Ice Cream Cake!

Happy Tuesday everyone! I treated my husband to a very intense Father's Day cake this year: an ice cream cake made for small, rich bites! I chose a recipe that reminded me of my childhood favorite, Carvel ice cream cakes (Fudgie the whale anyone?) but turned up the intensity with extra cake layers! Check me out:

From bottom: Devil's food cake, fresh hot fudge, chocolate crunchies, salted caramel gelato, vanilla cake, hot fudge, crunchies, and homemade whipped cream.

How do you make a great ice cream cake at home? Choose your fave cake recipe, add layers of softened ice cream between layers. Your best bet to keep it clean and contained is to create the layers inside a springform pan, wrapped with parchment paper for easy removal and freezing between layers so it stays firm as you build up. The best part about an ice cream cake is that there really is no right or wrong! You just add cake and ice cream as you choose, top with some whipped cream or chocolate ganache and freeze until ready to serve!

Have fun and happy baking!

Father's Day!

Happy Tuesday! The sun is shining unexpectedly, the polls are open in CA and NJ, and Father's Day is just around the corner (my husband's first!). I've been brainstorming the perfect cake and while I'm not quite there, I came across a few fabulous ideas to help you get started as well! What kinds of flavors does husband/dad/son/whomever like? Here are lots of options.

This screams SUMMER!
Key Lime Pie
Alison Roman

Ingredients
Crust

• 14 graham crackers (about 1½ sleeves)
• 4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter, melted
• 4 tablespoons virgin coconut oil, melted
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt

Filling And Assembly

• 4 large egg yolks
• 1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
• 2 teaspoons finely grated lime zest, plus more for garnish
• ¾ cup fresh key lime (or regular lime) juice
• Pinch of kosher salt
• 1 cup heavy cream
• ¼ cup powdered sugar
• 1 cup full-fat Greek yogurt
• 1 tablespoon dark rum (optional)

Directions

Crust

1. Preheat oven to 325°. Using your hands, crush graham crackers in a large bowl until coarsely ground (you could do this in a food processor if you’d like, just be sure not to process too finely; you want some texture in the larger pieces). Add butter, coconut oil, sugar, and salt and mix until well blended (mixture will resemble wet sand). Transfer to a 9" pie dish. Using your fingers and the underside of a flat measuring cup, press mixture evenly into bottom and up sides of dish. Bake crust, rotating once halfway through, until golden brown on top and crumbs are set, 12–15 minutes. Let cool.

Filling And Assembly

1. Using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat egg yolks and condensed milk in a large bowl until paler and almost doubled in volume, about 5 minutes. Whisk in 2 tsp. lime zest, lime juice, and salt. Pour into cooled crust. Bake pie until filling no longer jiggles and is starting to slightly puff around the edges, 15–20 minutes. Let cool completely.
2. Whip cream and powdered sugar in a large bowl until stiff peaks form. Gently whisk in yogurt and rum, if using. Dollop onto cooled pie, creating dramatic peaks and valleys with an offset spatula or the back of a spoon. Garnish with lime zest.

Do Ahead: Crust can be baked 2 days ahead; pie without whipped topping can be made 2 days ahead; pie can be assembled (with topping) 4 hours ahead.

Can't go wrong with chocolate.

Warm Chocolate Cakes with Mascarpone Cream

Hosea Rosenberg

Ingredients

• 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped, plus shavings for garnish (optional)
• 1 1/2 sticks (6 ounces) unsalted butter
• 3 large eggs, plus 3 large egg yolks, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup cake flour
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped
• 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
• 1 cup mascarpone (8 ounces)
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• About 1/2 cup brandied cherries or kirsch-soaked sour cherries

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375°. Coat six 6-ounce ramekins with butter, and dust lightly with flour. Set the ramekins on a sturdy baking sheet. In a microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate with the butter; let cool.
2. In the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with the whisk, beat the eggs, yolks and sugar on high speed until pale and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in the chocolate, then fold in the cake flour just until no streaks remain.
3. Spoon the batter into the prepared ramekins and bake for 15 minutes, until the cakes have risen, the tops are dry and the centers are slightly jiggly. Let stand for 5 minutes.
4. In a bowl, beat the cream with the vanilla seeds, brown sugar and lemon zest until soft peaks form. Add the mascarpone and lemon juice and beat until blended.
5. Run the tip of a small knife around each cake to loosen it, then unmold onto plates. Spoon the mascarpone cream onto the cakes and garnish with the brandied cherries and chocolate shavings.

A little of everything.

Crispy Peanut Butter Snack Cake

Katherine Sacks

Ingredients

• Nonstick vegetable oil spray
• 1 1/2 cups creamy, no-stir peanut butter
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons warmed virgin coconut oil, divided
• 5 cups crispy rice cereal
• 2 cups Chex cereal
• 1 1/2 cups salted mini pretzels, lightly crushed
• 1 cup potato chips, lightly crushed
• 1 cup roasted, salted peanuts
• 6 ounces dark chocolate

Special Equipment

• An 8-cup Bundt pan

Directions

1. Line Bundt pan with plastic wrap, leaving a few inches of overhang; coat with nonstick spray.
2. Whisk peanut butter, honey, vanilla, and 1/2 cup coconut oil in a large bowl until combined. Using a spatula, gently fold in cereals, pretzels, potato chips, and peanuts. Transfer mixture to prepared pan, spreading evenly and pressing firmly into pan. Chill until cake is set, at least 1 hour.
3. When ready to serve, melt chocolate and remaining 2 Tbsp. coconut oil in a medium heatproof bowl set over a medium pot of barely simmering water, stirring occasionally, or melt in a microwave in short bursts, stirring between bursts, until chocolate is smooth.
4. Using plastic overhang, lift cake from pan, then invert onto a platter. Drizzle cooled cake with melted chocolate, then chill to set before serving, about 10 minutes.

Do Ahead: Cake can be made 3 days ahead. Wrap in plastic and chill.

Happy baking!