Strawberry Icebox Cake

5 from 1 vote

Layered with fresh strawberries, graham cracker cookies, and a rich vanilla whipped cream, it's light, refreshing, and 100% made from scratch, this no-bake strawberry icebox cake is the perfect dessert for a warm spring or summer day!

Prep Time15

Chilling time4

Total Time4 15

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings:

Calories: 398kcal

Author: Katalin Nagy

Equipment

Ingredients

Strawberry Icebox Cake

1½ sleeve Graham cracker 200g
450 g Strawberries fresh, sliced

Mascarpone Stabilized Whipped Cream

460 g Heavy cream 36% fat content, cold
150 g Mascarpone 41% fat content, cold
60 g Powdered sugar sifted
½ teaspoon Vanilla extract

Decoration

Strawberries
Freezed dried strawberries

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

Start with slicing the strawberries, making each slice even.
Prepare your loaf tin by lining it with aluminum foil or cling film to make it easier to remove the icebox cake later.
Place very cold 36% fat heavy cream and cold 41% fat mascarpone into a mixing bowl. Add sifted powdered sugar and whip with an electric hand mixer for 2-3 minutes, until fluffy.

Assembling

Since you're assembling the layers upside down, in your tin, it should go: whipped cream, graham cracker, strawberry, whipped cream, graham cracker, strawberry, whipped cream, graham cracker, strawberry, whipped cream, and finally, graham cracker.
Spread the first layer of whipped cream (¼ of the total cream) on the bottom of the pan. Then, add a single layer of graham crackers (¼ of the total graham crackers), cutting some to fit the gaps. Next, add a layer of sliced strawberries (⅓ of the total strawberries).
Repeat the layers, finishing with a layer of graham crackers.
Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least four hours or overnight. The crackers will become cake-like over this time.
Freezing the cake for about 30 minutes before turning it upside down and removing it from the tin makes it easier to take out and slice.
Decorate with more whipped cream, fresh strawberries and freezed-dried strawberries.
Enjoy it fresh, store any leftovers refrigerated for 1-2 days.

Notes

Ingredient notes:

Measure your ingredients with a digital scale for accuracy.
Mascarpone is used to add extra stability to the whipped cream frosting. If you're in a pinch, you can make it without the mascarpone as well.
Both the mascarpone and the heavy cream need to be high in fat. The low-fat versions won't whip up correctly because they contain more water.
Try to cut the strawberries into thin, identical sizes for the easiest assembly.

Technique notes:

Chantilly cream (whipped cream) is very easy to overwhip. When whipping, stop as soon as the mixture has reached a fluffy consistency (this will take 2-3 minutes) and early stiff peaks. It won't get stiffer after this point. In fact, if you overbeat it, it will only get runnier, and then it will break.
Make sure to chill the cake! Letting it sit in the fridge for a minimum of 4 hours changes the texture from a crunchy graham cracker dessert to a smooth, creamy icebox cake.

Nutrition