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Prep time
45 minutes
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Cook time
6 hours
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makes
1 8-inch Cake
Author Notes
When we hit the first warm weeks of the year, the farmers market is packed with tables full of ripe ruby red strawberries! I love fruit of all kinds, but summer fruits have a special and very large place in my heart. Naturally, when you come home with your quarts of berries you can eat them as they come but I have something cold, creamy and buttery in mind, an icebox cake! The inspiration for this cake comes from the classic strawberry shortcake, which is ideally made with a biscuit and freshly made whipped cream.
Our icebox cake will mimic these flavors starting out with a luscious vanilla pudding base. Using instant vanilla pudding in the whipped cream ensures we’ll have a fluffy but sturdy foundation for our icebox cake. The stabilizers that turn cold milk into pudding in a matter of minutes, work with the whipping cream to create a foolproof whipped cream. The cream is then layered amidst buttery shortbread cookies. The shortbread cookies are then sandwiched with strawberry jam and thinly sliced strawberries. These wonderful layers repeat three times to form the ultimate summer dessert, a strawberry shortcake icebox cake. It is the perfect easy no-bake dessert that highlights the best of summer produce.
—Becca Jacobs
Ingredients
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1 packet
instant vanilla pudding (3.4 oz)
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1 pint
heavy whipping cream
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1/2 cup
half & half
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2 teaspoons
vanilla paste
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1/2 teaspoon
kosher salt
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33
thin round 3-inch shortbread cookies, I used Pepperidge Farm Farmhouse Thin And Crispy Butter Crisp Cookies
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2 cups
strawberry jam
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2 cups
strawberries, thinly sliced
Directions
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Whip instant pudding, heavy whipping cream, half & half, vanilla paste, and salt until stiff peaks form. This took about 8 minutes on medium in my stand mixer.
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Line an 8-inch springform pan with parchment paper or plastic wrap, leaving an overhang to allow you to easily transfer the cake when finished. Spread a tablespoon of the whipped cream mixture onto the prepared pan.
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Nestle butter cookies around the perimeter of the pan, pressing into the thin layer of whipped cream. You should be able to fit 5 cookies, and then break one in half to fit into the center. Place about a tablespoon of jam on each cookie followed by a slice of strawberry. Top each jammy cookie with another cookie to form a sandwich. Do the same with half pieces in the middle. Press down lightly on the tops of the sandwich cookies.
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Add about a 1 ¼ cup of whipped cream to the pan and spread evenly with the back of a spoon or an offset spatula. Take care to not move the sandwich cookies too much. You can ease the spreading of the whipped cream by heating up your spoon or spatula under hot water before spreading. When finished the tops of the butter cookies should just be visible and the surface smooth.
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Repeat steps 3 & 4 twice more for a total of 3 sandwiched cookie layers. Try to offset the cookies by placing the next layer of cookies on top of the gaps of the previous layer to make for a more structurally sound cake. When you have placed the final layer of cookies, top the cake with the remaining whipped cream. Cover the cake with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 6 to 12 hours before serving.
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Remove from the refrigerator, un-mold from the springform pan, and top with remaining strawberries.
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