4th of July Icebox Cake

Overhead shot of the whole icebox cake that looks like the flag on top of it.

Celebrate the Holiday with this super quick & easy 4th of July Icebox Cake with whipped cream, graham crackers, and fresh fruit made to look like the American flag.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword 4th of july icebox cake, no bake icebox cake

Prep Time 20

Chill Time 6

Total Time 6 20

Servings

Calories 241kcal

Author Jessica - Together as Family

Equipment

9x13 Pan w/ Lid

Ingredients

Icebox Cake

16 oz Cool Whip
3 sleeves graham crackers
3 cups sliced strawberries
1 cup raspberries
1 cup blueberries

American Flag Decoration

1½ cups blueberries
1½ cups chopped strawberries

Instructions

Prep : Rinse the fresh berries and pat them dry with paper towel. Slice the strawberries.
^{* Do not prep the decoration fruit (for the top of the cake) until after the refrigeration time and right before serving.}
Spread 1/3 of the Cool Whip into the bottom of a 9x13 pan.
Sprinkle 1½ cups of the sliced strawberries, ½ cup of the raspberries, and ½ cup of the blueberries over top the Cool Whip layer.
Place a layer of graham crackers over top the berries, breaking apart some graham crackers as needed.
Spread another 1/3 of the Cool Whip in an even layer over the crackers.
Sprinkle the remaining 1½ cups sliced strawberries, ½ cup raspberries, and ½ cup blueberries over top.
Top with another layer of graham crackers.
Spread the remaining Cool Whip over top for the final layer.
Cover the pan with plastic wrap or a lid and refrigerate for at least 6 hours, or overnight is even better.
When ready to serve, put the blueberries onto the left quarter of the cake. Create stripes using the chopped strawberries and Cool Whip layer for the rest of the cake.

Notes

Fruit : I do not recommend using frozen fruit in this icebox cake. Use fresh fruit! Wait to add the American flag decoration on top of the cake until right before serving. Refrigerate the cake without that fruit topping for best results. Make sure to cut the strawberries different for the icebox layers and then for the decoration on top. The icebox layer strawberries need to be sliced, while the decoration strawberries need to be chopped small.

Tested Variations -

- Cream Cheese : For a thicker, cheesecake-like taste and texture, use cream cheese in the whipped cream layer. Place a softened bar of cream cheese into a mixing bowl and beat on medium speed until it's smooth and creamy. Fold in the whipped topping until combined thoroughly. Use this as your whipped cream layer instead of plain Cool Whip.

- Homemade Whipped Cream : For those that don't like using Cool Whip you can make your own. In a mixing bowl, beat together 3 cups of heavy whipping cream + 1 cup powdered sugar until stiff peaks form. Start at low speed to avoid splashing and increase speed as needed. This takes about 5 minutes to fully whip it until stiff peaks form. Use this in place of the Cool Whip for the whipped cream layer.

- Pudding Whipped Cream : This makes for a slightly thicker layer of whipped cream. Whisk together a small box of instant pudding (vanilla, cheesecake, French vanilla, white chocolate) with 1 cup of half and half milk. Let it sit for 3-4 minutes for the pudding to thicken. Add the Cool Whip into the thickened pudding and mix until combined. Use this for the whipped cream layer in the icebox cake.

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