Vintage Pineapple Icebox Cake Recipe (1940s Recipe)

This Pineapple Icebox Cake is a simple no-bake dessert that uses just a few simple ingredients and your whole family will enjoy.

If you just want the recipe card scroll down and it’s all ready for you. You can even get a printer-friendly version. If you want to hear more about this vintage recipe and how to make it keep reading. 

I don’t really remember my family making icebox cakes but it is an American classic and the perfect summer treat since you don’t need to heat up your kitchen with your oven.

The icebox cake’s history which really got its start in the 1920s when refrigerators started to be more affordable.

Appliances during the time often put out promotional cookbooks and ones for refrigerators and icebox cakes were a hit in those cookbooks. You also saw them in promotional cookbooks and ads like this one from Nabisco and Jello.

NPR has a great article highlighting one of the most common icebox cakes today, the chocolate icebox cake. It lives on even though the ingredient that made it popular is no longer available.

While I love to find vintage icebox recipes like the Pineapple Icebox Cake I’m sharing today you can find more modern icebox cakes as well. A cookbook on my wish list is the Icebox Cakes: Recipes for the Coolest Cakes in Town.

The one I made the other day is a pineapple icebox cake and it has to be one of my new favorite vintage desserts. It was so light and delicious! Well worth the wait of letting it set up in the fridge.

Now let’s get to making this delicious vintage treat! And to add to the nostalgia of this post, the plate I’m using in the photos was my great-grandma’s and is from the 1940s. My grandma gave me this set of dishes a few years ago, it’s the ones she grew up eating on. A quick note about using vintage dishes.

Making a Pineapple Icebox Cake

This vintage icebox cake recipe comes from a 1940s issue of Better Homes and Gardens. It’s one I saved a few years ago and decided it was time to make it.

Like all vintage recipes I share here I tested it and have written the recipe to be better suited for modern homemakers and modern ingredients.

Ingredients You Will Need:

• Pineapple Juice
• Orange Juice
• Marshmallows (I used mini marshmallows)
• Heavy Cream
• Vanilla Wafers (I used the classic Nabisco Nilla Wafers)
• Salt

Other Things You Will Need:

The recipe says to make it in a refrigerator dish, these were popular in the mid-century. I used a modern version I have but it’s no longer made. The dish is about 9”x 4”x 3”. A loaf pan is similar in size but generally wider. That’s what I’d recommend using.

You also will need a way to whip the heavy cream. I use my KitchenAid Stand Mixer but a hand mixer also works. You can make it using a whisk but it is time consuming.

Modern Helpful Hints for the Pineapple Icebox Cake Recipe

• If you don’t have the equipment or time to make whipped cream you likely could use Coolwhip. It’s not an ingredient I really like so not something I have around and I haven’t tested this but it would be worth trying.
• This cake has a very light pineapple flavor. If you wanted to add to the flavor it would be delicious with sliced strawberries or crushed pineapple added to the top when serving. Other fresh berries would be nice served with it as well.
• While icebox cakes don’t require a lot of time or effort when it comes to preparing them, do keep in mind they take time to set. You want to wait at least 4 hours for this cake though overnight is best.

More Vintage Dessert Recipes To Try

After you finish this making your vintage icebox cake, I’ve got more for you to try. These are some I think you would like.

• Old-Fashioned 7up Ice Cream Float
• Vintage Chocolate Coffee Ice Cream
• Vintage Coffee Jelly Recipe
• Old-Fashioned Apple Bread Pudding Recipe

Continue to Content

Yield: 6 Servings

Pineapple Icebox Cake

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Enjoy a classic icebox cake with a light pineapple flavor. Perfect for a light summer dessert.

Prep Time 15 minutes

Additional Time 4 hours

Total Time 4 hours 15 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 cup pineapple juice
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• pinch of salt
• 3 cups (about 5 ounces or half a bag) mini marshmallows
• 1 cup heavy cream, whipped
• 44 vanilla wafers (depending on layers could use more or less)

Instructions

1. Heat juices and salt to a boil.
2. Add marshmallows and stir until melted. This can take some time.
3. Cool the mixture fully.
4. While it cools whip your cream to stiff peaks.
5. Fold whipped cream into marshmallow mixture.
6. Alternate layers of marshmallow mixture and afters in your dish starting with wafers and ending with wafers as well. I did 5 layers but if your dish is bigger than mine you will likely end up with less.
7. Chill until firm, about 4 hours but overnight is even better.

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  Le Creuset Heritage Loaf Pan

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 1605Total Fat: 54gSaturated Fat: 22gUnsaturated Fat: 32gCholesterol: 49mgSodium: 1000mgCarbohydrates: 269gFiber: 3gSugar: 149gProtein: 12g

Nutrition information isn't always accurate and this time it doesn't appear to be.

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