Zebra Cake III

My family has made this recipe since I was a kid but the cookies can be difficult to find. They are called Famous Chocolate Wafers by Nabisco. They come in a Yellow rectangular box and are usually found on the top shelf in the cookie aisle or with the ice cream toppings. Sometimes they are only available around the holidays. The frosted cookies are laid on their side in a long row and then the whole thing is frosted with more whipped cream. This does not work with Cool Whip! It won't soak into the cookies to make the cake-like filling. This recipe is usually a dessert that the kids help with. They make the stacks of frosted cookies and put them on a plate and I put the cookies on a platter in a row. I save any broken cookies and crush them to sprinkle on the top. We always called this Holiday Log. YUM!

I can't explain why this simple cake is so good, but it just is! Don't question it! I made the original version but sprinkled Starbucks instant coffee over the top instead of grated chocolate. REALLY yummy. For variety the 2nd time around, I used Trader Joe's Cookie Thins which are also a wafer cookie just like the chocolate Nabiscos, but they come in different flavors like lemon and coconut. The coconut crisp wafers are buttery and light and make a superb version of this cake. Something so good is usually not this simple. I'm lovin' it.

My Mom and Dad were married just before WWII. Mom made this cake all the time. My sister and I loved it! It is so easy to make. The cookies turn into cake in the frig. Yum!

My recently deceased mother in law used to make this. It made me nostalgic for her wonderful Sunday dinners. I am going to surprise my husband as soon as I can get the wafers. It sounds exactly like her delicious recipe which I had forgotten. Thank you!

For those who have trouble finding the wafers, they are called Famous Chocolate Wafers. A quick Google search turned up online ordering sources and a ubiquitous BigBox store beginning with W. They are made by the Kraft food company. King Arthur Flour has a recipe for homemade wafers.

I never knew this was called zebra cake! Thanks for sharing! This recipe was recently featured in a magazine, but it was done in stacks of 5 cookies, with fruit neatly displayed on top..a very nice and easier-to-serve variation!

I recently watched a video here on allrecipes about how this recipe came about. I totally set out to make it when I came across the chocolate wafer cookies. What a great and easy plea-z recipe. While I thought the vanilla extract was just a tad to much, that's fine because after it sits and melds with the cookies. It should mellow out some. Thanks for sharing this way. I love making fresh whip topping.

I know this is an excellent recipe and I'd love to make it, but I need to know - Where do I find the wafers????? I've looked everywhere I can think of, where can I buy them?

This was my mom's go-to special occasion dessert. We loved it! It's now my kids' favorite. At Christmas, I used peppermint extract in the whipped cream and garnished with crushed peppermint candies. I recently found the choc wafers near ice cream cones and toppings at the grocery store...

I used "World Table Chocolate Cookie Thins" found at Wal-Mart, and they worked perfectly. I also plan to experiment with different flavored World Table cookies (lemon, chocolate mint and chocolate caramel) and different extracts in the whipping cream like almond, peppermint and lemon. This is a creamy dessert that isn't too sweet.

My mom made this a few times when I was young. I had all but forgotten it until one day quite a few years ago, a vague memory popped into my head. I went searching for the cookies that she might have used and found them on the top shelf at the grocery store. I knew they were the right ones because the recipe is still on the box. It is such a quick and easy dessert. Perfect for those who are baking challenged or those who just want to make something quick and easy. Easy enough for a weeknight dinner but the presentation is also nice enough for company. I have made this with thawed, frozen whipped topping and it turned out just fine. Thanks for the memories.

There is really nothing to change in this recipe for authenticity as far as the original goes, nor anything to change to make it better. You do not use gross, fake cool whip, though. It must be whipping cream that you whip. And once it’s assembled, it goes in the freezer, because then it slices like an ice cream cake. Vanilla tastes good in whipped cream, so the amount called for is correct. And finally, it cannot be bitter...unless your whipped cream went bad, lol. THAT will make it bitter, for sure (and that would be gross).

Simply delicious! We normally add almond extract or mint extract (orange or lemon, you get the idea) to the whip cream.

I have been making this cake for the past 50 years. Always a winner!

So easy and so delicious! I make it just as written and there's never a crumb left! But my one daughter doesn't like chocolate so I made a few with vanilla wafers for her and they were pretty good too. I'm a chocaholic, so I will always prefer the original recipe but for those, like my daughter, who either don't like it or are allergic to it, the vanilla wafers offer a good alternative, though I think I will flavor the whipped cream next time to give it a bit more flavor since it's missing the richness of the chocolate.

My mom has been making this for Bday cakes for over 40 yrs. Just made one for my daughters 1st bday last year. Everyone loved it.

I think I am the only reviewer who didn't like this. Maybe it was the chocolate wafers I used but the cake was so bitter we couldn't eat it. There was nothing sweet about this recipe.

Lol... for all the mystery surrounding the coveted WAFFER COOKIES...I am going to kill their specialness, right now. And they are expensive for the little box. I love this whipped dream cake and make it all the time using Nabisco Chocolate Graham Crackers...the exact same flavor. I use an 8 oz tub of cool whip, throw in some chopped cherries out of a jar and layer one packet of them. Always put the cream on the bottom....Crush a few extras for topping effect...and voila. It is not as cute in a flat pan and it needs 3 DAYS IN THE FRIDGE, to soften....use loaf or flat square pan. Serve it in squares and no one will notice the difference. Enjoy!

if you can't find the chocolate wafers, use oreo cookies they sell them without the cream in the middle too ... or my personal fave graham crackers (use less whipped cream between cookies) it's a gingerbread zebra cake instead :)

I have made this recipe since my kids where little, I would form the 1 of year the they turned, so fun, I would decorate it with smarties/fresh fruit or just chocolate shavings. I find the cookies in the baking section at our store. I only use 1 tsp. of vanilla.

Easy, attractive, fun, and tasty! I enjoyed that it wasn't too sweet; however, one family member would have preferred a sweeter whipped cream and commented that the chocolate wafers didn't provide much of a chocolatey flavor.

I think this receipie is super easyy! I just love the ingredients which is not much. But now, i neeed to find the wafers. But definately i m going to make it! And it is vege. No eggs needed.Super! Super! Super!

This recipe was so easy to make and tasted wonderful! My guests enjoyed it a lot!!

Great recipe. Simple, yet looks and tastes like it was a lot of work. I used Anna's chocolate mint thins, a Swedish cookie, I found at my local supermarket. They were on sale, so I thought why not? It was absolutely wonderful. I made it for my Bible study group and everyone loved it!

I needed to make a quick dessert for work but didn’t feel like measuring and baking. This recipe looked easy enough but the cookies are kind of hard to find, a bit small for what I needed and kind of expensive. So, I decided to substitute chocolate graham crackers. I laid out 5 across and did 6 high, doubled the whipped cream, topped each layer with chocolate shavings and refrigerated it overnight. Everyone loved it! People couldn’t believe it was graham crackers and not cake. Comments were that it was light, not too sweet and similar to tiramisu but not as ‘soggy’. Thank you for the recipe idea!

I added peppermint flavor and some green coloring to the whipped cream and and it was a hit. Yes I'll be making it again as one of my easiest desserts. Made it in the last century and kinda forgot about it so was glad to find the recipe again and make it for newer family members.

I was curious about this recipe recipe so I gave it a try. I have to say this was really good, tasted like an ice cream sandwich. Very easy to make for a dessert that has a nice presentation. This would have been five stars but the reason for four stars was because the ingredients were expansive. The only waffers I found were nabisco and they were not cheap.

My favorite dessert for 65 years. Safeway carries the Nabisco wafers

Easy and delicious! Not too sweet and not so much that you’re eating it for days. Will definitely make it again!!

This is a great take along to potlucks and office parties. I shape it as a double, side-by-side log with the cookies assembled on the diagonal. Then it travels better and can be sliced straight across and still get the zebra effect. Yes, the Famous Wafers are hard to find, but supermarkets nowadays often have request cards at the customer service desk. My dad retired with Nabisco, so when I was a kid Famous Wafers were always available to mom.

My mother used to make this years ago. Same recipe. It is an attractive desert that looks unusual.

My mother made this recipe for as long as I can remember. Now I make it for my family. It’s easy and delicious but the ingredients are expensive, especially if you are making it for a big family get-together.

I did not make any changes. I forgot to take a picture because my grandchildren could not wait for me to get the camera. I will get one next time.

My Mom made this when I was a kid and I’m 65 now. It was always so good. She made other icebox cakes but this chocolate was my fav, especially when you had shaved chocolate on top. YUM

My mom use to make this cake and it was the best ever. I plan to make it soon.

Very easy & good!

I have been making this dessert for years. It is made for every holiday dinner. My 23 year old grandson requests it for dessert all the time. In Canada the cookies are Mr. Christie’s chocolate wafers

When I was a kid back in the Stone Age (I'm in my 70s), this was called "ice box cake". Last time I made it, I found the wafers in a Marsh super market, now closed.

It was delicious! The only issue I had, was with the box of cookies I bought...when I picked each one up to frost, they broke into about 5 pieces! It just made the process longer, but it tasted great!

This is as good as I remember from my x mother in law. I doubled the recipe & substituted 1/2 whipped topping. Really good. I froze three shorter stacks: one for me & 2 for friends . I think I'll try pistachios next time. Yum

I tried this a couple times and couldn't get my desired result so I switched out the sugar for sugar free white chocolate Jello pudding mix. It was everything I had been looking for. Thank you so much for the recipe that inspired me!!

I added a little more powdered sugar to the whopped cream - about another tablespoon. Cake turned out nicely. My family enjoyed it.

I found the cookies at our local Dollar Tree! $1.00/pack Going to make it today, what could go wrong with whip cream & chocolate!

I learned to make this from my Mom, she is no longer with us, and I am in my mid 60’s, this is truly is a great dessert. It brought up great memories, going to make it again soon.

I’ve always loved this cake! My grandparents used to make it when I was little, and my cousin brought one over for dessert this last Christmas, which brought me back to the past like my own personal madeleine. I will always choose Nabisco chocolate wafers for Zebra cakes, because they have more salt than any other brand I’ve ever had. Not enough to make it salty, but it makes a big difference in taste!

I’ve been making this since I was a child as my mother and grandmother did. One of my all time favorite desserts. I also make them as individual servings, stacked 3-4 cookies high.

My mama always made this "yule log" at Christmas time. She decorated the top with artificial holly leaves and berries. It looked beautiful and tasted great. Thanks for the memory!

I made this twice. It’s a keeper! Nice light dessert. Kids n adults loved it. I did use heaping spoonfuls of powder sugar. Gonna make again.

My mother made this dessert for special occasions, it was a family favorite. My wife and I would love to be making it ourselves, but the Nabisco wafers are nearly impossible to find, unless you want to pay a fortune for them online. It’s an easy and delicious recipe, but without those special wafers, you’re not going to get the same results.

My mother who was born in 1903 always made it and she called it Icebox Cake as this recipe was popular before electric fridges. I haven't made it for awhile but plan to soon.

This was called ICEBOX CAKE in the 50's. It was a staple of my mother's. Like everybody else who has reviewed this, good luck finding the wafers. It's a wonderful recipe for the summer. No baking.

Delicious! So easy and fun to make! I’m 4 of us devoured it at home and am already getting requests to make it again! Double the recipe and you won’t be disappointed!

I've made this cake for over 30 "years." My husband is a builder and one of our clients invited us over for dinner and yes, this cake was served. I remember it so well, because I went into labor later that night. (Funny the things we remember) Zebra Cake is so impressive and everyone loves it. Another thing is, I was never given a name for it. We called it chocolate cream cake. LOL, until now. I find that if you make this dessert overnight the cookies soften and taste like cake. I also serve mine with strawberries and the broken cookies crumbled on top.

I have made this the Zebra Cake for many years. I made it exactly like the recipe says to make it and it always turned out great. One night I had company and I said to one of the men "what kind of dessert do you like?" He answered "If it's anything like an Oreo cookie, I'll be happy". Well, I guess he couldn't be any happier.

I have been making this recipe for 60!years and it is still one of my family’s favorite. My mother-in-law made a different version of icebox cake. She layered graham crackers in a Pyrex dish with chocolate pudding. I still like the original one better.

We make this at least every month as we celebrate family birthdays. I add a stack on top at one end as well as 3 half wafers on each side and some smarties on top and we call it a train cake. Everyone loves it and it has become a tradition to have a "Train Cake "

I hate to say this but...This cake is beautiful but unfortunately we could not get past the taste of the Nabisco wafers, which I had looked so hard to find. I was very disappointed. The wafers by themselves taste oily and almost bitter, and the whip cream did not mask it even sitting overnight as directed. I would like to try it again with other wafers as some have suggested because it was not hard to make this dessert and it made a very pretty presentation.

I have been making this refrigerator roll for years, as did my mother before me. I use 2 cups of heavy cream and NO sugar. The sugar makes it too sweet. This is a family favorite — even requested for birthdays.

My mother used to make this when I was a child. It’s delicious and SO easy to make!!!

I LOVE icebox cakes! I've always heard of them, but just recently made one for the first time ever. Very similar to this recipe, but the cream is tinted light green (it was a St. Patrick's recipe) and lightly flavored with peppermint. The recipe as written used Oreo style chocolate sandwich cookies. As a diabetic in desperate need of a dessert in which I could lower the carbs, I sweetened the whipped cream with Splenda and used mint flavored Oreo Thins. I also made mine in a smallish round cake pan so it was easier to carry to dinner at a friend's. It was out of this world! Come Thanksgiving /Christmas, I'm going to try one with ginger snaps and mixed whipped cream & buttercream.

Delicious recipe as written. I added fresh cut strawberries.

This is easy to make and AWESOME to eat. I used brownie brittle instead of the cookies because I couldn't find those at the store. I am glad I did, it was amazing.

I made as written except for subbing chocolate grahams for the cookies, which I couldn't find. The whipped cream wasn't as sweet as we would have liked, so I'll increase the sugar next time. Otherwise, great!

everyone loves this but it can be hard to find the chocolate wafer cookies.

So yummy! I had to make more whipped cream to completely cover the cake. Make sure you whip the cream until it is very stiff. The thicker cream makes it easier to frost and construct the cake.

Doubled it because it is so good!

I was excited to make this, but in the end it was just OK-Reasoning is, that I can make a real chocolate cake and frost it with whipped cream and its easier and just as yummy-as this recipe which I found frosting each cookie, kind of tedious, and it really doesn't make a very big dessert when its completed.

this is the way my mother taught me to make it.........still do it the same way.

You need to specify what a chocolate wafer cookie is, or else I can't make it. Is it an Oreo without the filling? Don't know.