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Frozen Lemonade Cake

By Katie Leaird

Published on April 22, 2018

Time

1 hour, plus 30 minutes cooling and 3 hours freezing

Yield

Serves 12

Frozen Lemonade Cake

Ingredients

Crust

5 ounces (142 grams) animal crackers 3 tablespoons sugar Pinch salt 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Cake

2 pints vanilla ice cream, softened16 ounces (454 grams) Cool Whip Whipped Topping, thawed1 (12-ounce) container frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed2 (10.5 ounces/297 grams) jars lemon curd 1 teaspoon yellow gel food coloring

Before You Begin

All the components are easy to stir together, but waiting is the challenge. To ensure distinct layers, each must be frozen until firm before adding the next layer.

Instructions

    for the crust

  1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Process crackers, sugar, and salt in food processor until finely ground, about 30 seconds. Add melted butter and pulse until combined, about 8 pulses. Transfer crumb mixture to greased 9-inch springform pan. Using bottom of dry measuring cup, press crumb mixture firmly into bottom of pan. Bake crust until fragrant and beginning to brown, 12 to 14 minutes. Let cool completely, about 30 minutes.
  2. for the cake

  3. Stir ice cream, 2½ cups whipped topping, and lemonade concentrate in bowl until combined. Pour half of ice cream mixture into cooled crust and smooth top with offset spatula. Transfer pan and bowl with remaining ice cream mixture to freezer and freeze until firm, about 1 hour. Stir lemon curd, ½ teaspoon food coloring, and remaining 2½ cups whipped topping in separate bowl until combined. Spread lemon curd mixture in even layer over frozen ice cream layer. Return pan to freezer until firm, about 1 hour. Let remaining half of ice cream mixture soften, then spread over frozen lemon curd layer, smoothing top with offset spatula. Freeze cake until fully firm, at least 6 hours or up to 24 hours.
  4. Remove side of pan. Transfer cake to cake plate or pedestal. Smooth sides of cake with offset spatula. Dip 1-inch paintbrush in remaining ½ teaspoon food coloring and lightly drag across top of cake, painting straight yellow stripes 2 to 3 inches long, refreshing brush with food coloring as needed. Slice and serve.
Frozen Lemonade Cake
Photography by Keller + Keller.

Frozen Lemonade Cake

Headshot of Katie Leaird
By Katie Leaird
Save

Time

1 hour, plus 30 minutes cooling and 3 hours freezing

Yield

Serves 12

Ingredients

Crust

5 ounces (142 grams) animal crackers
3 tablespoons sugar
Pinch salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Cake

2 pints vanilla ice cream, softened
16 ounces (454 grams) Cool Whip Whipped Topping, thawed
1 (12-ounce) container frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
2 (10.5 ounces/297 grams) jars lemon curd
1 teaspoon yellow gel food coloring

Ingredients

Crust

5 ounces (142 grams) animal crackers
3 tablespoons sugar
Pinch salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Cake

2 pints vanilla ice cream, softened
16 ounces (454 grams) Cool Whip Whipped Topping, thawed
1 (12-ounce) container frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
2 (10.5 ounces/297 grams) jars lemon curd
1 teaspoon yellow gel food coloring

Ingredients

Crust

5 ounces (142 grams) animal crackers
3 tablespoons sugar
Pinch salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Cake

2 pints vanilla ice cream, softened
16 ounces (454 grams) Cool Whip Whipped Topping, thawed
1 (12-ounce) container frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
2 (10.5 ounces/297 grams) jars lemon curd
1 teaspoon yellow gel food coloring

Why This Recipe Works

There's nothing more refreshing than an ice-cold glass of lemonade on a hot summer day … or is there? Mixing lemonade concentrate into vanilla ice cream made an even more satisfying lemon-kissed treat. For a rich and zippy contrasting layer, we stirred lemon curd into whipped topping (we found Cool Whip brand worked best in this recipe) and sandwiched it between two layers of the lemonade ice cream. We used animal crackers to make a slightly sweet, crisp crust that contrasted nicely with the creamy ice cream layers. For a decorative flourish, we used a paintbrush that we'd dipped in yellow food coloring to brush the top of the cake with a modern and abstract pop of color.

Before You Begin

All the components are easy to stir together, but waiting is the challenge. To ensure distinct layers, each must be frozen until firm before adding the next layer.

Instructions

    for the crust

  1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Process crackers, sugar, and salt in food processor until finely ground, about 30 seconds. Add melted butter and pulse until combined, about 8 pulses. Transfer crumb mixture to greased 9-inch springform pan. Using bottom of dry measuring cup, press crumb mixture firmly into bottom of pan. Bake crust until fragrant and beginning to brown, 12 to 14 minutes. Let cool completely, about 30 minutes.
  2. for the cake

  3. Stir ice cream, 2½ cups whipped topping, and lemonade concentrate in bowl until combined. Pour half of ice cream mixture into cooled crust and smooth top with offset spatula. Transfer pan and bowl with remaining ice cream mixture to freezer and freeze until firm, about 1 hour. Stir lemon curd, ½ teaspoon food coloring, and remaining 2½ cups whipped topping in separate bowl until combined. Spread lemon curd mixture in even layer over frozen ice cream layer. Return pan to freezer until firm, about 1 hour. Let remaining half of ice cream mixture soften, then spread over frozen lemon curd layer, smoothing top with offset spatula. Freeze cake until fully firm, at least 6 hours or up to 24 hours.
  4. Remove side of pan. Transfer cake to cake plate or pedestal. Smooth sides of cake with offset spatula. Dip 1-inch paintbrush in remaining ½ teaspoon food coloring and lightly drag across top of cake, painting straight yellow stripes 2 to 3 inches long, refreshing brush with food coloring as needed. Slice and serve.

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