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This pretty, no-bake, Strawberry Pretzel Ice Cream Cake is your new go-to summer cake. The crust is made up of salty pretzels mixed with sweet ginger cookies. The crust is then layered with creamy vanilla ice cream and strawberry ice cream swirled with fresh strawberry jam. A generous topping of fresh strawberries finishes it off. This icy cold cake is creamy, extra berry-filled, and requires very little effort.
Once again this summer I’m really embracing ice cream and using up all the berries in the process too! In the last month or so, I feel like I’ve made a new ice cream recipe every few days. And I still have more coming your way…both berry-filled and chocolate heavy.
Ice cream isn’t the easiest to work with since it melts so fast. When it comes to how-to videos and photos, ice cream is always challenging. But even though it’s often made me want to cry, I somehow can’t resist creating a summertime ice cream recipe!
I loved ice cream as a kid, so making it and enjoying it always brings me back to the carefree summer days of my childhood. Those easygoing days were the best.
The details – let’s talk about the crust
First, make the crust. This is super easy. Simply combine salty pretzels, gingersnap cookies (I buy mine from Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s), and butter. I find this easiest to do in a food processor, but it can also be done in a bowl. Do what works best for you.
Now, press the pretzel crust into a square baking pan. No baking is required. Simple. Simple.
The layers
For the layers, vanilla ice cream, strawberry ice cream swirled with homemade strawberry jam, and then one final layer of vanilla.
I wanted the strawberry ice cream to have pockets of sweetness and fresh summer berries, so I ended up swirling in my homemade strawberry jam. You can use my homemade jam or your favorite store-bought jam. Both will be equally delicious.
The only semi-annoying piece to this cake is that you do have to freeze the crust and each of the layers.
But it’s not a long wait time. 15 minutes for the crust, then 30ish for the first layer of vanilla and another 30 for the strawberry layer. You’ll have some downtime in between freezes.
Once all of the layers are together, I top with sliced strawberries, then freeze. And wow, that’s pretty much it. I like to freeze overnight to really make sure the ice cream is frozen nicely.
Also, for both the vanilla and strawberry ice cream, I love to use Tillamook. Especially their Oregano strawberry ice cream, it never fails. And for the vanilla, their vanilla bean or old-fashioned vanilla are my favorites.
Once frozen, slice and enjoy every last creamy, berry-filled bite. It’s sweet, heavy on the ice cream, swirled with berries, and has just the right amount of salty pretzel crunch on the bottom. The perfect balance of sweet and salty that leaves you longing for another bite.
Looking for other Summer ice cream recipes? Here are some favorites:
No Churn Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream
Homemade Strawberry Shortcake Ice Cream Bars
Creamy Vegan Chocolate Fudge Pops
Blackberry Lavender Ice Cream Sandwiches
Lastly, if you make this Strawberry Pretzel Ice Cream Cake, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Strawberry Pretzel Ice Cream Cake
Servings: 8
Calories Per Serving: 971 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 cup mini salted pretzels
- 15 gingersnap cookies
- 6 tablespoons salted butter, melted
- 5 cups vanilla ice cream
- 4 cups strawberry ice cream
- 1 cup strawberry jam
- 1 cup sliced fresh strawberries
Instructions
- 1. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper.2. In a food processor, pulse the pretzels and gingersnaps into fine crumbs. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture holds together when pinched. Press into the bottom of the pan. Freeze 15 minutes. 3. Scoop 4 cups vanilla ice cream out onto the frozen crust. Flatten/spread into a mostly evenly layer. Freeze 30 minutes. 4. In a bowl, gently swirl together the strawberry ice cream and strawberry jam. Spread onto the vanilla layer. Freeze for 30 minutes more.5. Take a 1/2 cup of vanilla ice cream and flatten/spread onto the strawberry layer. Top with sliced strawberries. Wrap the cake and freeze 4 hours or until frozen.5. Remove the cake from the freezer. Use the parchment paper to lift the cake out of the pan. Let sit 5 minutes. Slice and enjoy immediately.
Notes
No Food Processor: If you do not have a food processor just add the cookies to a large ziplock bag and use a rolling pin to smash the cookies into crumbs. Or simply crush them by stepping all over the bag!
Could i make this in a spring form pan?
Hi Vicki,
Sure, that would work well for you! Let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xT
OMG, best family dessert ever! All of my company asked me for the recipe. It was so pretty to serve and tasted even better than it looked. One guest suggested that I add another layer of the crushed pretzels and ginger snaps in the middle of the layers. I know I will be making this dessert over and over again. Thank you for inspiring me to try your recipes.
Hi Leslie,
Awesome!!😎 Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try and sharing your feedback, so glad to hear it turned out well for you! xT
My crust didn’t work so well, not sure why. It didn’t set up except for what was directly under the ice cream.
And it looked like a lot of crust .. I missed where I should have some left to sprinkle on top. Oh well.
Hi Evangelina,
Thanks for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback! Sorry to hear you had issues with the crust! Let me know if there is anything that I can help with! xx
This was really delicious!! I made this today for my daughter’s 24th birthday! Her and her friends loved it! So refreshing after a big celebratory dinner. Thank you for posting! ❤️❤️
Hey Julie,
Happy Sunday!!🏖️🌤️ I appreciate you making this recipe and sharing your feedback, so glad to hear that it turned out well for you! Happy Birthday to your daughter! xT
This cake was a HUGE crowd pleaser!! I’ve been eyeing it up waiting for a time to make it and it was the perfect addition to our Memorial Day party. Had several people ask for the recipe and definitely kid-approved, they asked for several servings haha! I’ve never tried Tillamook ice cream and it is a must, so creamy and easy to spread. Will definitely be making again soon!!!
Hey Kelly,
Fantastic!! I love to hear that this recipe was a winner, thanks for trying it out! Have a great week:)
I’ve had my eye on this one for a while, I finally made it last night for a pizza party with 3 other families. It was soooo good! Everyone liked it! It was easy to make too! I’ll absolutely be making this again!
Hi Kelly,
Happy Sunday! 😃 Thanks a bunch for trying this recipe out, so glad to hear it turned out well for you! xx
I haven’t made it yet but it looks delicious. How long do you think I can store it in the freezer?
Hi Nikki,
You could freeze for up to 3 months. Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love this recipe! xx
Wonderful! What a super idea to mix jam with ice cream, created a surprise for the taste buds. And the crust was delicious. I could not locate ginger snaps so used a similar cookie and added a bit of ginger. For Thanksgiving my husband requested a slight variation: strawberry with caramel instead of the jam.
Hey Diane,
Awesome!! 🍂 I love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks a bunch for trying it out! xx
Made this for a spring get together but used biscoff biscuits with pretzels in the base… soooooo good!! And so so easy really. I’m a fan of chocolate desserts but this is so perfect for the warm weather and such a hit. Only other change which has been mentioned is to slice fresh strawberries over the top just before serving rather than freezing them and then crumbled a bit of biscoff biscuit over the top too. Will definitely make again thanks Teighan.
Hey Dee,
Awesome! I am so glad to hear that this recipe was tasty for you, thanks for making it! Hope you’re off to a great weekend! xx
I made this recipe for an end of summer get together, and every single person raved about it! I’ve already received request to make it again ? I followed the suggestions and used Tillamook vanilla bean and Oregon Strawberry ice cream. It makes a HUGE difference. I had never had Tillamook ice cream before and it is out of this world delicious. I used store bought jam and it was great, but I will definitely make my own strawberry jam next time as this recipe really deserves it. If you’re thinking about trying this recipe I highly recommend!
Hey Kristen,
Happy Monday!! Thanks a lot for making this cake and sharing your review, I am so glad it was enjoyed! Have a great week! xx
Which jam recipe of yours did you use? The jam with the honey and bourbon or the maple syrup?
Hi Melissa,
I used the recipe with maple syrup:) Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love this recipe! xT
I’ve made this twice this summer. Everyone loved it! The crust is fantastic. Such a yummy, easy and flavorful dessert.
Thank you, this is one of my favorites.
Hey Diana,
Thanks so much for making this dish and sharing your review, I am so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Have a great weekend:) xx
So easy but so good! Definitely use quality ice cream (i.e. Tillamook) to make the difference. The combination of the ginger snaps and pretzels in the crust is a real winner. And a beautiful cake to boot!
Hi Blayre,
Amazing!! I love to hear that this recipe was tasty, thanks so much for making it and sharing your review:) xTieghan
I made my ice cream homemade with a no churn cream base and it was so good! Just takes a little longer to make sure they you freeze the layers. Absolutely recommend with a homemade version. It was stunning and this girl knows what she is talking about with the rest of the recipe! So so good!
Hey Mary,
Amazing!! I am so excited to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks for making it! Have a great weekend☀️
Can you share the strawberry jam recipe??
Hi Hannah,
Here is my recipe for strawberry jam:
https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/strawberry-jam-dutch-baby/
I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xx
Ok this was delicious but I have to agree that topping with the strawberries then fessing does not work when going to serve. Even after letting it sit out the strawberries are frozen on top and are crunchy. I would prefer to leave them off and just cut fresh strawberries when serving. Next time I make this I would also add a chocolate fudge layer for fun since I love chocolate. I love your recipes always a hit!
Hi Alissa,
Happy Friday! Thanks a ton for giving this recipe a try, I am so glad it was a hit! Thanks for sharing your feedback on the strawberries! ?Tieghan
Could you recommend a different cookie other than gingersnaps? My family doesn’t care for them but really want to try this, it looks amazing!
You could use vanilla wafers. 🙂
Hey Lori,
Graham crackers would also be great to use! I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xx