The Popular 1920s Cake We Still Enjoy Today

There's something so sweet about eating the same dessert that your great grandma also used to enjoy – especially when it's made of dreamy ingredients like ladyfingers and pillowy clouds of whipped cream. Popularized in the 1920s, when electric fridges were just starting to hit the mainstream, ice box cakes are no-bake desserts that got their name from the appliance that kept them frosty. The "icebox" part reflects the fact that prior to electric fridges, people kept food cold by storing it in a literal box designed with a compartment for ice.

While earlier versions did use ladyfingers, cookies, or cake to add substance to the creamy dessert, perhaps the most famous iteration of the recipe is found on the back of the box of Nabisco's Famous Chocolate Wafers. It has the crunchy chocolate cookies layered between homemade whipped cream flavored with vanilla. The entire ensemble is then popped in the freezer (previously called the ice box) where the cookies soften from the moisture in the cream. The sweet treat falls somewhere between an ice cream cake and an English trifle, which you make by layering cake, fruit, pudding, and whipped cream and then refrigerating them. While the chocolate wafers have since been discontinued, chocolate graham crackers, Oreo Thins, or Tate's Bake Shop Double Chocolate Chip Cookies make great substitutes. Plus, there is way more than one way to make an ice box cake.

Perhaps one of the biggest reasons this cake has stood the test of time is its versatility. The chocolate and vanilla iteration is just the beginning. Try tossing a splash of Creme de Menthe in your whipped cream for an ice box cake that gives major mint chocolate chip vibes. Another way to switch things up is to make a Nutella ice box cake that features Chips Ahoy! cookies. If fruity flavors are more your speed, you can take inspiration from our three-ingredient strawberry icebox cake recipe, which combines graham crackers, whipped topping, and strawberries. You could also opt for shortbread cookies with whipped cream and lemon preserves.

What's more, the dessert's longstanding appeal likely has a lot to do with its simplicity. Home cooks are able to throw together a bakery-worthy dessert without having to bake it. With Nabisco's release of packaged sweets, like the Oreo in 1912 and the Chocolate Wafer in 1924, there was no need to make cookies beforehand, either. This sort of minimal-effort dessert still has appeal in the age of social media.