How Make an Ice Cream Cake

This recipe is going to be easy ….really. You will have PLENTY of servings if you use a 9×13 (1/4 sheet pan). This will give you a nice proportion of cake vs. Ice cream. 


TO DO: Bake a cake in the sheet pan. Take it out, wrap it up & wash the pan.


Now, take the SAME PAN. Line it with several layers of plastic wrap OR a sheet of aluminum foil. LEAVE an overhang of wrap, so that you can use this overhang to help with the unmolding.

SOFTEN 1/2 gallon Ice Cream. DO NOT MELT IT. To speed up the softening, peel off the carton & cut the Ice Cream into thick slices.

Place the Ice Cream in a large mixing bowl. If you have a large standing mixer (like a Kitchen aid) beat the ice cream slowly with the paddle until spreadable (NOT melted) No mixer? Use a potato masher to start the mixing, then smooth it out with a wooden spoon. Spread the ice cream into the lined pan. Even the top. Cover with plastic.

Freeze FIRM. Now, split your cake layer in half, to make two layers, each one 9×13. Take the firm I cup out, remove plastic cover, place one layer of cake on top of the ice cream (cut side touching ice cream.) Put a cake board or a cookie sheet on top of the cake layer & FLIP the ice cream over onto the cookie sheet. Lay a warm kitchen towel on the pan, to help the ice cream slip out.

Remove plastic or foil. Lay other cake layer, cut side against the ice cream

You now have a CAKE- ICE CREAM -CAKE sandwich. Put back into the freezer to re-firm for a bit.

FROSTING: Frost with Whipped Cream or Whipped Topping (Cool whip). If you prefer whipped topping, look in your grocery store freezer case for a product called “ Rich Whip.” It comes in little red & white cartons that look like whipping cream cartons. Whenever I need to use a topping product, I VERY MUCH prefer RICH WHIP. It is made by the people who make the frozen coffee creamer. This stuff will whip very stiff & thick & will spread well & pipe (decorations) excellently. After you’re finished, freeze it until you’re ready to bring it out & stick in those candles.

Comments (5)

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I made an ice cream cake for my son's birthday and used this technique of spreading the ice cream in a foil lined pan & letting it harden. It worked GREAT!! I have 3 identical 13x9 cake pans, so I used 1 for the ice cream layer, and then made 1 cake mix that I distributed between the other 2 pans & shortened the baking time (instead of doing 1 cake and then slicing it in half).

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Is there any benefit of freezing the ice cream separate still if doing a round shape and using a cake ring or springform pan? I have done this a few times and used a springform to bake the cake, removed it, used same pan to bake a choc chip cookie layer, cooled, then on top of cookie, added softened icecream, cake layer, then froze, then when firm, frosted with buttercream and decorations (whipped topping is easier but person I make them for specifically likes the buttercream with icecream cakes). I then just remove the ring from the springform and transfer cake to cakeboard. The issue is that its super hard to cut, even after letting it soften for 10 mins at room temp first and then using a hot knife. Its the cookie layer that is the prob, it just gets too hard when frozen. Thats another issue though. My question was though, can anyone see an issue with letting the icecream freeze on the cake as opposed to doing it separate when using springform?