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 --70% 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:
1. 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.
2. 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.
3. 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 of the chocolate wafers. Spread remaining ganache evenly over wafers, then top ganache with another layer, using all of remaining wafers, and place cake in the freezer for about 30 minutes to chill and firm up.
4. Remove cake from the 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 ingaps (there might be a few slices left over). Cake may be slightly higher than pan. Cover cake completely with plastic overhang and freeze until firm, at least 5 hours or overnight.
5. 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.

Retro Doughnut Signs for National Doughnut Day!

Tomorrow is National Doughnut Day. I posted about the history of the holiday, along with a Doughnut recipe, the other day, so today I thought I'd post some Retro Ads and Signs.

 

COGNAC TRUFFLES: National Cognac Day

Today is National Cognac Day! Cognac goes very well with Chocolate, especially in Cognac Truffles.

Cognac is a brandy that comes from the Cognac region in France. It is distilled for a long time, and it's this aging process that gives it a very distinctive taste. Only brandy that is produced in Cognac can be labeled Cognac. 

I always opt for easy truffle recipes. Here are two great recipes. The second recipe includes raw eggs (although they heat up a bit in the chocolate),  so if that's a problem for you, make the first recipe.  I actually used 80% Cashet Uganda chocolate when I last made the second recipe since I didn't have any unsweetened chocolate. Just cut back on the sugar a bit. Both of these recipes are basically ganache truffles, so no tempering needed. You can roll them in cocoa or chopped nuts.

COGNAC TRUFFLES I

Ingredients
8 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
2 tablespoons softened sweet butter
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tbsp Cognac
unsweetened cocoa or chopped nuts

Directions
Put chopped chocolate in bowl. On low heat warm cream and butter until nearly boiling. Pour cream and butter over chocolate and mix gently and thoroughly until chocolate is melted. You can always just melt all ingredients together in the top of a double boiler, if you're careful.
Cool and add cognac, mixing into chocolate mixture.
Cover and refrigerate 3 hours or more.
Using a melon baller or spoon, scoop chocolate into balls. Then roll in hands to make a ball.
Roll the balls in cocoa or nuts and refrigerate until ready to serve.

COGNAC TRUFFLES II

Ingredients
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate
1-1/4 cup confectioners sugar
1/3 cup sweet butter
3 egg yolks
2 tablespoons cognac
cocoa or chopped nuts

Directions
Melt chocolate.
Combine sugar and butter in bowl then cream together.
Add egg yolks 1 at a time then stir in melted chocolate and cognac.
Chill mixture at least one hour then scoop out and form into balls.
Roll in coating of your choice and dry for 1 hour.

No time to make these today? Coco Delice has great Cognac Truffles!

National Doughnut Day: History & Recipe

National Doughnut (Donut) Day is the first Friday in June. This year it falls on Friday, June 7. That's an extra wait for many who like to kick off the month with free donuts. Doughnut Day was created by The Salvation Army in 1938 to honor the women who served doughnuts to soldiers during World War I.

Many American doughnut shops offer free doughnuts on National Doughnut Day. In 2009, both independent doughnut shops and large national franchises offered free doughnuts in the United States. National Doughnut Day started as a fund raiser for Chicago's The Salvation Army. Their goal was to help the needy during the Great Depression, and to honor The Salvation Army "Lassies" of World War I, who served doughnuts to soldiers.

National Doughnut Day celebrates the doughnut, an edible, ring shaped piece of dough which is deep-fried and sweetened. This holiday event began in 1938 as a Chicago Salvation Army fundraiser for much needed funds during the depression. The day also recognized special women known as "Doughnut Lassies" who made and served doughnuts to homesick WWI soldiers in France, since doughnuts were thought to be the quintessential American food. Here's a song from a 1918 songbook celebrating doughnuts in WWI.

A doughnut’s just a doughnut, boys, ’til you are “over there,”
And day and night you’re in a trench away in France somewhere;
You get a fresh-made doughnut, seems it comes from heaven above,
That doughnut, boys, reminds you of a slice of mother’s love.”

Doughnuts are popular in many countries and prepared in various forms as a sweet snack that can be homemade or purchased in bakeries, supermarkets, food stalls, and franchised specialty outlets. They are usually deep-fried from flour dough, and shaped in rings or flattened spheres that sometimes contain fillings. Other types of batters can also be used, and various toppings and flavorings are used for different types.

For a wonderful entry on Doughnut Day, you'll want to go to: Months of Edible Celebrations website. Not only is there a great discussion of the history, but Months of Edible Celebrations includes  a recipe from Entenmann's Big Book of Baking for Chocolate Cake Donuts, as well as information about The Donut Book by Sally Levitt Steinberg, granddaughter of Adolph Levitt, the inventor of the first doughnut machine (1920). As Louise says in her entry, "Sally brings the doughnut to life." You've got to read this.

And, there are a lot of free doughnuts today!

Krispie Kreme is giving out one free doughnut of any kind, no purchase necessary. (at participating stores)

LaMar's Donuts in Colorado and the Midwest is offering one free doughnut per customer (at participating stores)

Dunkin' Donuts: Buy any beverage and they'll throw in a complimentary doughnut (while supplies last)  Dunkin' is also introducing a new sandwich on June 7: the Glazed Donut Breakfast Sandwich.. Bacon & Fried eggs between a split glazed doughnut that they say is 360 calories. Really??!!

Tim Horton's has a coupon on their Facebook page for a free doughnut with any purchase in U.S. lcoations. Like Tim Horton's and print coupon.

Entenmann's Bakery is donating $1 to the Salvation Army for each person who "likes" the Entemann's Facebook page (up to $30,000). And right now, in celebration of the day, Entenmann's is rewarding lucky winners with 'Free Donuts for a Year' in a sweepstakes on their Facebook Page.
 

Look for other free donuts and celebrations in your town!

Here's the original  SALVATION ARMY LASSIES’ DOUGHNUT RECIPE . Not sure about the lard, but it's the original recipe, after all, so historical.


SALVATION ARMY LASSIES' DOUGHNUT RECIPE
Yield: 4 doz. doughnuts

Ingredients
5 cups flour
2 cups sugar
5 tsp baking powder
1 ‘saltspoon’ salt
2 eggs
1 3/4 cup milk
1 Tub lard (!!)

DIRECTIONS
Combine all ingredients (except for lard) to make dough.
Thoroughly knead dough, roll smooth, and cut into rings that are less than 1/4 inch thick. (When finding items to cut out doughnut circles, be creative! Salvation Army doughnut girls used whatever they could find, from baking powder cans to coffee percolator tubes.)
Drop the rings into the lard, making sure the fat is hot enough to brown the doughnuts gradually.
Turn the doughnuts slowly several times.
When browned, remove doughnuts and allow excess fat to drip off.
Dust with powdered sugar. Let cool and enjoy.