This creamy, dreamy icebox cake—built in a bowl for maximum ease—is the no-bake dessert you'll be making all summer.
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What you’ll need
Measuring Spoons
$10 At Bon Appétit Market
Measuring Cups
$28 At Bon Appétit Market
Chef's Knife
$34.53 At Amazon
Cutting Board
$10 At IKEA
Small Bowl
$15 At Amazon
Citrus Juicer
$13 At Amazon
Electric Mixer
$40 At Amazon
Large Bowl
$18 At Amazon
Medium Bowl
$17 At Amazon
Plastic Wrap
$9.84 At Amazon
Spoon
$24.69 At Amazon
Platter
$40 $30 At Amazon
Whisk
$10 At Amazon
Recipe information
Yield
8 servings
Ingredients
2
½
1
2
¼
8
Preparation
Step 1
Measure out 2 cups blackberries from 2 pints. Slice berries in half lengthwise and transfer to a medium bowl. (Save remaining berries for decorating later.)
Step 2
Add ½ cup blackberry jam to bowl with berries. Using a citrus juicer, juice 1 lemon over berry mixture. Let sit 10 minutes.
Step 3
Using an electric mixer, beat 2 cups heavy cream in a large bowl, starting on low speed and increasing to high, until soft peaks form.
→ Everything you ever wanted to know about whipped cream.
Step 4
Beat in ¼ cup powdered sugar and a pinch of salt just to combine.
Step 5
Line a medium bowl (6-cup capacity) with plastic wrap, pressing into bottom and up sides and leaving plenty of overhang. Line the bottom of bowl with a layer of vanilla wafers.
Step 6
Spoon about ¼ cup berry mixture over wafers. Scoop 1½ cups whipped cream into a small bowl; cover and save in fridge for later. Spread ½ cup of the remaining whipped cream evenly over wafer and berry layers. Repeat layers with wafers (breaking to fit as needed—no one will know), blackberry mixture, and whipped cream, using more for each layer as the bowl gets wider, until you run out of all the components.
Step 7
Bring up plastic overhang to cover and chill at least 24 hours.
Step 8
Unwrap plastic from top of cake and place a large cake stand or platter firmly over it. Flip over and lift bowl away; peel away plastic wrap. (Ta-da!)
Step 9
Using a whisk, beat reserved whipped cream back to soft peaks, then use a spoon to dollop cream all over cake and spread around evenly.
Step 10
Cut reserved berries in half lengthwise and arrange them on top.
Step 11
Slice cake into 8 pieces to serve.
Step 12
Do Ahead: Cake can be assembled 2 days ahead and can also be unmolded and covered in cream 1 hour ahead; either way, keep in the fridge until the last minute.
Leave a Review
Reviews (28)
Back to TopSo delicious and so easy! It was an absolute hit at a dinner party, everyone was impressed and thought I worked hard to make it. The only thing I changed with the recipe was I made it with both blackberries and blueberries. This will be added to my summer dessert rotation with various seasonal fruit.
Anonymous
Visalia, CA
5/30/2021
Good icebox cake! Two thumbs up from my husband, and one-and-a-half thumbs up from me; we both found it refreshing and light, but I thought it a little heavy on the whipped cream. I made the recipe as stated, except I added about half the lemon's worth of zest to the blackberry mixture. I found the unmolded "heap" cake charming, but honestly, if I make this again just for the hubs and I, I'll just use a trifle dish. It'll be easier, less messy, and still attractively layered.
Anonymous
Seattle, WA
5/27/2021
Do cookery writers ever get anybody to proof-read their recipes before they publish? Ambiguous and chaotic from first to last. Why not separate the ingredients into Day 1 and Day 2 requirements, rather than a single list of ingredients which you then separate and store in the least convenient way i.e. already handled and in a less-than secure way? Which set of blackberries do I store for decoration and which do I use in the cake on Day 1 (1)? How big is a medium-sized bowl and why tell me if it doesn't matter how big it needs to be (1)? Separate the volume of cream needed for decoration on Day 2 before whipping it (6), it will only collapse anyway in the refrigerator (9). I hope it tastes nice after all this.
Anonymous
UK
7/10/2020
I made this on a hot summer night for my family and it was eaten up in seconds! Super easy to make and so good for such simple ingredients. Probably going to make again and experiment with other fruit!
Anonymous
Los Angeles
4/25/2020
This is a 10/10 for me! No one was hungry for dessert after dinner, but after my guests tasted this, they were asking for seconds! This is going to become a staple for me from now on. Easy, inexpensive, delicious!
pleombrone2459
Boston, MA
9/23/2019
I haven't eaten the final cake yet, so possibly it will work better all combined, but I found the lemon juice a little overpowering with the blackberries and jam. The lemon flavor is just a bit stronger than I think you want -- maybe half a lemon or a smaller lemon would have worked better, or maybe too much of the lemon oil from the skin got in as I squeezed the lemon by hand? I dunno. It's a neat idea though, and hoping that when I unveil it for dinner the lemon flavor will have mellowed a bit!
Anonymous
Brooklyn, NY
6/4/2019
I’m making this for the second time it’s so good. Last year I followed the recipe exactly and it was perfect. I enjoyed the salt and creaminess from the whipped cream, and the contrast with fresh crunchy fruit and sweet jam. This time I’m using a homemade blueberry lavender jam for blackberry + lemon layers , and alternating with a mix of chopped fresh mango + mango citrus jam + lime. My 72 year old father loves this icebox cake so it will be his birthday cake tomorrow!
jnjn06161502
Orlando
1/5/2019