Triple Chocolate Ice Cream Cake: National Chocolate Ice Cream Day

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!

Today is National Chocolate Ice Cream Day! So to celebrate, here's a recipe adapted from Silvana Nardone's recipe on Rachael Ray Everyday for Triple Chocolate Ice Cream Cake.

Whatever you do, you won't go wrong if you use chocolate ice cream! I adapted the following recipe by using Ben & Jerry's Brownie Batter & Chocolate Fudge Brownie, mainly because you can never have enough chocolate. Another possibility is to make your own Chocolate Pound Cake. Here's a link to a favorite chocolate poundcake recipe. Marble pound cake works, too!

TRIPLE CHOCOLATE ICE CREAM CAKE

Ingredients
1 cup (1/2 pint) heavy cream
12 ounces dark chocolate --60-75% cacao, chopped
1 12-ounce marble pound cake, such as Entenmann's brand, cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices (or your own chocolate pound cake)
1 pint Ben & Jerry's Chocolate ice cream, softened
20 chocolate wafers, plus 4 crushed wafers
1 pint Ben & Jerry's Brownie Batter or Chocolate Fudge Brownie, softened

Directions:
In small saucepan, bring heavy cream to boil over medium-high heat. Put chopped chocolate pieces in heatproof medium bowl and pour boiling cream over chocolate. Let sit until chocolate is melted, about 2 minutes. Stir mixture with fork until ganache is smooth.
Line nonstick 9 x 5 x 3-3/4 inch loaf pan with 2 overlapping sheets of plastic wrap, allowing 4-inch overhang on all sides.
Pour half of ganache (1 cup) evenly into lined pan and spread to cover base. Cover ganache with single layer of tightly packed cake slices; be sure layer is flat and even. Working quickly, spread first chocolate ice cream evenly over pound cake. Cover ice cream with layer made of half chocolate wafers. Spread remaining ganache evenly over wafers, then top ganache with another layer, using all of remaining wafers, and place cake in freezer for about 30 minutes to chill and firm up.
Remove cake from freezer and spread second chocolate ice cream over wafers. Top with another flat, single layer of tightly packed slices of pound cake, trimming 1 or 2 slices to fill in gaps (there might be a few slices left over--eat them). Cake may be slightly higher than pan. Cover cake completely with plastic overhang and freeze until firm, at least 5 hours or overnight.
To loosen ice cream cake from pan, open plastic wrap and invert pan over flat serving platter. Remove plastic wrap. Scatter crushed chocolate wafers over ice cream cake, slice and serve immediately.

Too much work? Eat some chocolate ice cream!

National Chocolate Ice Cream Day: Chocolate Ice Cream Cake

June 7 is National Chocolate Ice Cream Day and what could be better than  Chocolate Ice Cream Cake? You can always buy one at Baskins & Robbins or another ice cream shop, but here's a simple and very different recipe for "Chocolate Ice Cream Cake (but not what you think)" posted by Aleta Meadowlark at Omnomicon. Aleta collects cookbooks, specifically by New England civic organizations between 1950 and 1980 for fundraising purposes. That's quite a niche. The following recipe comes from one of those cookbooks, Potpourri from Calvary (Calvary Baptist Church in Easthampton). 

I first made this cake when I saw Aleta's recipe last year. OMG! You're going to love this. This could become your favorite birthday cake! 

The secret ingredient in this cake is Chocolate Ice Cream. This is a simple recipe with stunning and tasty results. It's unbelievably moist--well, it has chocolate ice-cream in it! And, there are all kinds of possible variations--different ice cream, different cake mixes. I usually use Duncan Heinz Devil's Food Cake mix. I don't ice this cake because I think it's already so rich.

You can also add dark chocolate chunks to this cake. Just fold  the chocolate chunks into the batter after it's beaten.

Be sure and soften the Chocolate Ice Cream. You can do this by scooping it into a bowl and letting it sit for about 10 minutes. Your mixer will do the rest of the work.

I've adapted the recipe a bit by adding the chocolate chunks and always using a great dark chocolate ice-cream. You can, of course, make your own cake batter with cocoa and flour and sugar, etc, but this is sooo simple.

Chocolate Ice Cream Cake (but not like you think)

1 box chocolate cake mix
1 pint good quality dark chocolate ice cream, softened
3 eggs
1 cup water
1/2 cup broken dark chocolate chunks (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease a tube or bundt pan, then dust with cocoa powder.

Beat all ingredients together for 4 minutes.
Fold in dark chocolate chunks,  pour into pan and bake 45 minutes.
Serve with a dusting of confectioner’s sugar.

Photos: Aleta at Omnomicon Be sure and click to see the other photos