Orange Creme Dessert is one of my older recipes which is also in The Twinkies Cookbook. Not only is it a great excuse to buy Twinkies (see if they're still as good as you remember), but a great way to please any family or friends who happen to love the flavor of Orange Creamsicle. I really want to make it again, but the only person in my family who loves this flavor is thousands of miles away, so you'll have to settle for these pictures.
Orange Creme Dessert Modifications
If you need to modify the fat content a bit, you can use Ladyfingers instead of Twinkies and, sugar free Jell-O product and light whipped topping. Good health in a dish, right? Speaking of which, you might want to make a half version in an 8 inch square dish. If this is the case, you'll only need 5 Twinkies and you won't need all the filling, though I recommend making the full amount and pouring what you want over the Twinkies. So that's today's orange and slightly retro dessert. If you served it to me at a hotel, I'd check out. But if you served it to me at a tailgate or a picnic, I'd ask for the recipe. Let me know if you try it.
Recipe
Orange Creme Dessert
Ingredients
- 10 Twinkies halved lengthwise
- 15 oz can of mandarin oranges - optional*
- 1 3- oz package orange Jell-O
- ½ cup boiling water
- 1 3.4 oz package instant vanilla pudding or French
- 1 ½ cups milk
- ½ cup French vanilla liquid coffee creamer
- 1 12 oz container non-dairy whipped topping, such as Cool Whip (big tub)
Instructions
- Arrange the Twinkies cut side up in a 13x9 inch baking dish.
- If using, lay some drained mandarin oranges over Twinkies.
- In a bowl, stir together the Jell-O and boiling water. When Jell-O is dissolved, put the mixture in the refrigerator to cool for 10 minutes. To hasten the process, drop in an ice cube - the extra liquid won't hurt anything.
- In a large bowl, beat together the pudding mix, milk and coffee creamer for 2 minutes or until slightly thickened. Add the orange Jell-O/water mixture to the pudding mixture and stir until smooth.
- Fold in two-thirds of the whipped topping. Spread the orange mixture (pour it, smooth it) over the cut Twinkies. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for 6-8 hours. Before serving, spread the remaining whipped topping over the top. Decorate thematically. *Try another fruit!
Joanna says
I made this a few days ago and I'm the only one in my house who likes it. My main problem was that I used vanilla ice cream instead of cool whip because I obviously can't read a recipe. haha I added marshmallows to the orange cream part though, but I think I just need to make this dessert the right way!
bethmckee1 says
Anna,
Made this for 4th of July BBQ. My husband was beyond happy. He loves twinkies and anything creamsicle! Most people who grew up eating and loving twinkies seem to just love this. It was a hit for this particular crowd. I also made one of the brownie recipes from your site. Best ever choc. brownies I think they were called. They were nice and fudgey. They were also a hit. I love the site and know I can always count on something delicious to come from the recipes.
LisaE says
Yum, this is really bringing back fond memories of the Creamsicle, which I haven't had since I was a kid. Anna, you may already know about this but there's an Italian flavoring sold through King Arthur Flour called Flori di Silicia, which is a combo of orange and vanilla. I've used it to flavor things like chocolate pudding and it's really good.
Anj says
You made me laugh out loud with the reference to St. Joseph Baby Aspirin -- I have flashbacks when I taste creamy orangy stuff. This looks nice and cool for a summer day though.
Anna says
Amela, I worry that talking about it is a jinx. There's a lot of secrecy involved, but I do love entering recipe contests and observing them. I wish I was into something a little less competitive and uncertain.....like scrapbooking.
Claire, I took this to my next door neighbor for critique. She loved it. Her only comment was that it would be nice if it was a little firmer. We both thought freezing might help. It's kind of a fun dessert to monkey around with. Hey, how about a banana version? Plain gelatin dissolved in 1/4 cup water plus banana flavored pudding. Just thought of that when I said monkey.
Debbi, it's interesting to see who raises their eyebrows over Orange Creme Dessert. In my circle of friends, people just say yum. I think even a purist could appreciate this because it's so creamsicle/retro tasting....one has to take it at face value.
Debbi says
This looks way cool. I want to serve this at my next party just to see how many people raise their eyebrows at me!
Claire says
Yum...you know, I bet this would be good frozen, too.