Woolworth Icebox Cheesecake Recipe is a light and fluffy, no-bake dessert with a hint of lemon flavor on top of a graham cracker crust. I also have a Strawberry Icebox Cheesecake version!
Woolworth Icebox Cheesecake Recipe
Most people over a certain age have probably heard of, or even visited, a Woolworth store. It started out as a five-and-dime store, selling things that only cost 5 or 10 cents until it became a popular department store. And, the lunch counter was an added attraction, serving food, including its famous Icebox Cheesecake Recipe.
Woolworth Icebox Cheesecake Ingredients
There are two parts to this no-bake dessert–the graham cracker crust and the light filling.
Graham Crackers: You can buy graham cracker crumbs to use for the crust (about 2 cups). Or, you could crush sheets of graham crackers. You will need about 14 full sheets of graham crackers for 2 cups of crumbs.
Cream Cheese: Be sure the cream cheese is at room temperature when creaming with the sugar.
Jello Mix: The lemon-flavored box of jello mix gives the dessert just a hint of lemon flavor (but not even close to overwhelming). You could even try other flavors of jello!
Water: You will use both boiling water (212°F) and cold water (55°F) for the filling.
Evaporated Milk: Evaporated milk is super-concentrated milk that helps give the dessert filling its creamy texture. It should not be confused with sweetened condensed milk, which has added sugar. They should not be used interchangeably in recipes. Be sure to chill the can of evaporated milk in the freezer for about 30 minutes before using.
Do I Have to Freeze Icebox Cheesecake Recipe?
No, you don’t have to freeze this dessert, even with Icebox in the name. In fact, an icebox used to refer to a non-mechanical ‘refrigerator’ before we had electric refrigerators. So, you do have to store the cheesecake in the refrigerator (covered, for up to a week), but no need to make room in your freezer. The only freezing needed with this recipe is to chill the bowl and whisk attachment of a stand mixer.
What if My Evaporated Milk Does Not Form Peaks?
If you looked at the recipe below, you may notice the first instruction is to chill the bowl of a stand mixer, the whisk attachment, and the can of evaporated milk. If you are finding that the evaporated milk is not forming peaks, you can place the entire bowl with the contents into the freezer for 15-30 minutes and then re-whip. You’ll know it is ready to whip again when there are ice crystals on the bowl. Do not leave it longer than 30 minutes.
Evaporated milk has a lower fat content compared to whipping cream, so it’s harder to whip. This is why chilling is so important.
How Does it Taste?
Heaven. Seriously! It is light as air and melts into a velvety cloud of creamy deliciousness in your mouth. It’s almost like a “cloud cheesecake”. The lemon is so subtle, if you hadn’t made it you almost wouldn’t be able to detect it is there! This dessert is worth making and there is a reason it is so famous!
More No-Bake Cheesecake Desserts
Woolworth Icebox Cheesecake Recipe
Ingredients
Crust
- 2 cups (14-16 sheets, 168 g) honey graham crackers, finely crushed
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- ½ cup (1 stick / 113g) butter, melted
Filling
- 1 block (8 ounces) cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 box (3 ounces) lemon jello mix
- ½ cup boiling water, about 212°F
- ½ cup cold water, about 50°F
- 1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk, chilled in freezer for 30 minutes
Instructions
- Chill the bowl of a stand mixer, the whisk attachment, and the can of evaporated milk in the freezer for at least 30 minutes. (This will help get peaks when whipping the evaporated milk.) Do not skip this step.
Crust
- Lightly spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, add graham crackers and sugar and mix together.
- Add melted butter and mix until all ingredients are fully incorporated (no dry spots).
- Reserve ¼ cup of the graham cracker mixture and set aside.
- Press the remaining crumbs firmly into the bottom of the prepared 9×13-inch baking dish. Set aside.
Filling
- In a medium bowl cream together cream cheese and sugar with a hand mixer. Add vanilla and mix until well blended (2-3 minutes). Set aside.
- In a separate large bowl, add jello mix and boiling water. Whisk until the jello mix dissolves (1-2 minutes). Add cold water and set the mixture in the refrigerator for a few minutes while you prepare the rest of the filling, but do not let the gelatin set.
- To a stand mixer, add the chilled bowl and whisk attachment. Add the evaporated milk and mix on high until soft peaks form (about 5 minutes).
- Add the jello mixture and continue to whisk for 30 more seconds.
- Add cream cheese mixture and whisk for 30 more seconds.
- Pour mixture into the pan and top with the reserved graham cracker mixture.
- Chill overnight before serving.
Did you make this recipe?
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Hello..thank you for this recipe. I’ve been searching for it for a while. I was raised on this desert but my grandma always used Kellogg corn flake crust vs Graham crackers and once you try it you’ll hardly ever want graham cracker crust again..at least we didn’t. This desert is so addicting and light that our family literally could eat the entire pan by evening plus I have all of those memories of my mom making this for her bridge club parties. My mom always doubled the cornflake crust and it was perfect. Hope others enjoy this as much as we do today. With my mom passing in 2014 and my grandmother in the late 90s..when I make this recipe it always brings back so many memories❤ such a good thing!
Horrible. Followed the directions to the letter. The evap milk NEVER got to peaks, even after the instructional chilling. The gelatin never ‘got thicker’. The only thing that worked was the graham racker crust. The rest was ‘soupy’. Even chilled the end result for hours. No difference. Not even worth serving as a gelatin or pudding cup.
What a waste of money/product. Never again.
If the evaporated milk didn’t reach peaks it won’t work. That is an important part of the recipe.
What if My Evaporated Milk Does Not Form Peaks?
If you looked at the recipe below, you may notice the first instruction is to chill the bowl of a stand mixer, the whisk attachment, and the can of evaporated milk. If you are finding that the evaporated milk is not forming peaks, you can place the entire bowl with the contents into the freezer for 15-30 minutes and then re-whip. You’ll know it is ready to whip again when there are ice crystals on the bowl. Do not leave it longer than 30 minutes.
Evaporated milk has a lower fat content compared to whipping cream, so it’s harder to whip. This is why chilling is so important.
You cannot use low fat evaporated milk or cream cheese.
The low fat evaporated milk will not whip.
I have made this many times. You can use sugar free jello & Splenda in it as well.
I remember my grandmother and mother making this years ago ! I was excited to see it. I took it to the mission I direct and shared w volunteers I had to send copies of recipe out to them ! I also realized sugar free jello .. yes even other than lemon … could be used . And a mix of sugar and sugar substitute to help cake bc more diabetic friendly
Thx for the memories… and deliciousness
Original recipe called for Milnot evaporated milk.
Made this last week for an American Legion event. The Veterans I work with enjoyed it very much. This recipe is very easy to make, just follow the tips/directions. Looking forward to trying different flavors of Jello too. I didn’t grow up with recipe, but will keep it in my family.
I remember getting this dessert at Woolworth !!!!! so delicious!!!!!
I have noticed on pintrest some recipes say substitute whipping cream for for the evaporated milk. Have you tried this? Do you think whipping cream will make a very different dessert? Or it will be close enough in taste? Also, evaporated milk has a slight caramel flavor that fresh cream does not. I want to give this one a go as summer is approaching. Thanks! PS I just recently found your blog and have been binging out right. I have prepared some of your soups and they have been spot on.👍❤️
So sorry this didn’t work for you, Geoffrey. Please give it another try — as per the directions, chill the can of milk, chill the bowl, chill the beaters and make sure the jello is set to kind of egg white consistency and you should be successful. I made mine in a 10 inch spring form pan and it was kind of jiggly when I put it into the fridge, but the next day it was firm and delicious. Even my sister, who usually makes the “Sara Lee” style cheese cake with the sour cream on top, loved this one. It’s especially good for the summer — no hot oven necessary!
My mother made this all the time. She always made it with cherry jello rather than lemon. At our house, it’s called Grandma’s Cheese Cake. I make it and my grandkids love it.
My mother has made this cake for years but used orange jello instead, absolutely delicious. We call it gobble gobble cheese cake for some reason. I always put evaporated milk in the fridge the day before so it’s good and cold. They only time it didn’t work was because I used no fat evaporated milk and low fat cream cheese. To soupy. It works with the 2% evaporated milk though.