Description
Vintage Cherries in the Snow is a classic, no-bake dessert featuring light angel food cake cubes layered with a creamy, sweetened cream cheese and Cool Whip mixture, topped with luscious cherry pie filling. This chilled dessert is perfect for potlucks, holiday gatherings, or anytime you want a refreshing and nostalgic treat that’s easy to prepare ahead of time.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 14 ounces store-bought angel food cake, cut into 1-inch cubes
- 2 blocks cream cheese (8 ounces each), softened to room temperature
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract or almond extract
- 1 tub Cool Whip (16 ounces), thawed
- 2 cans cherry pie filling (21 ounces each)
Instructions
- Prepare Angel Food Cake: Cut the angel food cake into 1-inch cubes and spread them evenly in a 9×13-inch baking pan to form the base layer of the dessert.
- Beat Cream Cheese: In a large bowl, beat the softened cream cheese until it becomes completely smooth and creamy, ensuring there are no lumps.
- Add Sugar and Extract: Add the powdered sugar and your choice of vanilla or almond extract to the cream cheese, then beat again for about one minute until fully combined and smooth.
- Fold in Cool Whip: Gently fold the thawed Cool Whip into the cream cheese mixture until it is well blended, creating a light and fluffy cream layer.
- Combine Cake and Cream Mixture: Pour the cream cheese mixture over the angel food cake cubes. Gently fold everything together to combine, then spread it out evenly in the pan to create the middle layer.
- Add Cherry Topping: Evenly spread the cherry pie filling over the top of the cream cheese and cake mixture, forming the bright and fruity top layer.
- Chill: Cover the dessert and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or preferably overnight, to allow the flavors to meld and the dessert to set properly before serving.
Notes
- For best results, use fully thawed Cool Whip and room temperature cream cheese to avoid lumps.
- The dessert improves with time, so refrigerating overnight is recommended.
- You can substitute the cherry pie filling with other fruit pie fillings like blueberry or peach for variation.
- Serve chilled and slice into squares for neat portions.
- Use either vanilla or almond extract depending on flavor preference.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: No-Cook
- Cuisine: American
