Strawberry Shortcake Icebox Cake

I first heard about icebox cakes about 10 years ago. Or I should say my mom heard about them. She made one with oreos and my family devoured it. It was such a neat idea!

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If you haven’t heard of icebox cake, you’re in for an awesome summer life hack. An icebox cake is made with some sort of cookie or cracker, and layers of filling to soften the crunch. It all comes together to make a “cake” without ever having to turn on your oven in the summer heat. It’s refreshing and simple- two of the best things!

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I remember one birthday, mom even made on with Nutter Butter sandwich cookies since I am a peanut butter fanatic. The sky is the limit. Any cookie or cracker you like with any filling you desire. Cool whip, pudding, mousse, pie filling, etc.

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For some reason, icebox cakes didn’t get made for quite some time in our house. I had almost forgotten about them when mom mentioned that she wanted one. I was completely happy to make one, but I knew I wanted to do something mom had never done with hers- I wanted to use graham crackers.

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I looked online for some flavor ideas, but nothing really stood out to me. I ended up doing what I usually do and going with my instinct and winging it. It definitely paid off!

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I had made a stabilized vanilla whipped cream frosting with cream cheese and it was so awesome that I couldn’t wait to use it again. While it had been a frosting the first time I made it, I knew it would be a mind blowing filling for any icebox cake. I also wanted to give it an authentic strawberry flavor so I thought pie filling mixed in might be the perfect thing to add. A very nice strawberry shortcake theme was starting to form and I couldn’t wait to get everything assembled!

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As far as the layering goes, I took pictures to try and remember how I did everything, but it isn’t really a huge deal. Icebox cakes are next to impossible to mess up, so basically go with your heart. All the components are complete and tasty on their own, so this is the perfect way to experiment with flavors since it’s so forgiving.

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Another nice thing is the fact that it freezes well and it tastes just as awesome frozen in my humble opinion. In the off chance that leftovers did happen, it can be frozen and enjoyed for weeks.

There really is no downside to icebox cakes. Any summer get together needs one of these and you cane make so many different kinds that your friends and family will never get tired of icebox cakes!

Strawberry Shortcake Icebox Cake Recipe

• 2 (8oz.) blocks cream cheese, softened
• 2 c. powdered sugar
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 4 c. heavy whipping cream
• 1 box graham crackers
• 1 can strawberry pie filling

Credit for the frosting/mousse recipe goes to the Crazy for Crust blog. For their original recipe, click here https://www.crazyforcrust.com/whipped-cream-frosting/

For the strawberry mousse, beat together one 8oz. block of softened cream cheese along with 1 cup powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and 1/3 of the strawberry pie filling. Beat until thoroughly combined and set aside. Beat 2 cups of heavy whipping cream on medium high speed until soft peaks start to form. Gently fold in the strawberry mixture and finish beating the mouse until stiff peaks form. Now we’re ready to make the other filling!
For the vanilla frosting, beat together 8oz. softened cream cheese, 1 cup powdered sugar, and one teaspoon vanilla until thoroughly combined. Slowly pour in 2 cups of heavy cream while beating it in on a medium high sped. Beat together until stiff peaks form.

In a 9×13 casserole dish, spread a layer of the vanilla mousse just thick enough to cover the bottom. Swirl in half of the strawberry pie filling left in the can. Add a layer of graham crackers, breaking some to fit in the edges and corners. Do a layer of the strawberry mouse followed by another graham cracker layer and repeat one more time. This should use up all the strawberry mousse.

On the final layer of graham crackers, use the last of the vanilla mousse.

Drop the last of the strawberry pie filling on top of the vanilla layer in random dollops. Using a knife or fork, swirl the strawberry pie filling in. Take the last of the graham crackers and crush them into crumbs. Sprinkle the crumbs evenly over the tops and chill the dessert. It’s best if chilled overnight and enjoyed the next day.

If for some reason leftovers occur, this dessert is also delicious frozen!