut side up, in a baking dish.
Cook your pudding according to the package directions.
Pour it over the Moon Pies.
Aww, look at ’em. All comfy cozy, relaxing in a pudding bath.
Life is good for y’all, isn’t it?
Now cover this with foil and refrigerate it until it is cold.
I just made it in the evening and let it sit in the fridge overnight.
And the next day…
Take your caramel and do a generous zigzag over the Moon Pies.
Slice bananas on top of the caramel.
Now take another Moon Pie and cut it into smaller bite-sized pieces.
Then cover the cake with the entire tub of whipped topping.
Voila!
Zig some more caramel zags on top and sprinkle with the little Moon Pie pieces.
Okay, so I didn’t sprinkle. I placed. Do what your gut tells ya here. Either one still gives you a Moon Pie cake in the end and this puppy is FABULOUS!
Now grab your spatula…
Look at all of those layers!
And dig in. Enjoy!
Storage
Store leftovers covered in plastic wrap or in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Because of the whipped topping, I don’t recommend freezing.
Recipe Notes
- You can use any flavor of Moon Pie, just make sure you get the regular size. If you aren’t familiar with them, they have minis, double-deckers, and I think even triple-deckers. You could use the double and triple-deckers if you like and it will take fewer to make this, but if you go with minis it is gonna take a whole lotta Moon Pies!
- Adapt this recipe to suit you and your favorite flavor as well. For example, if you use chocolate Moon Pies with that delicious marshmallow fluff and chocolate coating, use chocolate sauce instead.
Check out these other delicious refrigerator cake recipes:
Ingredients
- 8 Moon pies pick your favorite
- 16 oz whipped topping one tub
- 5 oz vanilla pudding cook and serve
- 5 bananas
- 12 oz caramel syrup 1 bottle
Instructions
- Cut 7 Moon Pies into four strips. Place the strips, cut side up, in the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish or cake pan.8 Moon pies
- Prepare pudding according to package directions and pour it over the Moon Pies while still warm. Cover dish with foil and refrigerate until cold.5 oz vanilla pudding
- Top the Moon Pies with a generous drizzling of caramel sauce. Slice bananas on top, spread whipped topping over these, and then finish with another generous drizzling of caramel.16 oz whipped topping, 12 oz caramel syrup, 5 bananas
- Chop up the remaining Moon Pie into bite-sized pieces and scatter pieces on top. Cover again and refrigerate until ready to serve (can serve immediately but gets better after an hour in the fridge).
Nutrition
“Be happy. It’s one way of being wise.”
~Sidonie Gabrielle Colette
Oh my word!! I’m not a big Moon Pie person (may have to change that) however my hubby is. This is one I will be making for hubby and for the family BBQ in October. Thank you for a new twist on an old time southern favorite banana pudding. Thank You!!
I hope everyone enjoys it Kathy!! At least I know the hubby will 🙂
Once I got robbed at gunpoint and the robber stole my car. It was found abandoned later that night. When I got it back, I opened the door and found a smashed MOON PIE and an empty bottle of orange crush on the passenger seat. This was in Memphis Tn.
Oh my word! I am so glad you came out of that ok, how scary!!!
Hi Christy – Not all of us from the Golden State of California works in TV and Thank Goodness! The Entertainment Industry had made a lot of people very rich money-wise and very poor character-wise. It has been the ruin of many in many ways.
Anyway, I’ve never had a Moon Pie but my Missouri cousins LOVE them. And I didn’t know that they come in flavors. The next time I visit, I’m going to look for some!
If you ever come to San Diego, let me know, and I will share MY California with you. You see, I’m a second generation Californian. I know the best places to visit in my state and that doesn’t include LA’s TV land.
I will have to remember that!! Thanks for the offer!
As a little girl, I lived in Cochrane, Alabama (which was close to Aliceville, which was close to Eutaw, which was close to Tuscaloosa (finally a place someone will recognize). Our neighbor had farm hands and I would watch them at the General Store, purchase a Moon Pie and and RC cola (which they would sip out of the corner of their mouth. Being little, this intrigued me, so I asked my mother for a Moon Pie and an RC cola. On the front porch of our farmhouse, I proceeded to try my hand at imitating the farm hands. Needless to say, the RC ran all over the front of my dress and I never tried that again. The Moon Pie is another story. I have loved them ever since that day. I think they used to be the poor man’s snack, but ever so tasty. How nice to see them resurrected in your cake. Thanks, Christy for reviving a wonderful memory.
Hi Jane! I actually know where Cochrane is!!! Isn’t it funny the little things we remember? Now I am curious as to why they drank them out of the corner of their mouths. I will have to ask Mama is she knows.
Thanks for the nice reply, Christie. I would be interested to your Mama’s answer as to why the RC was drunk from the corner of the mouth. As a child, I thought that was so neat. (Of course, neat wasn’t a word used back then unless you were neat and orderly). So surprised you know where Cochrane is, but if anyone would know, it would be a true Alabama girl. HAVE A GREAT DAY!!! (:>)
Banana moon pie is my favorite, too! I would love to visit the factory in Chattanooga. I have tried a Salted Caramel moon pie, but I’ve gotta stick with the banana. I must try this recipe. 🙂
Oh, what memories of growing up in the mountains of Northeast GA! Hot summer days and a moonpie with a RC cola….I love your website, I feel right at home when I visit. Thank you for continuing to bring back such wonderful memories.
like the rating at the bottom. just noticed it today. i have made this with instant but think you are on the right track by using cooked. pinned and shared. <3 you to the MoonPie and back sunshine lady. photo of MoonPie frozen treats https://www.pinterest.com/pin/273312271113003260/
Thank you Barbara, love you too!!!