Lemon Strawberry Icebox Cake Recipe

Lemon Strawberry Icebox Cake Recipe: Strawberry icebox cake is the best treat for spring or summer. With fresh strawberries, lemon curd, three layers of cream cheese whipped cream, and a layer of fried meringue on top, this no-bake dessert is a work of art. You can’t go wrong with this lemon meringue strawberry icebox cake mix.

Lemon Strawberry Icebox Cake Recipe

• This recipe is great for people who like ice box cakes, lemon desserts, or strawberry shortcake. Not-baked cheesecake, strawberry shortcake, or strawberry icebox cake are all parts of it. I had to add a lot of lemon and a toasted meringue on top, of course. The end result is, uh, ten levels of pure sweetness.
• The shortbread softens and soaks up water, the strawberries soften and release their juices into the cream cheese, and all ten layers come together to make a delicious summer treat. This is the perfect make-ahead, no-bake cake that everyone will love.

Just what is an icebox cake? Isn’t it a small thing?

• In a way! While the items are mostly the same, the way they’re put together seems to be the only real difference. One is built (ice box), while the other is piled (trifle).
• Most of the time, they both have whipped cream, fruit (usually berries), and some kind of cookie (usually graham crackers).
• We’re going with the basics this time: a berry, a cookie (fancy buttery shortbread!), and whipped cream. And for this strawberry icebox cake,
• we’re adding lemon curd to break up the sweet layers and give it a more complex flavor. We’re also making a cream cheese whipped cream that gives it the taste of no-bake cheesecake.

Recipe Ingredients

• Cream Cheese: Full fat makes for a more firm whipped cream layer. Allow the cream cheese to soften at room temperature before starting, this will make it easier to make the cream.
• Sugars: Powdered sugar and granulated. Powdered helps stabilize the whipped cream.
• Heavy cream: or heavy whipping cream. Light cream or half & half cannot be used as there’s not enough fat in them to thicken the cream.
• Lemon Curd: Use my best lemon curd recipe. It’s sharp, easy, and silky smooth. Also, you won’t have any leftover egg whites. It can be made and kept, sealed, in the fridge for two weeks.
• Shortbread: I used Walker’s Vanilla Shortbread. Any shortbread shape will do, just be sure it’s not too thick – we want it to soften in the fridge.
• Lemon: Just a bit of lemon zest that goes into the whipped cream portion of the dish and helps flavor it. The zest plays a role in giving the cake its no-bake cheesecake flavor.

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Food Processor Stabilized Whipped Cream

• If you don’t have a food processor, don’t fret – you can still make this either with a stand mixer or a hand mixer. But if you do, let’s talk about why using the food processor is best for whipped cream.
• Without the addition of gelatin or cream of tartar (common ingredients used to stabilize whipped cream) we’re able to get a thick cream that lasts longer and doesn’t separate or weep in the fridge.
• This is because when you pulse or process whipped cream in a food processor, it thickens the cream without beating as much air into it.
• To make this cream cheese whipped cream we’ll first process the cream cheese with the sugars and flavorings, to both mix them but also remove any lumps from the cream cheese. Then we’ll add the cold heavy cream and process on high for about 30-60 seconds until it’s thick. It might not look like it at first glance, but swipe a spoon or finger in there and you’ll see it holds shape.
• You can over process whipped cream into butter, so keep a careful watch on the food processor as it’s working and stop whenever you think it might be thick enough.

Building the Icebox Cake

• Three layers of whipped cream and two of each: shortbread, lemon curd and strawberries for a total of nine. Plus – the meringue! If you want it that is. It’s really just a fancy finishing, there’s enough layers and cream going on in the cake that you don’t need it
• but it adds a nice little toasted mallow touch and between it, the shortbread and the lemon curd it evokes that lemon meringue pie flavor.

Here’s the breakdown of the layers, in the order which they are built:

1. Whipped Cream
2. Shortbread
3. Lemon Curd
4. Strawberries
5. Whipped Cream
6. Shortbread
7. Lemon Curd
8. Strawberries
9. Whipped Cream

• Don’t worry too much if while spreading the curd for example, musses up some of the shortbread or when piling on the whipped cream it moves the strawberries.
• This isn’t the kind of dessert to fuss over, simply build layer by layer and then let the fridge do it’s magic.

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Storing Strawberry Icebox Cake

• Fridge: Icebox cakes need to sit in the fridge for about 4 hours before they’re eaten. The time allows for the layers to meld together, for the flavors to disperse and come together to make something new.
• If it hasn’t had enough time for the cookies to soak up the lemon and whipped cream (and strawberry juice!) you will have crispy cookies that won’t slice. Fridge time transforms this into a cake. 
• It’ll keep in the fridge for about 2 days without the meringue. The meringue should always be made the day of serving.
• Freezer: If you wanted to make this a week or several days in advance you can make it, without the meringue, leave it in the fridge for a few hours for the cookies to hydrate then freeze it. Cover the top so that it doesn’t get freezer burnt. Set it in the fridge a few hours before serving so it can soften. Top with meringue before serving.

Also See 

Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies Recipe

Instant Pot Mac And Cheese Recipe – learn like a pro