Icebox Fruitcake
This old-fashioned icebox fruitcake recipe is a traditional holiday dessert for my family and many here in the South. This deliciously dense cake is overflowing with decadent ingredients, like graham cracker crumbs, pecans, maraschino cherries, and mini marshmallows.
This classic icebox fruitcake recipe is one of those simple things that have always made holidays special in our family. Every Thanksgiving and Christmas you would find one on my grandmother’s table, and now I get the opportunity to share her delicious recipe with y’all.
Fortunately, it’s so easy to make this Southern icebox fruitcake. The most challenging part is using a food processor to crush the graham crackers (yep, really). From there, you simply mix together all the ingredients, including raisins, pecans, mini marshmallows, maraschino cherries, and shredded coconut. A can of sweetened condensed milk perfectly brings all the ingredients together.
The best part is that this is a no-bake fruit cake. Yep, once you combine the ingredients, let it chill in the fridge for at least 6 hours. Now, I prefer to make icebox fruitcake bars in a baking dish. But if you’d prefer to make an actual fruitcake, go right on ahead and chill it in a bundt cake pan, round cake pan, or tube pan.
So if you’ve been searching for a holiday dessert you can make ahead of time, look no further. If you’re on the lookout for another enjoyable icebox cake to bake, check out my lemon icebox cake recipe. Or you may like my fruitcake bar cookies. Okay, enough chattin’, let’s get not-baking 😉.
Recipe Ingredients
- Graham crackers
- Pecans
- Maraschino cherries
- Shredded coconut
- Raisins
- Miniature marshmallows
- Sweetened condensed milk
How to Make Icebox Fruitcake
Crush the entire box of graham crackers.
I used my food processor but you can also pop those crackers in a ziplock bag and crush them with a rolling pin.
Coarsely chop pecans.
Chop cherries (saving the cherry juice).
Combine everything in a large mixing bowl.
Mix well.
You may have to use your hands for this. It’s messy but you get to lick your fingers afterward, so it’s totally worth it.
Line a 9×13 baking dish with parchment paper or grease it with butter/cooking spray.
Press the cake batter flat into the prepared pan.
Chill for at least 6 hours and then turn out before cutting into bars.
How good do these icebox fruitcake bars look?
Enjoy!
Storage
- You can store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to one week. The fruitcake will actually get better the longer it sits in your fridge, as the cake soaks up all the delicious flavor.
- You can also freeze leftover fruit cake for up to 3 months. Let it thaw in the fridge overnight and it will be good to serve the next day.
Recipe Notes
- If you miss that rum flavor of a traditional fruitcake, you can add 1 teaspoon of rum extract or dark rum to the mix.
- Don’t hesitate to substitute any of the dried fruit or nuts if you don’t like them. For example, swap pecans for walnuts, or raisins for dried apricots.
- Another great substitution is the graham crackers for crushed vanilla wafers.
- If you can’t get your hands on maraschino cherries, you can use candied cherries or candied holiday fruit instead, and just add a tablespoon of water to the batter if it’s too tough.
Here are more popular holiday dessert recipes:
Easy Pumpkin Pie Recipe From Scratch
Pumpkin Praline Cake With Cream Cheese Icing
Ingredients
- 1 14.4-oz box graham crackers
- 1 cup pecans
- 1 10-oz jar maraschino cherries
- 1 tablespoon cherry juice
- 1 cup raisins
- 1 cup shredded coconut, firmly packed
- 1.5 cups mini marshmallows
- 1 14-oz can sweetened condensed milk
Instructions
- Finely crush graham crackers and coarsely chop pecans and drained cherries.1 14.4-oz box graham crackers, 1 cup pecans, 1 10-oz jar maraschino cherries
- Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl and mix well.1 14.4-oz box graham crackers, 1 cup pecans, 1 10-oz jar maraschino cherries, 1 tablespoon cherry juice, 1 cup raisins, 1 cup shredded coconut, firmly packed, 1.5 cups mini marshmallows, 1 14-oz can sweetened condensed milk
- Turn out into a lightly buttered 9x13 baking dish and press flat into the pan with your hands.
- Chill for at least 6 hours before cutting the fruitcake into bars.
Nutrition
Original icebox fruitcake recipe from Southernbite.com
Remember, if you don’t have Christmas in your heart, you won’t find it under a tree.
This is very similar to one I found written into the crack of a 1946 cookbook. I plan on making it this year.
So far you are batting a 1000!!! I have been trying many of your recipes and none have been mediocre. All have been great. I will try this one after work today.
Many many thanks for your hard work.
Ditto this. I have never tried a recipe from this blog that my family and I didn’t love!
Do you melt the marshmallows?
This sounds like a fruit cake that i might actually enjoy! Thanks!!!!!
Ooh, that looks so yummy. And considerably less work than a traditional fruitcake. I want to run to the store and buy the ingredients right now!
Thank you so much for sharing your story and the recipe.My mother in law use to make one that was very similar with the dried candied fruit,and it was good but I always found it too sweet..this one sounds delish..love marachino cherries much better.Hope I get to make one this week.If not it will definitely go in my recipe file! Merry Christmas!
Can you still buy the candied fruit? That’s what I remember…
You should be able to find the fruitcake mix at your grocery store. If you have a WalMart they sell it. It is impossible to find candied fruit anytime except at the Thanksgiving/Christmas season. If you find some on sale after Christmas, you can also freeze it. I have had it in my freezer from one season until the next and ot was still good.
My husband’s mother always made this fruitcake, or one very similar. And, it was the ONLY fruitcake that I ever liked. Thanks for the memories.
I loved your story! It reminds me of where these recipes came from, and that there are still people out there (like me) that are enjoying them every holiday. It’s still a family tradition to make my grandmothers fruitcake recipe every Thanksgiving and Christmas, (it’s my and my sons favorite!) My mother made it when us kids were growing up and now as the eldest I proudly make it myself. My grandmothers recipe is a lot like this one, but just a bit different; Melt 1 stick butter, add 1 bag large marshmallows and stir til melted over low heat. Turn off heat and quickly add 1 box graham cracker crumbs, 16oz. halved pecans, a large box of raisins, and a jar of halved cherries. Blend together after each addition while mixture is still warm. Be sure and add cherries last so they aren’t ripped apart. Once blended, turn the fruitcake mixture into a Fluted Bundt Pan that’s been sprayed with nonstick spray. Press down hard to mold the fruitcake mixture into the pan. Refrigerate 1 hour. To easily get the completed fruitcake out of the pan, dip the bottom of the pan into hot water for a minute and it’ll come out pretty easily. I always turn mine out onto a glass cake stand and it’s easily the centerpiece of the dessert table! There’s something about the cherries on the top of the fluted design that just makes this fruitcake glisten! Trust me, people who don’t like traditional fruitcake will LOVE this recipe, (just remind them that there aren’t any candied cherries/pineapple/etc. in it if they resist!)
This is almost like the recipe I have – butter instead of milk (condensed or evap).
I received this recipe many years ago but have never made it but I recall how good a “fruitcake” can taste. The recipe I have you put the mixture back in the graham cracker box lined with wax paper – saves a dish and can be sliced like a loaf.
I will definitely give it a try – Thanks and Merry Christmas
Linda, I was just thinking the same thing about the box being the container for the cake. My grandmother has made this for years, but she uses vanilla wafers and puts it back in the box. It is delicious, and will always remind me of her.
My grandmother did the same thing – Nilla Wafers and back in the bag it went! It is the ONLY fruitcake that I will eat!
I was searching for a specific fruitcake taste when I ran across this recipe. After all these years, I found it in this marvelous ice box fruitcake, recipe. It’s so good, you CAN’T stay out of it. I will spread the word. Thanks you so much!
My mother made this and we rolled it and sliced. Best if kept in refrig and served cold!
My grandmother passed this recipe down but we soaked the marshmallows in evaporated milk then added the cherries dates raisins nuts gram crackers crumbs and rolled it in to loafs
Was I supposed to use condensed milk
Please write this recipe! I’ve looked all over Google and can’t find. Where you make the fruitcake and put back in the box! My dad did this for years and I’m really wanting to make it this year!! Please help, Anyone!