Vegan Ice Cream Cake
VEGAN – VEGETARIAN – DAIRY FREE – SOY FREE OPTION – GLUTEN-FREE OPTION
Inspired by the Dairy Queen classic, this American-style ice cream cake replaces boring old cake sponge with out of this world creamy gelato! Salted, buttery, creamy, rich, decadent and beautifully balanced, this ice cream cake is a showstopper for any special occasion (or just any day of the week, frankly!).
For this recipe we used a 4” cake tin but you can scale up the recipe as you desire/depending on freezer capacity!
This recipe takes time as each layer needs to be frozen in between stages, so relax and take it at a leisurely pace. Sure, it takes longer than a cake to bake – believe me, it’s worth the wait!
Ingredients
Gelato
1 Large Scoop Peanut Butter Gelato
1 Large Scoop Chocolate Chip Gelato
NB: This recipe calls for our Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chip gelatos (our November Pint Club Flavours), but you can other flavours such as Praline, Chocolate Orange and Pistachio could also work!
Salted Chocolate Ganache:
75g Icing Sugar
30g Butter
2 Tbsp Cocoa Powder
1Tbsp Plant Milk
(avoid Soy milk if making soy-free)
Pinch Sea Salt
Cookie Crumble*:
100g Chocolate Cream Sandwich Biscuits (or any biscuit of choice, gluten free if aiming for that!)
35g Butter, Melted
Sweetened Whipped Cream
250ml Plant-based Double Cream
(Check ingredients if avoiding soy/gluten)
3 Dessert Spoons Icing Sugar
½ Tsp Vanilla Extract
METHOD
Grease a cake tin of choice and line with eco-friendly cling film
Take out your Peanut Butter Gelato from the freezer and allow it to soften. Scoop one large scoop of gelato into the bottom of cake tin. Using a palate knife (or the back of a spoon), smooth out the gelato to create an even base.
Pop this into the freezer for 1 hour to firm up.
Meanwhile, make the Salted Chocolate Ganache:
In a mixing bowl, beat Icing Sugar and Butter together until combined and soft. Add the Cocoa Powder, Milk and Sea Salt and beat until fluffy (2-3 mins). Set aside.
Now to make your Cookie Crumble:
Pre-heat oven to 170°C. Crush up your biscuits of choice until you have a course sand/small pebble-like consistency. Add the melted butter and mix.
Spread the mix out evenly onto a lined baking tray and bake for 7-8 minutes. Once cooked bring out of oven and allow to cool.
When your Peanut Butter Gelato is firm, add your Salted Chocolate Ganache and spread evenly over the top. Pop this back in the freezer for at least 20 minutes.
Once the ganache layer is set, sprinkle on your cookie crumbles and spread out evenly and put tin back in freezer for at least 2 hours to firm up.
*You will only use about half the cookie Crumble mix so pop the other half in a Tupperware box and freeze for another time!
Remove your Chocolate Chip Gelato from freezer and allow it to soften.
Remove the cake tin from the freezer and add one scoop of Chocolate Chip Gelato onto the Cookie Crumb base. Spread evenly and place back in the freezer for at least 2 hours (or even overnight!).
Once frozen, gently remove the cake from the tin, take off the cling film, and place the cake on a plate.
Pop back in the freezer and we’re ready to make the Sweetened Whipped Cream:
Using a hand mixer, whip the Double Cream on a medium setting for 2-3 minutes. Sift in icing sugar and add vanilla, then continue to whip for a further 2 minutes.
Ice the cake with the Sweetened Whipped Cream, ensuring full coverage.
Pop it all back into the freezer and, once the cream layer is set, decorate it however you so wish and DIVE IN!