Icebox Cake, Two Ways! (Gluten-Free, Refined Sugar Free)

Hi friends, this is the long awaited icebox cake recipe I’ve been telling you all about for ages! Way back in the very last month of 2010 I mentioned that I was snowed in and whipping up treats for the boyfriend’s return to NYC. It’s only fitting that on a snowy day like today I finally share the goods.

This recipe is adapted from one of my fave blogs, Eat Live Run. I’ve been dying to whip up gluten-free and refined sugar free versions of Jenna’s recipes for ages, and when I saw these cakes and realized that I just happened to have a carton of organic heavy whipping cream in my fridge (which basically never happens) and a 1980′s hand held mixer in my cabinet (thanks, mom!) I knew it was meant to be.

The next step was just figuring out how to make them gluten-free and refined sugar-free. Immediately I thought of Pamela’s Product’s gluten-free Butter Shortbread cookies, which are sweetened with agave nectar instead of refined sugar and are the perfect size for this recipe. I decorated the outside of the cookie with unsweetened shredded coconut to look like snowflakes on the whipped cream. They were perfect.

So perfect that I ate all but one before the boyfriend even got back in town. But as luck would have it he requested a chocolate version, and I just happened to have enough heavy cream left to make it happen. We picked up two Nana’s No’s double chocolate cookies, which are also refined sugar-free. (Nana’s makes a gluten-free chocolate cookie, but as I’ve mentioned before I just limit the amount of gluten I eat but am not 100% gluten-free. Their gf cookie would be perfect for this recipe for those readers who don’t eat gluten at all.)

Honestly, this version was incredible. Please – reward yourself this week with one these icebox cakes. This is a fantastic four or five ingredient recipe that came together in no time.

Icebox Cake (two ways)
adapted from Eat Live Run
Click here and use the buttons at the bottom to print or share

1 cup heavy whipping cream (in a carton in the milk section)

1 tsp vanilla

1 packet stevia extract

6 Pamela’s Products gluten-free Butter Shortbread cookies (for gluten-free, soy-free, corn-free version)
OR 2 Nana’s No’s double chocolate cookies (can also use Nana’s No’s gluten-free chocolate chip, these have corn and soy in the ingredients)

optional: unsweetened shredded coconut to sprinkle

I never knew how easy it was to make my own whipped cream, but color me officially addicted. To get started, throw a glass bowl into the freezer and go about your day. After a couple hours (or the next morning), whip the heavy whipping cream, vanilla, and stevia with a hand mixer for about 5 minutes. I used this one from 1980-something. It was loud, but it made great whipped cream! Roll the the cookies in the whipped cream and make three stacks of two cookies (if you’re using Pamela’s) or one giant double layered cookie (if you’re using Nana’s). Use a spoon to add more whipped cream to the outside. Sprinkle with unsweetened coconut flakes and put in the fridge for about 30 minutes.

Dairy-free Friends: I haven’t forgotten you! This recipe from The Whole Gang looks like a delicious alternative to whipped cream.

How I Made This Wallet Friendly:

I normally don’t have things like vanilla or heavy whipping cream on hand, but I’ve found I can make them wallet friendly purchases by finding ways to use them across several meals.

I used the vanilla to make homemade granola (recipe coming very soon!) which only took a couple minutes of prep and 30 mins in the oven and ended up costing me way less than a store bought brand. And I still have enough left over to use many, many times. Trader Joe’s sometimes has really affordable vanilla extract.

I used the heavy whipping cream to make scrambled eggs, french toast, and whatever else I made that week that called for dairy. This is pretty much my favorite way to use up coconut milk, almond milk, heavy whipping cream, yogurt, or any other dairy or dairy substitute that I happen to have in my fridge. I also like to get this at Trader Joe’s, where it’s even more affordable.

I bought a bag of unsweetened coconut for $2.19 last summer to add to cereal, oatmeal, yogurt, and pancakes for some extra oomph and healthy fat. A little goes a long way, so this bag has lasted me ages.

The cookies were the biggest splurge, but it was worth it for a fun treat. A box of nine Pamela’s Products cookies costs me $3.79 at my local organic grocery and Nana’s No’s are somewhere in the neighborhood of $1.29 each.

P.S. Just saw this on Kay Warren‘s Facebook status today, and I love this verse so much I’m adding it as the positive thought of the day.

When you’re in over your head, I’ll be there with you. When you’re in rough waters, you will not go down. When you’re between a rock and a hard place, it won’t be a dead end — because I am God, your personal God, the Holy God of Israel, your Savior. Isaiah 43:2 (Message)