A Very Special No-Bake Speculoos Cake

By Anna Monette Roberts

Speculoos is having a resurgence, mostly due to Trader Joe's Speculoos Cookie Butter, based on the very popular Dutch treat. Though the crispy cinnamon and brown sugar cookies remind me of the holiday season, the flavor translates exceptionally well in an icebox cake, essentially layers of cookie and whipped cream. The cake is refrigerated overnight, and the moisture of the whipped cream softens the cookies so they taste like "cake."

This cake requires little prep work and is ideal for those bearing the heat of Summer, because no oven is involved.

The cookies almost take on a ladyfinger-like consistency, and the whipped cream firms up, so it's like eating frosting. Feel free to double the recipe to create a taller, more dramatic cake. It'll go quick!

Speculoos Icebox Cake

Yield8 to 12 servings

Inspired by Old-Fashioned Icebox Cake

INGREDIENTS

    • 2 cups heavy cream
    • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
    • 2 (7-ounce) packages speculoos cookies, like Trader Joe's or Biscoff
    • Ground cinnamon, for garnish

    INSTRUCTIONS

    1. In a large bowl, beat cream and sugar with a whisk or an electric mixer on high speed until soft peaks form.

    2. On a flat serving plate, arrange 9 cookies side by side in a circle, keeping 1 cookie in the center.

    3. Spread about 1/2 cup whipped cream over the cookies, making a circle. Repeat with remaining cookies and cream, making around 5 layers of cookies. End with a layer of cream. Garnish with ground cinnamon.

    4. Cover with a cake caddy, and refrigerate overnight and up to 24 hours, until the cookies completely soften and turn into "cake."