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When it comes to desserts, I want the full fat, full delicious version of it. No substitutions and no shortcuts… it’s probably why my friends always comment on how my desserts are some of their favorite things I make.
Nevertheless, I’m super excited to share this recipe for a fudge crunch ice cream cake. It’s inspired by the dairy queen ice cream cakes I loved getting for my birthday growing up, and up-leveled with the swap of chocolate cake instead of chocolate ice cream. Don’t worry, the middle layer of fudge and cookie crumbles are still there, and I think it’s truly the perfect birthday cake.
Table of Contents
Chef Tips:
- Use an electric mixer (like a kitchen aid stand mixer or electric hand whisk)– It’s not required for this recipe, but it helps evenly mix everything for the chocolate cake, and reduce the amount of energy requried to make the whipped cream icing.
- if you are hand whipping the whipped cream for the icing, use a cold metal bowl and you’ll need to whisk intensely for probably ~8-10 minutes.
- Cooling the Cake – Let the cake cool completely before assembling to prevent breaking the cake into pieces when trying to flip it out. Let cool at room temperature for at least a few hours. Do NOT try to speed up this process in the freezer, as it might make the bottom of the cake soggy.
- Cake Texture from Frozen – The chocolate cake stays surprisingly soft, even after days in the freezer. No rock-hard cake in the final prodcut —this is ready to eat straight from the freezer (or even a few days after being in the freezer).
- Whipped Cream Icing – The whipped cream icing will tend to feel really soft when you’re spreading it. After sitting in the freezer for an hour, it will harden a bit and become the right consistency.
- Storing the Cake – Once cut, wrap the remaining cake tightly in plastic wrap or store it in an airtight container. It will last up to a month in the freezer without drying out.
For the chocolate cake:
Ingredient Notes:
- Milk + Lemon Juice = Buttermilk – This is a buttermilk substitution that works great in this recipe. If you don’t have lemon juice, white wine vinegar works just as well.
- Cocoa Powder – Use a high-quality unsweetened cocoa powder for the best chocolate flavor. I love the guittard brand.
- Avocado / Neutral Oil – a neutral oil like avocado oil or canola oil is best for this recipe. Olive oil also works and will give it a nice flavor, but it’s not necessary in the overall cake (thinking $ wise – spend your money on the nice ice cream and cocoa powder!).
- Corn Syrup in the Fudge – This is key for keeping the fudge layer soft even when frozen. I don’t usually keep corn syrup in my pantry, but it’s worth getting for this recipe.
- Chocolate Chips – Dark chocolate chips (60% cacao or higher) are my favorite, but you can do milk chocolate if you prefer.
- Heavy Cream – Used both for the fudge and for the whipped cream frosting. You’ll find this in the refrigerated dairy section next to the milk.
- Oreos – I blitz the oreos in the food processor before tossing with butter and baking for 10 minutes.
- Vanilla Ice Cream – Go for a good-quality vanilla ice cream. My favorite is Alden’s Vanilla Bean ice cream. Their 1.5 quart is exactly the amount the recipe calls for.
For assembly:
Fudge Crunch Ice Cream Cake
This fudge crunch ice cream cake is inspired by the dairy queen ice cream cakes I loved getting for my birthday growing up, and upleveled with the swap of chocolate cake instead of chocolate ice cream.
Equipment
- Stand Mixer
Ingredients
Chocolate cake
- 125 g Warm water
- 32 g Cocoa powder
- 150 g All purpose flour
- 225 g Sugar
- 5 g Baking soda
- 4 g Salt
- 120 g milk
- 5 g lemon juice
- 100 g avocado oil
- ½ teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 1 Egg
Fudge Crunch
- 3/4 cup Oreo crumbs, about 10 Oreos
- 2 tbsp butter, melted
- 1 cup dark chocolate chips
- 3 tbsp light corn syrup
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
Whipped Cream Icing
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
For decoration
- Sprinkles
- Gel icing, optional
Instructions
- For the Chocolate Cake
- Setup a mixer with the whisk attachment.
- Preheat the oven to 325 F.
- Whisk the cocoa powder with warm water and set aside.
- Add the all purpose flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a mixing bowl and mix on stir until combined (for about 20 seconds).
- Add the milk and lemon juice in another small or medium sized mixing bowl. Let sit for 5 minutes, then add the oil, egg, and vanilla extract. Whisk until combined.
- Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, and whisk for 1 minute on low. Increase speed to medium, and beat for another 1 minute.
- Add the chocolate water to the mixture, and beat for 30 seconds, or until just combined. Avoid overworking the batter. Remove the mixing bowl from the stand mixer, and use a spatula to make sure all the batter is integrated (the very bottom may not be as chocolatey).
- Spray a 9 inch round cake pan with non-stick spray. Line the cake pan with a piece of parchment paper. Transfer batter to the pan, and bake for 35 minutes, or until a knife comes out of the center cleanly.
- Cool completely, then flip out the cake.
For the Fudge crunch
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Food process the oreos for 20 seconds. Combine the oreo crumbles and melted butter and stir until well combined. Spread the crumbs evenly onto a baking sheet.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes, then allow to cool. When the crumbs are hot, they will be soft so make sure to cool completely. Set aside.
- Make the fudge – add the chocolate chips and corn syrup to a medium sized bowl. Heat the ½ cup of heavy whipping cream just until it begins to simmer, then pour it over the chocolate chip mixture. Allow to sit for 2-3 minutes, then whisk until smooth.
To Assemble the ice cream cake
- Remove the vanilla ice cream from the freezer and let sit for 15 minutes.
- Line a 9 inch cake pan with 2 pieces of plastic wrap. Make sure all the sides are covered and the plastic hangs over the edges of the cake pan.
- Transfer the vanilla ice cream to the plastic lined cake pan. Smoothen it (or use gloves to press the ice cream into the shape of the cake pan.
- Add the cookie crumbles to the vanilla ice cream layer, then pour the fudge over the cookie crumbles.
- Add the chocolate cake layer on the fudge and gently press down.
- Freeze for about 2 hours, until mostly firm.
- Use the clear wrap to lift the frozen cake out of the pan, then place it on parchment (or cardboard) lined plate / cake stand.
- Make the whipped cream – add the heavy whipping cream and sugar to a large mixer bowl. Whip on high speed until stiff peaks form, about 5 minutes on high.
- Frost the cake with the whipped cream and decorate as desired. I used colorful sprinkles from whole foods and gel icing from safeway (whole foods isn’t going to have gel icing FYI!).
- Keep the cake frozen until ready to serve. The cake will last in the freezer (after being cut into) for up to 1 month if stored in an airtight container.
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