The No-Bake Chocolate Dessert That'll Take Boomers Straight Back To Childhood

Many well-loved desserts don't come from fancy restaurants or famous pastry chefs; in fact, the most cherished ones often emerge from simple home kitchens or family recipes handed down for generations. Folks lucky enough to have the influence of a Boomer-born cook know this already, especially when it comes to a category of no-bake desserts known colloquially as "icebox" pies and cakes. One in particular, the Robert Redford Cake, takes Boomers straight back to childhood.

The "icebox" term originated in the days before modern refrigerators, when old-fashioned iceboxes, utilizing huge blocks of ice, kept foods cold and safe. Boomers largely grew up with modern refrigerators, but the no-bake style of cold-set pies and cakes still very much thrived in home kitchens — and still do, especially in the American South. Robert Redford Cake, also known as Chocolate Lush, Chocolate Delight, Chocolate Lasagna, and dozens more monikers, is definitely one of them.

Its roots are a little hard to pin down, but this rich chocolate dessert is widely associated with the 1970s and early 80s, when Robert Redford was becoming one of Hollywood's swoon-worthy leading actors — thus the name. This is the kind of decadently simple, retro refrigerator cake you'll easily find at church socials, neighborhood potlucks, or grandma's Sunday supper table. It's a luxuriously sweet, layered delight built on a pecan-centric crust, one that can be pre-baked or substituted with a no-bake version. 

Varying renditions of this dessert exist, but our own Tasting Table recipe, which goes by the name of Robert Redford Cake, requires nine ingredients, including the crust. Spoiler alert: This creamy, chilly, sweet treat involves a whole lot of pudding. 

So here's what comprises a Robert Redford Cake: Despite it being called a cake, it's actually a layered pudding dessert with a buttery pecan crust on the bottom. In our Tasting Table version by recipe developer Miriam Hahn, it builds up from there with four velvety, sweet layers. The first is a blended mix of softened cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, and whipped topping, followed by a pudding layer made with chocolate instant pudding, then an additional layer of vanilla instant pudding. The grand finale is a thick spread of extra whipped topping on its own. 

About that crust — many classic recipes for Robert Redford Cake, including ours, bake the crust for a short time before the layers pile on. It's typically made with flour, chopped or crushed pecans, melted butter, and salt. If you really want the quickest, simplest Chocolate Lush (aka Robert Redford) cake, feel free to use any no-bake crust recipe, as long as it has the crucial pecans as a primary component.

When all is said and done, this is a genuine 70's-style icebox dessert that goes straight into the refrigerator for chilling and firming before eating. If the mood strikes, toss on some additional toppings per your own imagination. For more throwback desserts from the Boomer generation, check out this citrusy no-bake 1970s dessert that still deserves a spot at the table and this Boomer dessert that stands the test of time.