• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Holiday Sweets n Treats
menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • Recipes
  • About
    • Instagram
  • ×
    Home » Dessert

    Red White and Blue Flag Icebox Cake

    May 30, 2022 · Modified: Jun 29, 2024 by Emma · This post may contain affiliate links · 2 Comments

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    This Red White and Blue Strawberry Icebox cake is an easy, no-bake strawberry dessert that's perfect for summertime holidays and celebrations! Create the American flag using strawberry slices and fresh blueberries on top of layers of graham crackers, strawberry preserves, and whipped cream.

    Keep this icebox cake recipe on hand for Memorial Day and the Fourth of July! It's sure to be a crowd pleaser!

    An icebox cake is decorated to look like the American flag using strawbery slices and blueberries

    The recipe is RIGHT BELOW!! 👇👇 Looking for more details and tips? Read beyond the recipe card for more information!

    Jump to:
    • Red White and Blue Strawberry Icebox Cake
    • Storage
    • Ingredients
    • Homemade Whipped Cream (mini recipe)
    • Homemade Strawberry Preserves (mini recipe)
    • Instructions
    • Top tip for this strawberry icebox cake
    • Storage

    Red White and Blue Strawberry Icebox Cake

    This Red White and Blue Strawberry Icebox cake is an easy, no-bake strawberry dessert that's perfect for summertime holidays and celebrations! Layers of graham crackers, strawberries and whipped cream make up this creamy, refreshing dessert!
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Pin Rate
    Course Dessert
    American
    Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes
    Chill Time: 8 hours hours
    Total Time: 8 hours hours 15 minutes minutes
    Servings: 12

    Ingredients

    • 45 graham cracker squares
    • 9 cups whipped cream (find the recipe used in the blog post)
    • 1 ½ cups strawberry preserves (find the recipe used in the blog post)
    • 3 cups strawberries sliced
    • ¼ cup cup blueberries

    Instructions

    • Create an even layer of graham crackers on the bottom of an 9 x 13 pan. The first layer needs about 15 squares. Break the crackers to fit your pan as needed.
    • Top the graham crackers with a layer of strawberry preserves. I used about ⅓-1/2 cup per layer. Smooth it out into an even layer as much as possible.
    • Optional: add a layer of fresh strawberry slices on top
    • Top with a layer of whipped cream (I use about 2-3 cups per layer)
    • Repeat a second and third layer of graham crackers, strawberry preserves and whipped cream.
    • To create the flag design: Add ¼ cup of blueberries to a square in the top left corner to create the blue section of the flag. Create stripes of strawberry slices spaced by white stripes of whipped cream to create the red and white stripes.
    • Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight, or at least 8 hours. Keep chilled until ready to serve.

    Notes

    There's a lot of flexibility with this recipe! Think of this as more of a starting point and customize it to how you want!
    I used homemade whipped cream and strawberry preserves for the filling, but you can absolutely use store-bought preserves and cool whip instead! The recipes for both the whipped cream and preserves are in the post below. 
    Other ways you can customize include adding fresh berries to the inner layers, make a smaller version in a 9x9 (see suggested amounts in the post), pile the blueberries in the corner or place them in a neat line, add whole or half strawberries on top instead of slices - it's up to you!  
    Top Tip: Wait to create the flag design until you're about to serve the cake for the freshest-looking fruit slices! The strawberries can lose some of their fresh appearance as the cake chills overnight.

    Storage

    This recipe is best served after chilling in the fridge and will last a few days stored in the refrigerator.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1g | Calories: 164kcal | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 8mg | Sodium: 174mg | Potassium: 91mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 88IU | Calcium: 71mg | Iron: 1mg

    Please note, Holiday Sweets N Treats isn't a professional nutritionist. Any and all nutritional information shared is an estimate. If you're following a specific diet or counting calories, we suggest you use the nutrition calculator of your choice. Calories can vary depending on the brands and products used.

    Tried this recipe?Mention @holidaysweetsntreats or tag #holidaysweetsntreats!

    Ingredients

    ingredients to make strawberry flag icebox cake

    You only need four ingredients to make this icebox cake!

    • Graham Crackers - I used the original honey graham crackers for this, but you could switch it up with cinnamon or chocolate graham crackers as well!
    • Whipped Cream - I used about 9 cups of homemade whipped cream for this recipe. You can also use cool whip for the creamy filling!
    • Fresh Berries - You'll need about two pounds of fresh strawberries for this recipe and a handful of blueberries!

    Please see the full list of ingredients and measurements at the bottom of the post.

    Homemade Whipped Cream (mini recipe)

    Whip 3 cups heavy whipping cream, ½ cup powdered sugar, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract with an electric mixer until it has semi-stiff peaks. Keep stored, covered, in the fridge until ready to use.

    Homemade Strawberry Preserves (mini recipe)

    Add 4 cups of strawberries (sliced and quartered), ⅛ cup of fresh lemon juice, ½ cup of sugar, a pinch of salt and a whisked slurry of 2 tablelspoons of cornstarch and 2 tablelspoons of water to a large pot over low-medium heat. Use a potato masher to break down the strawberries as they cook on stove. Heat until the mixture has reached a temperature of about 200F and the preserves have thickened. Let cool completely before storing in a sealed container in the fridge.

    Instructions

    This dessert is a simple repetition of a layer of graham crackers, whipped topping, and strawberry slices, three times.

    First, lay down an even layer of graham crackers on the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish. I used 15 graham crackers squares per layer. If your baking dish curves on the bottom edges, you may need to break some to fit in the first layer of graham crackers.

    Place a layer of graham crackers on the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking pan

    Create an single layer of graham crackers on the bottom of the dish

    Spread about ½ cup of the strawberry preserves on graham crackers

    Spread a layer of strawberry preserves on the graham crackers

    Add whipped cream on top of the graham crackers and spread as evenly as possible. Then, lay down about 1 ½ cups of strawberry slices, covering the cool whip as much as possible. Don't let the slices overlap, so that they create an even surface for laying down the next layer of graham crackers.

    Spread 2-3 cups of whipped cream on the strawberry preserves and graham crackers

    Top with 2-3 cups of whipped cream

    Repeat twice more so you have three layers of graham crackers, strawberry preserves and whipped cream

    Repeat this two more times, and then create the flag on the top layer.

    To create the flag design: Add ¼ cup of blueberries to a square in the top left corner to create the blue section of the flag. Then, create stripes of strawberry slices spaced by white stripes of cool whip to create the red and white stripes

    An icebox cake is decorated to look like the American flag using strawbery slices and blueberries

    Top tip for this strawberry icebox cake

    Wait to create the flag design until you're about to serve the cake for the best result! The strawberries can lose some of their fresh appearance as the cake chills overnight and decorating the top layer right before serving will keep them looking good!

    A piece of strawberry flag icebox cake is on a white plate and red gingham checkered linen
    Does an icebox cake chill in the fridge or freezer?

    Icebox cakes should chill in the fridge for at least four hours, but ideally eight hours or even better, chilling overnight. This lets the layers of graham crackers, strawberries and cool whip settle together long enough that they begin to integrate, without getting too mushy.

    How long is icebox cake good for?

    Icebox cake is good for 1 - 2 days. They're generally best served right after a night of chilling in the fridge. After two days the graham crackers lose most of their structure.

    How far ahead can you make icebox cake?

    I'd recommend making your icebox cake the night before, or making it in the morning to serve at a party that evening!

    A piece of strawberry flag icebox cake is on a white plate

    Can I make this in an 8 x 8 or 9 x 9 baking dish?

    Yes! You can easily make this in a square baking dish instead. Reduce the cake ingredients to:

    • 27 graham cracker squares
    • 6 cups of whipped cream
    • 1 ½ strawberry preserves
    Slices missing from the strawberry icebox cake showing the layers of graham crackers, cool whip and strawberry

    Storage

    This recipe is best served after chilling in the fridge and will last about one to two days stored in the refrigerator.

    A piece of strawberry flag icebox cake is on a white plate

    Looking for more summer recipes? Try this S'mores Bark!

    « Honey Lavender Syrup
    Strawberry Icebox Cake »

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Jess

      June 03, 2022 at 2:20 pm

      5 stars
      This is a fun twist on the ice box cake, and I bet it would work perfectly for Canada Day too! It's also nice that it's no-bake so I don't have to heat up my house in July. 😉

      Reply
      • Emma

        June 04, 2022 at 1:27 pm

        Exactly! I love a good no-bake dessert for the summer holidays!

        Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Hi, I'm Emma! I love creating recipes that bring a little Holiday Cheer to your kitchen! Are you playing Michael Buble's Christmas album right now? 'Cause I am!

    More about me →

    Popular Recipes

    • Homemade Strawberry Preserves
    • Peanut Butter Blossoms
    • Christmas Coffee Cake is served in a tree-shaped tin
      Christmas Coffee Cake
    • Skeleton hands hold a spoon in one hand and a fork in another on each side of a plate filled with spaghetti, red sauce and halloween eyeball meatballs on top.
      Halloween Eyeball Meatballs

    Sign Up for our newsletter

    Bring a little holiday cheer to your inbox

    Please wait...

    Thank You!

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    Disclaimer & Privacy Policy | Work with Me

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2020 Brunch Pro on the Brunch Pro Theme