• Combine the cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Whip until medium peaks form and the cream is the texture of shaving cream
• Spread a thin layer of whipped cream on the bottom of your serving platter, in about an 8-inch circle. Arrange a layer of chocolate wafer cookies on top of the cream in a circle, overlapping them slightly to get them to fit (some blank spaces are okay too!). I used about 15 cookies per layer: 10 cookies in the outer circle, 4 cookies in the inner circle, and a cookie in the middle, but your exact numbers will depend on the size of your serving platter.
• Spread a thin layer of cream on top of the cookies, around ¼-inch thick. You can go all the way to the edge, or leave about ½-inch uncovered at the edge if you want the cookies to poke out. Press fresh berries into the whipped cream—if they’re large, cut them in half lengthwise so they don’t poke up too much. Spread another thin layer of whipped cream on top of the berries, just to make the surface smooth for the next layer of cookies.
• Repeat with a second layer of cookies, and top with more cream and berries. Continue until you’ve used up all the cookies—I got 6 layers of cookies for my 8-inch cake. Top with the remaining whipped cream. Cover the cake loosely with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 8 hours, to let the cookies absorb the moisture and soften—longer refrigeration is okay, too.
• When the cookies are soft, top the cake with fresh raspberries, chocolate curls, and a light dusting of powdered sugar, if desired. Slice and serve!

Note: There are a few store-bought cookies that will work, including Goya Maria Cookies, Dewey’s Hot Cocoa Cookies, Oreo Thins (or Oreos with the cream scraped off), or chocolate graham crackers.