Carlota de Limón (Lime Icebox Cake)
Published August 5, 2025
Rachel Vanni for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Samantha Seneviratne.
- Total Time
- 4 hours 20 minutes
- Prep Time
- 5 minutes
- Cook Time
- 15 minutes plus 4 hours’ chilling
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
½ cup fresh lime or Key lime juice, plus the zest of 1 lime for serving
1 (7-ounce) sleeve Maria cookies, about 33 cookies, or 1 (11-ounce) box vanilla wafers (such as Nilla)
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 to 8 servings)
51 grams carbs; 31 milligrams cholesterol; 333 calories; 3 grams monosaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 6 grams saturated fat; 12 grams fat; 1 gram fiber; 189 milligrams sodium; 8 grams protein; 40 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
In a small bowl, combine the milks and lime juice and stir or whisk until well combined.
- Step 2
In a 7-cup glass container or 8-inch square baking dish (see Tip), make one even layer with the cookies, breaking them up as necessary to fill the gaps. Reserve any crumbs and smaller bits for decorating the top.
- Step 3
Pour enough of the lime mixture over the top of the cookies until they are just barely covered. You may have to push the cookies down a bit so they are submerged in the lime mixture. Make another cookie layer and proceed until you have 3 or 4 layers and enough lime mixture to cover the last layer of cookies completely.
- Step 4
Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight. When you are ready to serve, decorate the top with the reserved cookie crumbles plus any leftover cookies (crumbled) and sprinkle the lime zest over top. The dessert will keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 days after chilling.
Use whatever container you’ve got, round or square, as long as it holds at least 7 cups of liquid.
Private Notes
Comments
Sometimes Gastronomy is like History,events are repeted with a small difference.We have in Portugal a VERY old and traditional recepie quite similar to this one.The Diference,we soak Marybiscuits in strong cofee or chocolate and layering with a cream of butter,egg yolk and coffee Nescafé powder or chocolate.Made in layers ,covered with the cream and decorated either with instant coffee and cinamom or flakes of chocolate. Those old days no condensed or evaporated milk,was available on Supermar.
This was great, although next time I will buy an extra sleeve of cookies. I only had enough for three layers, but I would have preferred four. Also, the cake did not firm up as much as I thought it would. Getting a nice clean cut like in the photo would be challenging - better to simply scoop out of the pan with a spoon. Still, an extremely easy dessert for summer!
Definitely buy the extra sleeve of cookies. After reading the comments that it doesn't slice as cleanly as the photo, I did put it in the freezer for exactly an hour after the 4-hour chill in the fridge. Then I put it back in the fridge for another 2 hours and it sliced just like the photo. Also when placing the layer of cookies, snap the cookies meant for the edges in half and place the straight side up against the edge of the pan. This will give you straight edges along the side.
This dessert was the surprise hit of our recent potluck. Happily shared the recipe with all who asked. Couple who vacation in their motor home loved that they could whip this up without heat or apply Made exactly as written except added the lime rind to the milk mixture rather than as garnish. Perfect recipe- minimal effort for impressive results!
Am I the only one without impulse control? I tried it at about 3 hours out of curiosity. Pudding-like. The magic happens with an overnight chill. One reminder for next time: Mix liquids in a large measuring cup or bowl with a lip to make pouring easier. Maybe increase zest and put some in the liquid. I like things with layers.
I made this exactly as written, using limes and not key limes. I used a square Pyrex and let it set overnight. It turned out just like the photo and my husband and I both liked it. I will make it again. I will buy a second sleeve of cookies to maybe crumble a few on top. I didn’t have any left over after stacking them. If you make it with two sleeves, as some commenters have noted, the absorption of the lime juice into the cookies ratio will be thrown off. If you want more, best to double the recipe.