The No-Bake Vintage Cake That's Perfect For Hot Summer Days

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The last thing you want when the weather is hot is to turn on the oven and be in the kitchen baking. So what can you make on a sizzling summer day when you're craving something sweet and cake-y? An icebox cake is the convenient, tasty, no-bake solution. As a bonus, when you're really feeling the heat, this vintage treat is served chilled right from the fridge.

An icebox cake is made by layering and covering cookies with whipped cream and then refrigerating it. The cookies absorb moisture from the cream and soften to create a texture that's more like cake. A forerunner can be found 200 years ago in the charlotte, a French dessert made of ladyfingers layered with custard in a mold. An icebox cake with ladyfingers also appeared in "The Settlement Cookbook" in 1915. The dessert's rise truly began, however, with the advent of electric refrigerators in the 1920s. Icebox cakes were among the recipes in booklets manufacturers included with new refrigerators to highlight the appliance's uses.

Initially, icebox cakes were made with ladyfingers or sponge cake. But it was a recipe with chocolate cookies and homemade whipped cream that was on the Nabisco's Famous Chocolate Wafers box when they debuted in the 1920s that made the dessert well known. Nabisco's Famous Chocolate Refrigerator Roll was a hit, and icebox cakes' popularity grew, reaching their height in the 1950s and '60s. However, TikTokers today have discovered their own love for the simple dessert.

Nabisco unhappily surprised devotees of its iconic icebox cake recipe in 2023 when it quietly stopped producing its chocolate wafers after nearly 100 years. People have tried replicating the combination with substitutes including Oreo halves or Dewey's Bakery Brownie Crisp Cookie Thins. Tate's Double Chocolate Chip cookies are another possible option, as is any other store-bought or homemade thinnish, crunchy chocolate cookie. You can also use cookies like Nilla wafers, chocolate chip, gingersnaps, lemon, graham crackers, snickerdoodles, Biscoff, shortbread, or Nutter Butter halves. Choose crisp cookies for your cake, since soft cookies can get mushy and fall apart. 

The fun of icebox cakes is the unlimited variations you can create. Try flavoring the sweetened whipped cream with extracts (besides or in addition to vanilla) like mint, almond, or rum, or splash in a flavored liqueur. Make a mocha whipped cream with espresso powder and cocoa like Ina Garten does for her icebox chocolate cake. Be mindful of looking for the right whipped cream texture, so it is thick and creamy enough to support the cake — you can also boost the consistency with mascarpone or cream cheese. You can incorporate chunks of berries and stone fruit or swirl in chocolate, caramel, or strawberry sauce in the layers. Finish the cake with a drizzle of sauce on top or toppings like chocolate shavings, chopped nuts, or crumbled cookies.

Finally, there are also options for shaping your icebox cake. Make a layered circle using a round springform or cake pan, stack the cookies and whipped cream sideways for a roll like in Nabisco's famous recipe, or assemble it in a charming loaf pan.