So…you may have noticed that there’s been very little activity on the blog lately. Zero activity, actually. For a whole month. Didja miss me? I missed you! Please don’t think I stopped loving you – I’ve just been a little busy lately. Busy and spectacularly unmotivated to cook. Because, you know…I was getting married. It’s amazing how much time wedding planning takes up in the last few weeks leading up to the big day. For a while there it felt like the only thing Dan and I did outside of work was take care of last minute wedding stuff. Did we pay the DJ? Did the photographer know where to go? Where were we going to get 300 cupcakes less than two weeks from the wedding? (Hint: we baked them ourselves). Would it be weird to seat my law school friends with our college friends? Details, details!
Photo by: Cambria Grace Photography
But guys? It was all worth it. Our wedding was absolutely wonderful. Not everything went exactly according to plan, but when do they ever? The important thing is that everyone had a blast. We had gorgeous weather, the ceremony was perfect, the food tasted even better than I remembered from our tasting session, the drinks flowed, the cupcakes were delicious, the dance floor was packed all night, and…we got married! Holy crap, I’m a married woman. Does that have anything to do with this ice cream cream brownie cake? Nope. I just wanted to show off my pretty wedding picture and brag a little bit. Heh heh heh.
But OK, lets get back to this cake. I saw the recipe on Buzzfeed last week and immediately filed it away under my list of things to try ASAP. The timing was perfect because we were about to go on a weekend trip with some friends and one of them just had a birthday. There’s no bad time for ice cream or cake, but I firmly believe that birthdays are the best time to combine the two. And when you’re eating said birthday ice cream cake in a cabin by the river after a lazy day of hot tubbing, grilling, and drinking? Heaven.
Not that you need any special scenery or amenities to enjoy this cake. I mean, just look at it. It’s made with brownies and two kinds of ice cream. Specifically, there is a brownie base topped with peanut butter cup ice cream, covered by a layer of brownie chunks, and then finished off with vanilla ice cream and dark chocolate savings. Decadence? Check. Chocolate/sugar overload? Check. Check.
I ate my slice with hot fudge sauce, but everyone else ate theirs plain. Both were delish. If you like brownie sundaes, this is definitely the cake for you. Every bite was full of intense chocolate-y flavor and the textural contrast between the cold, fudgy brownie and smooth ice cream was lovely (the brownie gets chewier from the cold, which I love). Perhaps a tad too rich, but birthdays are meant for overindulgence. And guys? Easiest recipe ever. I would have liked to make all the layers from scratch, but I was pressed for time so everything came out of a grocery store. Did this make the cake less delicious? Doubtful. Did it save me so much time and energy? Yup. Did the birthday boy enjoy his treat? You bet. Everybody wins. Happy birthday, Brad!
- 1 box Ghiradelli brownie mix
- 1 egg
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- ⅓ cup water
- 1 pint Ben & Jerry's peanut butter cup ice cream, softened
- 1 pint Ben & Jerry's plain vanilla ice cream, softened
- Chocolate bar (for decorative shavings)
- Bake brownie according to box instructions, in an 8x8 baking dish, or round springform cake pan.
- Allow brownie to cool completely
- Slice brownie in half horizontally so that you get two layers. (If you use a springform pan, this is easier since you can just remove the sides of the pan. I only had a square dish, so I had to pop the brownie out of the dish, slice it in half, then drop the bottom layer back in the pan.)
- Put your springform pan back together, then gently spoon and spread softened peanut butter cup ice cream over the bottom brownie layer.
- Crumble your other brownie layer in pieces over your peanut butter ice cream. Press pieces down gently with a spatula.
- Spread softened vanilla ice cream over the top of the brownie chunks.
- Garnish with chocolate shavings.
- Cover and keep frozen until ready to eat.
- Slice, serve, and enjoy!
(Adapted from recipe posted on Buzzfeed)
Aww, congrats twin! Welcome to married life. I can’t believe you guys made 300 cupcakes with all the wedding stress.
Haha thank god for my bridesmaids! I may not be able to look at a red velvet or lemon cupcake for a while though….
Well congratulatins to you both! So thats the reason why, I thought you bailed on your followers. Anyway, this recipe looks super delicious and moist and yummy and delectable..well, you know what I mean. Thanks! http://xobakingco.com/
Thank you! No bailing, thankfully ;p
Congratulations on getting married! I hope we get to see more pictures! And this cake looks DA BOMB!
Thanks, Mimi! I will definitely post more pictures 🙂