For the next few months – let’s just call the refrigerator the new oven, and the grill the new stovetop. Really, unless you’re asking me to fry baby pies – I really want nothing to do with the ovenstove until maybe Thanksgiving.
Listen… it’s going to be ok. We’ll have pudding, and popsicles (oh my gosh I made pickle juice popsicles YOU GUYS!), and we’ll have the dessert freezer section at Trader Joe’s, and have banana bonbons, and you’re damn right we’ll have cake – ICEBOX CAKE.
The good news here is that cookies, especially graham crackers, can act very much like cake when plied with enough whipped cream and cream cheese. They only ask for enough time in the refrigerator to soften to cake and once there – graham crackers will soldier on for days as cake in the refrigerator.
Here’s to heatless cake in the summer. We livin the sweet life – we really are!
Here’s what you’ll need to for this very under the radar, supremely delicious cake:
• Graham crackers when layered with creams become soft and subtle and surprisingly cake-like. I’m learning trying to preach this from the mountain tops!
• Sweetened condensed milk, heavy cream, and cream cheese – the tell-tale signs of a tres leches cake, with a twist. We’re using cream cheese as a dairy, as a leche in this recipe. I sincerely appreciate you cutting me some slack here. The cake really is worth it.
• Ground cinnamon and almond extract to round out the flavor of the sweetened creams, as one does.
• Maraschino cherries and maybe a few sprinkles because we’re nothing if not festive, ok?
This recipe starts with very softened cream cheese – the kind that comes in a brick from the grocery store. And when we say softened cream cheese we mean very softened cream cheese. Any sort of chill on the cream cheese means lumps in our cake filling and we’re not here for that. Nope.
My secret? I keep the cream cheese in its foil package and place it in a cold oven to come to room temperature and even just a bit warm. That’s the ticket. Not a lump in sight.
To the cream cheese add the sweetened condensed milk. It’s like a sweet, syrupy cream and if you don’t know – it’s some of the best stuff ever. Once you know, it’s nothing but trouble from here on out.
A dash of almond extract (I love the stuff) and a dash of ground cinnamon (I also love this stuff) will add depth beyond the sweetness.
The whipped cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk are smooth and the consistency of pudding. We’ll lighten the mixture with soft unsweetened whipped cream. Totally spoonable. The whipped cream is folded by the scant cupful to the more dense cream cheese mixture.
A careful stir will increase the volume of the cream cheese mixture. Fluffy is what we’re going for.
We’ll reserve about 1 1/2 cups of the plain unsweetened whipped cream to pipe across the top of the cake , whipping in just a bit of powdered sugar.
I used an 8-inch square in pan for this cake. 9-inch square would also be just fine.
Do your best to piece together whole graham crackers and quarter size graham pieces. We just wanter to cover the bottom of the pan as fully as possible.
Spread a layer of the the creamy cream cheese mixture to the first layer of graham crackers (I used a scant 1 cup) and if you have an offset spatula (and even if you don’t) spread the cream as evenly as possible across the top layer.
And you guessed it – another layer of graham crackers followed by another layer of the lightened cream cheese mixture.
We’ll repeat this process with five layers of graham cracker cookies if your pan will allow it.
Finish with a layer of the cream cheese mixture and place in the refrigerator for some time – 4 hours is great and overnight is just fine too!
The unsweetened whipped cream we set aside for piping is sweetened lightly with powdered sugar and spooned into a piping bag fitting with whatever small star tip you fancy.
And piped into stars around the border and in thirds across the top of the cake, creating nine squares.
Nine squares that we’ll commemorate with maraschino cherries because it feels right.
Keep the cake refrigerated until it’s time to serve. Slice confidently into nine square and marvel at the tenderness of the graham crackers and the sweetness of the cream filling. It’s a simple delight and taste just like a lightly spiced tres leches cake – no oven, very little fuss.
I can’t even tell you how many times my computer has tried to autocorrect leches to leeches. Not the same thing AT ALL! I said what I said computer!
Happy Summer sweet friends! Here’s to you!
Ingredients
- 1 (14 ounce) box graham crackers
- 1 (8 ounce) brick of cream cheese, very well softened
- 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract
- pinch of sea salt
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
- maraschino cherries and sprinkles
Instructions
- Start by breaking 4 or 5 graham crackers into quarters. Keep the remainder in whole, long cookie pieces.
- We'll use a 8-inch square pan for this recipe. A 9-inch pan is also fine - you'll just use more cookies.
- On either size square pan you'll notice that the sides arch out a bit as the pan get taller, making more real estate space for more cookies and filling. As you place cookies, just see what fits. It's a puzzle!
- Place the cream cheese in a medium sized bowl. Make sure the cream cheese has rested at room temperature for a few hours, ensuring that it has no chill and is very soft. Beat with electric hand beaters until lightly fluffed and smooth.
- Add the sweetened condensed milk, cinnamon, almond extract, and salt. Beat until very well incorporated and smooth. You don't want to see any bits of cream cheese, so beat on high until they're thoroughly combined.
- In a separate large bowl, use the electric hand beaters to blend the heavy cream to soft peaks. You want the cream to hold some shape and feel aerated but still be very smooth and spreadable.
- Start to incorporate the unsweetened cream into the cream cheese mixture by spooning just under a cup of whipped cream into the cream cheese bowl. Fold with a spatula to combine. No need to super stir this together. We're trying to lighten the cream cheese mixture and keep the whipped cream fluffy.
- Continue to add the whipped cream to the cream cheese mixture in batches, being sure to reserve about 1 1/2 cups of whipped cream in the bowl - we'll use this for the piping.
- Layer graham crackers across the bottom of the pan to cover the bottom.
- Spoon in a scant cup of the whipped cream + cream cheese mixture and spread to smooth.
- Layer more graham crackers across the cream layer and again smooth more whipped cream + cream cheese mixture. Repeat this process, with five layers of graham crackers and ending with the a final layer of whipped cream + cream cheese.
- Allow to rest in the fridge for at least 4 hours, or overnight to soften.
- Add the powdered sugar to the remaining 1 1/2 cup of whipped cream and beat lightly to firm up.
- Before serving, spoon the sweetened cream into a piping bag and make a border around the edges and across the center to create nine squares. Place a cherry in each square, a few sprinkles across the top of the cake, and keep chilled until ready to serve.
- Cake will last in the fridge for up to four days. Enjoy chilled!
Sophia
This is such a brilliant idea. I first read this post when you first published it and now saw the recent link bag. And I think it’s probably where the idea started brewing for me to make tres leches cake with ladyfingers … because what are ladyfingers if not made from a fat-free sponge? I tried this for Cinco de Mayo this year and it worked a treat! So good and so easy and great to use up any ladyfingers from the last time you made Tiramisu!
Kristen
First off, the recipe is perfect. Delicious in every way.
I recently found myself craving it again when my husband was out of town, and didn’t want to make the full size dish, knowing full well that I’d eat the entire thing. I also didn’t have most of the ingredients. So, the version went like this: ramekin, graham crackers, cinnamon, vanilla, maple syrup and kefir. Cherries on top. Oh my! Turned out so well, it’s now a regular in our house.
Marianne Porter
My, that was good. Shared with the neighbors and they will always be in my debt.
Ulla
Made this for my birthday a few days ago (as the heatwave here in Finland made me want to avoid turning on the oven at all costs). So good! Will definitely make again. Thanks for a great recipe! :)
Julie
Made this for a friends gathering and the pan was licked clean. Delicious. I just mixed all of the whipped cream in and called it a day.
joythebaker
I like your style!
Kelly Gresh
I don’t have cherries and I don’t have piping to make it look fancy. do you think I can drizzle caramel over the top without changing the flavor too much?
joythebaker
I’d say go for it!
Kristen
Perfect timing! I make something in the tres leches theme every year for a friend’s birthday. Made it yesterday, ate it tonight. Reminded me of carrot cake. Totally in love! Excellent recipe, Joy!
Victoria
See, its recipes like these that make me wonder why the heck I didn’t bring things like graham crackers back to the UK when I visited NY a couple months ago beacuse all we use in situations like these are digestive biscuits or gingersnaps. Also I failed to get the good US sprinkles and that’s just a bloody tragedy. One perfect slice of icebox cake for me please
http://victoriaspongepeasepudding.com
Christina
I have also discovered sweetened condensed milk, since I am living in Mexico now and LA LECHERA is everywhere. I’ve been making many things with it, including no-bake cheesecake, no-churn ice cream and avocado pie. This one is next. Thanks.
Emily
I made this yesterday. It was SO good. My mom could not believe it was an icebox cake or that the “cake” was graham crackers. She said it was one of the best things she has ever had. I subbed vanilla for the almond extract and it was excellent. Thank you Joy, you do a wonderful job!!
Rachel
Thank you so much for sharing this perfect summer dessert! I used a 9×9 pan and only bought one box of graham crackers so I ended up with four layers and two extra graham crackers to shove in my face. :) The cake is even better today!
Jill Zimmerman
Delicious. Thank you for sharing a terrific — and easy — recipe!
Tracy
What a treat! I love icebox cake and this one is darling!
Christine
Thanks for this recipe and I like it because no bake and have ready in the fridge for a special occasion. However, can you reduce any of the high sugar content eg sweetened condensed milk???
Natalie
I love tres leches cake! This is such a creative idea making it as an icebox cake. Looks so delicious!
Laurie
Hi Joy! I love your recipes and I can’t wait to try this cake. However, could you please tell us how to make pickle juice popsicles ? I have a pregnant niece who has loved pickles since she was old enough to ask for them. I think that pickle juice popsicles might have been invented just for her! Thanks for all the great recipes. You rock!
Maureen
I’m probably one of the few, but I’d turn on the oven to avoid the cream cheese! Thank heavens I have a friend who makes Tres Leches on the regular so I don’t have to! (Speaking of which, I should call her…)
The Modern Proper
You are too funny! But I love it. The oven really is hard to turn on when it is 90+ degrees outside and your air conditioner is cranked up and you are still hot! This recipe looks fun and easy!
Kate
I think I might be the only girl on the planet who doesn’t love the flavor of almond, esp from extract. Do you think vanilla extract would work just as well?
joythebaker
I think vanilla would be just fine!
Ramona
Oh my goodness! I will make this! Thank you so much!
Kristin
This cake looks delicious but please tell us more about PICKLE POPSICLES?!
Kat
So beautiful!!!
Paula
Are those… jordan almonds I spy in the ramekin by the cherries and sprinkles?? Did you skip the step where you direct us to keep a handful nearby for mid-assembly snacking?
Patty
Would chocolate graham crackers work?
joythebaker
Yes I do think so!
Taste of France
This reminds me a lot of tiramisu, though tiramisu has lots of eggs (with the whites whipped up instead of whipped cream). This recipe sounds safer than tiramisu for a hot day (no raw eggs). And I bet you could make this with lady fingers instead of graham crackers.
This is a great idea that I will put to use tomorrow for some dinner guests. Too hot to cook! And no A/C in these parts.
Cindy
Damn you auto correct!! Love this idea for an ice box cake. They are a lost art. Thanks for resurrecting them in such a delicious way.
Donna c
Oh, if I could make this before I go to work! Yum!! Thanks for sharing!
joythebaker
You absolutely could!
Rena
Wow, such a simple recipe! Looks so yummy, thanks for sharing!
xx from Bavaria/Germany, Rena
http://www.dressedwithsoul.com