Recipe: Mini Icebox Cakes, 2 Ways

If you’re like us, you believe the holidays aren’t complete without a festive dessert. If you’re like us, you also have little interest (or time) to make anything that requires multiple steps and extended amounts of oven time. Queue the Icebox Cake. This retro classic assembles in minutes, sits in the refrigerator overnight, and then is ready to serve. Made of layers of cookies and whipped cream, the cookies soften as they sit overnight and the mixture becomes cake-like. Here, we offer two routes to take - Lemon Ginger or Chocolate Peanut Butter. Both are easily thrown together and look perfectly fancy when served. Happy holidays!

To make the base, add the cream and mascarpone to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (alternatively, you can also use a bowl with an electric hand mixer.) Whip until stiff peaks form and the mixture is thick but still soft. Fold in the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and salt.

For the lemon ginger variation, stir in the lemon zest and 2 tablespoons of lemon juice. Taste the mixture and add a little more juice if you prefer a stronger lemon flavor.

For the chocolate peanut butter variation, stir in the peanut butter until well combined and smooth.

To assemble, spread the cream mixture into the bottom of your serving glass (we used 6, 12 ounce glasses, but you could use bigger or smaller ones depending on your preference.) To get clean edges, we recommend using a piping bag or a durable plastic bag with a corner cut off to pipe the mixture into the glass. Sprinkle over an even layer of cookies. Repeat these layers until your serving glass is full. Put the cakes into a tall sided pan or tray and cover with plastic wrap. Let refrigerate overnight or up to 8 hours. Remove from the refrigerator 20 minutes or so before serving to let the cream soften a bit, and enjoy!