How to Make an Icebox Cake: History and Recipe for the Cold Treat - Thrillist

Before NBC put icebox cakes on the back of their box or long before Sheehan wrote her cookbook, the first version of a cold layered dessert came around a century prior with Marie-Antoine Carême’s charlotte. He made a cold dessert inside a mould using lady fingers and custard, which was chilled and eaten as a whole.

“It does give off a lot of icebox cake vibes,” Sheehan confirms. Carême is a pioneering chef who is responsible for introducing the world to the elaborate French style of cooking known as grande cuisine, and the charlotte was one such creation.

Of course, the icebox cake became even more of a household staple in America during the ’40s and ’50s, with the rise of Baskin-Robbins and Carvel ice cream cakes. The dessert became so ubiquitous that it was being taught in culinary schools around the country.

“Back in culinary school, when we made genoise sponge for the first time, we had to cut the sponge into circles, and with the leftover cake, we were asked to make a family meal dessert,” says Solanki Roy, executive chef at Cut by Wolfgang Puck. “That was the first time I made an icebox cake. I layered it with vanilla ice cream, chocolate ganache, and cherry syrup. Topped it with loads of chocolate shavings.”

Roy is the former head pastry chef at Gaggan Anand, one of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants, and chef de partie at the three-Michelin starred Eleven Madison Park. She also has a deep affinity for icebox cakes.

What appeals to Solanki and most icebox cake fans of her generation is the simplicity of the dessert. This raw, DIY approach makes it a go-to favorite for our generation. “Gen Z likes it because it’s not intimidating to make,” she says. “It’s just a simple method of layering.” Besides the fact that icebox cake videos are often gorgeous and rank high on TikTok watchability.

The duo recommend combinations such as chocolate and malt, honey and ginger, graham crackers and marshmallows, hibiscus and lemon, and coconut and pandan. But before you get to your own experiment, here are some things to keep in mind.

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