Icebox cakes have been around for decades. Everyone loves them! This strawberry icebox cake is made from whipped cream, graham crackers, and sliced strawberries. It couldn't be easier!
No-bake desserts are perfect for these hot summer months. You might also like our layered eclair dessert, angel food berry trifle, or our ice cream sandwich cake!
Icebox cakes have been around for decades. An icebox cake is a no-bake layered dessert often made with whipped cream, pudding, or condensed milk. I'm a huge classic strawberry shortcake fan, and this strawberry icebox cake is the easiest way to achieve those flavors without baking anything. This is my 8-year-old's favorite cake, and he's learned how to make it by himself, start to finish.
Why I Like This Recipe
- 3-Ingredients. Graham crackers, strawberries, and whipped cream. That's it!
- Comes together in 15 minutes. You can easily layer the entire cake and have it chilling in the refrigerator in under 15 minutes.
- Tastes even better on day 2. That's right! Just like my family's favorite brownie trifle recipe, this icebox cake is even better on day 2 after the graham crackers have had a chance to soak in some of the moisture from the cream and berries. It'll easily last up to 5 days in the refrigerator.
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🍓 Strawberry Icebox Cake Tips
- Make the icebox cake 6-8 hours before serving. Like I mentioned above, this cake is best after it's had time to chill. If you try to slice right into it, you'll have crunchy graham crackers with whipped cream and strawberries. Delicious, but not cake-like at all. Once the graham crackers soften, they are truly like layers of cake.
- Add the final layer of fruit RIGHT before serving. You can make everything in advance, but I highly recommend not adding the final layer of strawberries until right before serving. I do the same thing when I make old-fashioned banana cream pie to make sure the top layer of fruit is nice and fresh.
🥣 Recipe Ingredients
- Graham Crackers: These are the base of the entire cake. You can use whatever flavor of graham crackers you'd like. I prefer honey (plain) graham crackers.
- Strawberries: I prefer fresh sliced strawberries, but you can use frozen strawberries if you drain off the juice.
- Whipped Cream: to keep things simple, I use Cool-Whip, but homemade whipped cream would be delicious.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
👩🍳 How To Make Strawberry Icebox Cake
Step 1: Slice strawberries and open containers of whipped cream.
Step 2: Spread a thin layer of whipped cream (about ¼ of the container) across the bottom of your baking dish. A 9x13" dish is the perfect size for this dessert. Cover the whipped cream with a layer of graham crackers. Break them into sections if you need to make them fit better.
Step 3: Cover the graham crackers with the remaining whipped cream from that container. Cover the cream with a layer of sliced strawberries.
Step 4: Add another layer of graham crackers, followed by the second container of whipped cream. Then add a second layer of strawberries.
Step 5: Add a third layer of graham crackers, followed by the third container of whipped cream.
Step 6: Refrigerate your icebox cake for 6 hours. Add the final layer of strawberries before serving.
Strawberry Icebox Cake FAQs
Icebox cakes gained popularity back in the 1920s, before the days of refrigerators. Families would use iceboxes, essentially a chest with blocks of ice inside, to keep their perishables cold. We could call these cakes "refrigerator cakes" nowadays, but it doesn't quite have the same ring to it.
Soft fruits like strawberries, raspberries, peaches, and bananas work well in icebox cakes. A combination of fruit, like strawberries and blueberries, would be a fun patriotic dessert, similar to my angel food berry trifle.
Strawberry icebox cake should chill AT LEAST 6 hours. Preferably overnight. Remember, the longer the graham crackers chill, the softer they'll be, and that is what you want. You can easily make your icebox cake 24-48 hours in advance. It's a great make-ahead dessert.
More No-Bake Recipes To Make
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Strawberry Ice Box Cake
Ingredients
- 2 lbs strawberries sliced
- 3 8 oz. containers whipped topping fat-free is fine
- 1 box graham crackers
Instructions
- Open 1 container of whipped topping. Spread ¼ of it over the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish in a thin layer. Top with a layer of graham crackers.
- Spread remaining whipped cream from the first container over graham crackers.
- Add a layer of sliced strawberries over whipped cream (use ⅓ of the berries).
- Add another layer of graham crackers followed by another container of whipped topping spread over them.
- Add a second layer of sliced strawberries over the cream.
- Add a 3rd layer of graham crackers followed by the last container of whipped topping spread over them.
- Set the remaining strawberries aside (refrigerate). You'll use those later.
- Referigerate cake 6 hours.
- Top with remaining strawberries right before serving.
Notes
- Add the final layer of fruit RIGHT before serving. You can make everything in advance, but I highly recommend not adding the final layer of strawberries until right before serving to make sure the top layer of fruit is nice and fresh.
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