Lemon Icebox Cake
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An easy lemon icebox cake recipe made with just 4 simple ingredients: lemon pudding mix, milk, Cool Whip, and graham crackers. The easy no-bake dessert is perfect for hot summer days, backyard BBQs, special occasions, or as a little something sweet for the family after dinner.
This lemon cake is cool, light, and creamy. I love how it has just the right amount of lemon flavor so that it isn’t too lemony.
Like a no-bake eclair cake and strawberry icebox cake, you won’t believe how easy this lemon pudding icebox cake is to make. The hardest part is waiting the 4 hours for it to chill in the fridge.
Lemon Icebox Cake vs. Lemon Lush
I have heard this no-bake dessert called a lemon lush or lemon dream dessert. However, a lush or dream dessert typically has a cream cheese layer, unlike this recipe. I think the names lemon icebox cake, lemon icebox dessert, or no-bake lemon pudding cake are better-suited for this delicious treat.
If you love easy lemon desserts, give these 3-ingredient lemon cake mix cookies a try too. You will love them!
Ingredient Notes
This section includes ingredient notes and substitution options. Get all measurements, ingredients, and instructions in the printable recipe card at the end of this post.
- Lemon instant pudding mix – Make sure you get instant lemon pudding mix and not cook and serve pudding. For a milder lemon flavor, you can use one box of lemon pudding and one box of vanilla pudding.
- Milk – Use whole milk for an extra creamy filling – although 2%, 1% or skim milk will work, too.
- Cool Whip Whipped topping – Two 8 ounce tubs or one 16 ounce tub, thawed. Cool Whip or Cool Whip Lite both work well for this recipe. Homemade stabilized whipped cream can be used as well.
- Graham crackers – You will use just about the entire box of grahams for this recipe.
Recipe Tips and Tricks
- For neater slices, give the lemon dessert plenty of time to chill and wipe your knife clean after each slice.
- Be careful when covering your cake. I used the lid that came with my 9 x 13 glass casserole dish but it wasn’t high enough and left a large hole in the top layer of my cake. Now that I know better I ordered an extra deep glass baking pan to use next time I make a no-bake cake… which will probably be next week, knowing me. You could use toothpicks and plastic wrap, too.
- Make a day or two ahead and keep it refrigerated until serving. It actually gets better with time as the flavors meld together.
Variations
This easy icebox cake recipe is versatile and you can customize it to your liking. Try:
- Placing fresh berries like fresh blueberries, raspberries, or strawberries between the layers to provide a burst of flavor and color.
- Adding a bit of vanilla extract to the pudding mixture to enhance the flavor.
- Increasing the number of layers like I did with this banana pudding icebox cake.
- Switching up the toppings- crushed vanilla wafers, graham cracker crumbs, or fresh raspberries are all great options.
Storage and Freezing
Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before serving. Icebox lemon cake is delicious slightly frozen, so it really doesn’t even have to thaw completely before you dig in!
More easy ice box cake recipes
Or check out all of my favorite icebox cake recipes!
Lemon Icebox Cake
Ingredients
- 6.8 ounces lemon instant pudding mix (2 boxes)
- 3 cups whole milk
- 16 ounces whipped topping thawed and divided
- 14.4 ounce graham crackers (1 box)
- fresh lemons optional
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk instant pudding mix and milk together for 2 minutes. Fold in one container (8 ounces) of whipped topping.
- Cover the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish with a single layer of graham crackers, breaking as needed to cover the entire bottom of the dish. Add half of the pudding mixture and gently spread into an even layer.
- Repeat with another layer of graham crackers and then the rest of the pudding.
- Top with a final layer of graham crackers and the remaining whipped topping. Cover and refrigerate overnight, or for at least 4 hours.
- Top with lemon slices and/or lemon zest before serving, if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?
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Originally published on 6/17/2019. Updated 6/6/2024 with new photos and a slight change to the recipe (milk was increased from 2 1/2 cups to 3 cups).
What kind of milk are you using?
I use whatever we have on hand which is usually 1% milk. Any milk will work.
I think this will work with the magnolia bakery banana pudding modification, 1 can of condensed to 1 1/4 of water and fold. Great recipe! Thanks for sharing
can you use heavy whipping cream
I haven’t tried the recipe with homemade whipped cream myself but it shouldn’t be an issue. I would suggest adding confectioner’s sugar and vanilla to the whipped cream to give it more sweetness and flavor. If you decide to give the recipe a try with homemade whipped cream please come back to let us know how it comes out 🙂
I make a lemon desert with a regular buttery pie crust then powder sugar mixed cream cheese then the lemon pudding then cool whip Soso good..
Do you use graham crackers crumbs or a whole graham cracker
Whole graham crackers. They will soften up as the icebox cake chills 🙂
Hi, I live in South Africa. As far as I know we dont stock Graham crackers. Are they sweet or savoury? We often use Tennis biscuits in our desserts, which are square, flat & with a slight taste of coconut.
I look forward to hearing your response.
Thanks and regards
Hi! Graham crackers are sweet, not savory. I believe the closest equivalent are digestive biscuits, do you have those available in SA?
Since there are only two of us, I’m tempted to make a half recipe and use a large loaf pan instead.
An 8- or 9-inch square pan would be better for halving the recipe.
i haven’t tried this yet but it looks wonderful, that and I love anything lemony… I’m gonna give it a try. I know as a child my mom made a ice box lemon pie although I’m not sure how she made it. do you have a recipe for that?
I am a big lemon-lover as well. I can’t get enough lemon desserts, especially in Spring and Summer months. Do you think this lemon icebox pie recipe is similar to what she made?
My husband loves this dessert. it is requested often.
Made it last minute for Thanksgiving Dinner and it was a hit! Quick and easy to put together for a get together, sympathy gift, or weeknight meal.
I have a question, can you use almond or oat milk instead of regular milk in this recipe ?
Good question. Unfortunately instant pudding doesn’t set up properly with almond milk or oat milk so the icebox cake would end up being runny.
really good, very easy. for us it wasn’t tart enough so I added the zest of one lemon and the juice as well. perfection
I’m glad that you were able to adjust the recipe to suit your tastes 🙂