Instructions

Shortbread Crust

1. Preheat oven to 325º F and grease the bottom of a 3 quart glass baking dish with butter.
2. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, use a hand mixer to cream the butter. Add the powdered sugar and cream the butter and sugar together. Next, mix in the vanilla and almond extracts until smooth.
3. Add the flour to the bowl and work it into the butter mixture with your hands or a spatula until it is just combined. Take care not to overwork the dough so that you get a flaky shortbread crust.
4. Gently press the shortbread dough into the greased baking dish so that it evenly coats the bottom of the pan. Use a fork to gently press shallow dots across the top of the crust.
5. Bake in a 325º F oven for 15-20 min. It is done cooking just before it starts to turn golden-brown.
6. Set the shortbread crust aside to cool. Allow it to completely cool before assembling your icebox cake so that your other layers don’t melt.

Blueberry Filling

1. Make the blueberry filling while the crust is baking. In a small saucepan combine 1 C of washed and stemmed blueberries with 3/4 C sugar. Heat over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Simmer until the sugar is completely dissolved and the mixture becomes liquid. This will take approximately 5 minutes.
2. In a bowl whisk together 6 Tbsp (3/8 C) water and the 3 Tbsp cornstarch until there are no lumps. Next slowly add the cornstarch mixture into the pot of cooked blueberries while stirring continuously so that it is evenly incorporated without any lumps. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until the mixture begins to boil and becomes clear and thick.
3. Remove from the heat and allow the blueberry sauce to come to room temperature. Once cooled, add additional water the sauce until it becomes the consistency of pudding or the fruit gel filling of a doughnut.
4. Gently mix the sauce in with 3 cups of washed and stemmed fresh blueberries. Note that it is important to allow the blueberry sauce to completely cool so that the blueberries don’t become mushy and the whipped layers of the dessert don’t melt.

Cream Cheese Whip

1. While the crust and blueberry sauce are cooling make the cream cheese whip. Cream together softened Philadelphia cream cheese and 1 C powdered sugar until they are completely combined and free of lumps.
2. Next beat in one 8 ounce container of thawed frozen whipped topping for 3 minutes. Set aside until you are ready to assemble the icebox cake.

Assemble

1. Once the crust and sauce are cooled assemble the icebox cake. Evenly spread the cream cheese whip over the shortbread cookie crust. Next, gently do the same with the blueberry filling over the cream cheese whip. For the final layer top with an 8 oz container of thawed frozen whipped topping.
2. To garnish sprinkle with white chocolate shavings. They can be made by running a vegetable peeler over a bar of white chocolate.
3. Chill for at least 1 1/2 hours in the refrigerator before serving. This dessert keeps in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.