Strawberry Crunch Ice Cream Cake
- Level: Intermediate
- Yield: 12 to 16 servings
- Nutritional Analysis Per Serving (1 of 14 servings)
- Calories: 388
- Total Fat: 12 g
- Saturated Fat: 4 g
- Carbohydrates: 68 g
- Dietary Fiber: 1 g
- Sugar: 21 g
- Protein: 4 g
- Cholesterol: 16 mg
- Sodium: 302 mg
- Total Time: 3 hr
- Preparation: 50 min
- Inactive: 1 hr 30 min
- Cooking: 40 min
Ingredients
- 1 box (16 to 18 ounces) vanilla cake mix (plus ingredients listed on box)
- 1.5-quart rectangular container of strawberry ice cream
- 1.2-ounce bag of freeze-dried strawberries, crushed (about 1 1/2 cups)
- 1 tub (16 ounces) white frosting
Instructions
- Prepare the vanilla cake mix according to package directions in a 9-by-13-inch pan. Bake until golden, then cool in the pan on a rack for 15 minutes. Transfer to the rack and cool completelyyour perfect base awaits!
- Level the cake's top with a long serrated knife, then slice horizontally into two even layers. Trim 3/4-inch strips from each long edge; save these and any trimmings for magic later.
- Unmold the ice cream onto a board and slice lengthwise into three equal slabscreamy layers ready to shine.
- Layer the ice cream slabs onto the bottom cake layer. Let it soften just enough to spread smoothly with an offset spatula, keeping a 3/4-inch border along the long sides for stability.
- Secure reserved cake strips along the long edges of the ice cream. Top with the second cake layer. Freeze for 1 hour to firm up this delightful stack.
- Carve out a playful "bite" from one corner. Reserve the scooped cake bits and ice cream; pop the cake back in the freezer while you create the crunch.
- Preheat oven to 350F. Scatter saved cake trimmings on a baking sheet and bake, stirring occasionally, until golden and fragrant, about 10 minutes. Cool, then toss with crushed freeze-dried strawberries for that irresistible strawberry crunch topping.
- Mix 1 tablespoon crumbs with 1 tablespoon frosting for a pretty pink accent. Frost the entire cake with remaining white frosting, then press strawberry crunch mixture all over, skipping the bite and opposite short side for visual pop.
- Fill the bite with pink frosting and a stripe of crumbs at its base. Freeze at least 15 minutes to set. Insert a wooden spatula handle or craft stick for servinglike a giant, scrumptious ice cream bar that wows every crowd!
Photograph by Andrew Purcell
Courtesy of Recipe Iseasy Magazine
