Are you looking for the ultimate easy, crowd-pleasing dessert for your next summer party, potluck, or family gathering? A dessert that’s light, creamy, bursting with fresh strawberries, and requires absolutely no time spent with a hot oven? This dreamy, delicious, and incredibly simple Strawberry Angel Food Dessert is the perfect, stress-free solution you’ve been searching for.
This isn’t just a dessert; it’s a taste of pure, light, and airy bliss. Often called a “strawberry lush” or an “icebox cake,” this recipe layers fluffy angel food cake with a cool and creamy no-bake cheesecake filling, all topped with a vibrant, glossy layer of fresh strawberries. It’s a guaranteed showstopper that tastes like a strawberry cloud and comes together with just a few simple, convenient ingredients.
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Recipe Overview: The Perfect Potluck Dessert
What makes this Strawberry Angel Food Dessert a go-to for any occasion is its incredible ease and its light, refreshing flavor. This is a true no-bake masterpiece that relies on smart shortcuts like a store-bought angel food cake and jarred strawberry glaze to create a stunning, layered dessert with minimal effort. It’s the perfect make-ahead treat that is always the first to disappear at any party.
| Metric | Time / Level |
| Total Time | 1 hour 20 minutes (includes chilling) |
| Active Prep Time | 15 minutes |
| Difficulty Level | Easy |
| Servings | 18 |
The Essential Ingredients for This Easy Dessert
This recipe uses a handful of convenient, easy-to-find ingredients to create a dessert that is bursting with classic strawberries and cream flavor.
- Angel Food Cake: The light-as-a-cloud foundation of our dessert. Using a store-bought, 10-inch angel food cake is the ultimate shortcut that makes this a true no-bake recipe. Its light, airy, and spongy texture is perfect for soaking up a little of the creamy flavor from the other layers.
- The No-Bake Cheesecake Layer: This simple, foolproof combination creates our light, fluffy, and perfectly stable filling.
- Softened Cream Cheese: Provides a wonderful, tangy flavor that perfectly balances the sweetness of the other ingredients, giving the layer a delicious cheesecake-like taste.
- White Sugar: Lends the perfect amount of sweetness to the creamy filling.
- Frozen Whipped Topping (like Cool Whip): This is what makes the cheesecake layer incredibly light, airy, and stable. It ensures the dessert sets up beautifully and holds its shape when sliced.
- Fresh Strawberries: The star of the show! A full quart of fresh, ripe, and juicy strawberries provides the beautiful color and sweet, summery flavor that makes this dessert so irresistible.
- Jarred Strawberry Glaze: This is another fantastic shortcut. A jar of pre-made strawberry glaze, found in the baking or produce aisle, gives the fresh strawberries a beautiful, glossy shine and helps the topping set into a perfect, sliceable layer.
Bonus: Easy 3-Ingredient Homemade Strawberry Glaze
If you can’t find jarred glaze or prefer to make your own, it’s easy!
- In a small saucepan, mash 1 cup of your sliced strawberries with 1/2 cup of sugar and 2 tablespoons of cornstarch.
- Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture has thickened and become translucent, about 5-7 minutes.
- Let it cool slightly before tossing with the remaining fresh strawberries.
Step-by-Step to the Dreamiest Dessert
This recipe is incredibly simple and is all about the easy assembly of delicious layers.
Step 1: Prepare the Angel Food Cake Base
First, take your store-bought angel food cake and cut or crumble it into bite-sized, 1- to 2-inch pieces.
Arrange the cake pieces in an even layer in the bottom of a 9×13-inch dish. Once arranged, gently press down on the cake pieces with your hands or a spatula to form a relatively flat and even foundation layer.
Step 2: Make the Fluffy No-Bake Cheesecake Layer
In a medium bowl, combine the two packages of softened cream cheese and the 1 cup of white sugar.
Pro Tip: For a perfectly smooth, lump-free cheesecake filling, it is absolutely essential that your cream cheese is at room temperature and truly softened. This allows it to whip up into a light and creamy consistency without any lumps.
Beat the cream cheese and sugar together with an electric hand mixer (or in a stand mixer) on medium-high speed until the mixture is light, fluffy, and completely smooth.
Next, add the thawed frozen whipped topping to the cream cheese mixture. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold the whipped topping in until it is just combined and no white streaks remain. This gentle folding technique keeps the mixture light and airy.
Carefully spread this fluffy cheesecake mixture in an even layer over the angel food cake base in your dish.
Step 3: Create the Glossy Strawberry Topping
In a separate large bowl, combine the 1 quart of fresh, sliced strawberries and the 18-ounce jar of strawberry glaze.
Gently stir them together until all the strawberry slices are evenly and beautifully coated in the glossy glaze.
Step 4: Assemble and Chill Your Masterpiece
Carefully spoon the glazed strawberry mixture over the cream cheese layer, spreading it out evenly to cover the entire surface.
Cover the dish with plastic wrap and place it in the refrigerator to chill until it is set and the flavors have had a chance to meld. It should chill for at least 1 hour, but it’s even better if you can let it chill for 3-4 hours.
When you are ready to serve, simply cut the chilled dessert into squares and enjoy!
Dreamy No-Bake Strawberry Angel Food Dessert
A simple, no-bake layered dessert, often called a ‘strawberry delight’ or ‘icebox cake’. This recipe features a base of crumbled, store-bought angel food cake pressed into a 9×13-inch dish. The cake is topped with a rich and fluffy layer made from beaten cream cheese, sugar, and thawed whipped topping. The final layer consists of fresh sliced strawberries coated in a pre-made strawberry glaze. The entire dessert is chilled until firm before serving.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours 20 minutes (includes chilling time)
- Yield: 18 servings 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: No-Bake, Layering, Chilling
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 1 (10 inch) angel food cake
- 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 (8 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
- 1 quart fresh strawberries, sliced
- 1 (18 ounce) jar strawberry glaze
Instructions
- Crumble or cut the angel food cake into bite-sized pieces and arrange them in the bottom of a 9×13-inch dish. Press down gently to form a solid layer.
- In a medium bowl, beat the softened cream cheese and sugar with an electric mixer until the mixture is light and fluffy.
- Gently fold the thawed whipped topping into the cream cheese mixture until combined.
- Spread the cream cheese mixture evenly over the angel food cake layer.
- In a separate bowl, combine the sliced strawberries and the strawberry glaze, stirring until the strawberries are evenly coated.
- Spread the strawberry and glaze mixture over the cream cheese layer.
- Chill the dessert in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours, or until the layers are set, before serving.
Notes
- This is a no-bake recipe that relies on several convenience ingredients (store-bought cake, whipped topping, glaze) for quick and easy assembly.
- Ensure the cream cheese is fully softened to room temperature to achieve a smooth, lump-free filling.
- Chilling the dessert is a crucial step that allows the layers to set and the flavors to meld together.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 280-350
- Sugar: 35-45 g
- Sodium: 250-350 mg
- Fat: 12-18 g
- Saturated Fat: 8-12 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 40-50 g
- Fiber: 1-2 g
- Protein: 3-5 g
- Cholesterol: 30-45 mg
Storage and Make-Ahead Tips
This Strawberry Angel Food Dessert is the perfect make-ahead dessert, which makes it absolutely ideal for parties, potlucks, and holidays.
- Make-Ahead: You can, and should, make this dessert ahead of time! It needs at least an hour to chill and set, but the flavor and texture are even better when it’s made 4 to 24 hours in advance. This gives the layers time to meld together perfectly.
- Storage: Store any leftovers, tightly covered, in the refrigerator. It will stay fresh and delicious for up to 3 days.
- Freezing: This dessert does not freeze well, as the texture of the angel food cake and the fresh strawberries can become mushy upon thawing. It is best enjoyed fresh from the refrigerator.
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Creative Recipe Variations
This simple, layered dessert formula is a wonderful template for all sorts of delicious fruit creations.
- Mixed Berry Angel Food Dessert: For a beautiful and delicious twist, swap the all-strawberry topping for a mix of your favorite berries. Use a combination of fresh strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries for a stunning “fruits of the forest” version.
- Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Version: For the chocolate lovers, you can use a store-bought chocolate angel food cake as the base. Before serving, drizzle the top of the finished dessert with a melted chocolate syrup or a hot fudge sauce for a decadent chocolate-strawberry combination.
- Peaches and Cream Angel Food Dessert: For a perfect late-summer variation, swap the strawberries for 4 cups of fresh, peeled and sliced peaches, and use a jar of peach or apricot glaze instead of the strawberry glaze.
Enjoy Your Light and Luscious Dessert!
You’ve just created a wonderfully light, refreshing, and incredibly easy dessert that is sure to be a massive hit wherever you serve it. This Strawberry Angel Food Dessert is a celebration of simple, classic flavors and is the perfect no-stress treat for any occasion. It’s a dreamy, creamy, and beautiful dish that will have everyone asking for the recipe.
We hope you and your loved ones enjoy every single, cloud-like bite!
If you enjoyed making this recipe, please leave a comment below or share it with a friend who loves an easy, no-bake dessert!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q1: Can I make this dessert in a trifle bowl instead of a 9×13 dish?
Yes, absolutely! This dessert is stunning when assembled in a glass trifle bowl, as it allows you to see all the beautiful layers. Simply create the same layers—cake, cream cheese mixture, and strawberry topping—in the trifle bowl. You may want to repeat the layers (cake, cream, strawberries, then cake, cream, strawberries again) to fill the bowl beautifully.
Q2: Can I use fresh, homemade whipped cream instead of frozen whipped topping?
You can, but the cheesecake layer will not be as stable. Frozen whipped topping (like Cool Whip) contains stabilizers that help the dessert set up firmly and hold its shape for several days. If you use real whipped cream, the filling will have a much softer, more mousse-like texture and the dessert is best served the same day it is made.
Q3: How far in advance can I make this dessert for a party?
This is a perfect make-ahead party dessert. You can assemble it completely up to 24 hours in advance. Keeping it in the refrigerator overnight allows the flavors to meld and the layers to set up perfectly, making it even easier to slice and serve to a crowd.
Q4: Can I use frozen strawberries instead of fresh?
It is highly recommended to use fresh strawberries for the best texture. Frozen strawberries will release a lot of excess water as they thaw, which can make the topping and the entire dessert watery. If you must use frozen strawberries, you should thaw them completely and drain them very, very well before mixing them with the glaze.
Q5: Is there a way to make the cheesecake layer a little tangier?
Yes. If you love a tangier cheesecake flavor to balance the sweetness, you can add the finely grated zest of one lemon to the cream cheese and sugar mixture before beating it. The lemon zest will add a wonderful, bright note that complements the strawberries beautifully.