My sister celebrated her birthday on May 10th. Lucky for me, she decided to make a trip to Kansas City to hang out with me (and Jacob) for her special day! She asked for an ice cream cake....and I sure gave her an ice cream cake!
I really miss-judged the overall thickness of this massive cake and had to cram this sucker into the freezer. But it was totally worth it! This cake is better than any store bought ice cream cake I've ever had. The best part is that it's really simple with simple ingredients. It might take a couple days to complete (freezing time between layers) but it's totally worth it.
So on Saturday after hitting up our favorite Mexican restaurant, we dove into this puppy. My favorite part was all of the caramel and the hot fudge/Oreo mixture. So goooooood.
The 5 of us barely made a dent in the massive cake and I knew I didn't want this just hanging around my house. Solution: buy some dry-ice, pack it up, and send it home with the birthday girl! Done.
You can easily swap out ingredients to fit your tastes; maybe mint chip ice cream, Junior Mints, hot Fudge, and mint Oreo's? You could even 1/2 the recipe and still have more than enough to go around. (My world always says more is better...kind like those AT&T commercials.)
Mile High Ice Cream Cake
1 1/2 gallons vanilla ice cream (divided, and softened)
1 1/2 gallons chocolate ice cream (divided, and softened)
2 containers Oreos, crushed
8 to 10 Reece's Peanut Butter Cups, chopped
8 to 10 fun-sized Snickers, chopped
1 jar hot fudge (12 to 16 oz)
1 jar caramel topping (12 to 16 oz)
1 container whipped topping, thawed
4 TBSP butter, melted
Line a 8 inch spring form pan with plastic wrap. In a medium bowl, combine 2 1/2 cup crushed Oreo's and melted butter. Press into base of spring form pan. Place pan in freezer for 15 minutes to harden.
Pour 3/4 gallon softened vanilla ice cream over the crust. Use a cake spreader or spatula to even out the layer. Sprinkle crushed Reece's Peanut Butter Cups and 3/4 cup crushed Oreo's. Lightly press into ice cream. Place pan in the freezer for 45 - 60 minutes or until set.
Remove pan from freezer. Pour 3/4 gallon of softened chocolate ice cream into pan. Use a spatula to even out the layer. Return to the freezer to fully set - at least a couple hours or overnight.
Once fully set, remove from spring form pan. (Leave plastic wrap on the layer.) Place on a cookie sheet or serving platter and return to the freezer.
Line spring form pan with plastic wrap and begin the second (third?) layer. Place jar of hot fudge in the microwave for 30 - 60 seconds to soften. In a medium bowl, stir together the remaining crushed Oreo's and the whole jar of warm hot fudge. Pour mixture into plastic wrap lined spring form pan and press down evenly. Place pan in freezer for 15 minutes or so to chill.
Remove pan from freezer and pour the remaining vanilla ice cream onto hot fudge/Oreo base. Use a spatula to even out the layer. Sprinkle with chopped Snickers and drizzle with caramel. (You may have to microwave the caramel if too firm. I only used about 3/4 jar of the caramel.) Return the pan to the freezer to set, 45 - 60 minutes.
Remove pan from the freezer and pour the remaining chocolate ice cream into pan. Use a spatula to even out the layer. Return to the freezer to fully set - at least a couple hours or overnight.
Time to finish! Remove both sections of cake from the freezer. Remove the plastic wrap. Don't worry about the creases in the cake; those will go away once it's frosted. Place the second section on top of the first. Press down lightly to bond the layers.
Use a cake spreader to 'frost' the cake with the whipped topping. Immediately return the cake to the freezer. Freeze until whipped topping is frozen, at least an hour.
When ready to serve, remove from the freezer and serve right away! I added a little more whipped topping and garnished with some gummy bears for fun. You could also drizzle with the extra caramel or garish with leftover Oreo's and/or candy. Really, anything goes. :)
Once down serving, return to the freezer. Serves a lot of people....it is 3 gallons of ice cream after all.
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