No Bake Birthday Cake
A no-bake birthday cake layered with vanilla sandwich cookies, a silky cream cheese vanilla pudding filling loaded with rainbow sprinkles, and a billowy whipped topping finish. Festive, creamy, completely oven-free, and even better after a full overnight chill.
- Total Time4 hours 15 minutes
- Yield9 servings 1x
Ingredients
The Cake
- 1 box (14.3 oz / 405g) vanilla sandwich cookies
- 8 oz (225g) cream cheese, fully softened
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1 box (3.4 oz / 96g) instant vanilla pudding mix
- 1 1/2 cups (350ml) cold milk
- 1 teaspoon (5ml) vanilla extract
- 8 oz (225g) frozen whipped topping, thawed and divided in half
- 1/3 cup (55g) rainbow sprinkles, plus extra for garnish
Instructions
- Line the Dish: Line an 8×8-inch square dish completely with plastic wrap, letting the excess hang over all four sides for easy removal later.
- Beat Cream Cheese and Sugar: In a large mixing bowl, beat the softened cream cheese and granulated sugar together with a handheld mixer until perfectly smooth, fluffy, and lump-free, about 1–2 minutes.
- Make the Pudding: In a separate bowl, whisk the instant vanilla pudding mix and cold milk together for 2 minutes until thickened and glossy.
- Combine the Mixtures: Fold the thickened pudding and vanilla extract into the cream cheese mixture until completely smooth and unified with no streaks.
- Fold in Whipped Topping and Sprinkles: Gently fold half (4 oz) of the whipped topping into the pudding mixture until light and airy. Fold in the rainbow sprinkles until evenly distributed.
- Layer One — Cookies: Arrange a single, tight, even layer of vanilla sandwich cookies across the entire bottom of the prepared dish with no gaps.
- Layer One — Filling: Spread half of the sprinkle cream mixture evenly over the cookie layer all the way to the edges.
- Layer Two — Repeat: Add a second layer of vanilla sandwich cookies, then spread the remaining filling evenly over the top.
- Top With Whipped Topping: Spread the remaining whipped topping in an even, billowy layer across the entire surface of the cake.
- Chill, Garnish, and Serve: Cover and refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours, or overnight. Just before serving, scatter extra rainbow sprinkles over the top. Lift out using the plastic wrap overhang, transfer to a platter, and slice into squares.
Notes
Cream cheese must be fully softened — pull it from the fridge at least 1 hour ahead. Use cold milk for the pudding; warm milk prevents proper thickening. Fold, do not stir, the whipped topping. Line the dish with plastic wrap for clean removal and even slicing. Overnight chilling is strongly preferred over the 4-hour minimum — the cookies soften into tender, cake-like layers. Add the final garnish sprinkles just before serving to prevent colour bleeding. Keeps refrigerated for up to 3 days.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Calories: 310
- Sodium: 260
- Saturated Fat: 7
- Protein: 3
- Cholesterol: 25
