Mint Mocha Ice Cream Cake

Okay guys, this is it.  If you are looking for a birthday treat that will be good but nothing over-the-top, DON'T pick this.  This is actually a seven-layer ice cream cake.  If you like seven-layer dip, you need to know this cake is nothing like it.  This cake is so much better, it's almost wrong to mention seven-layer dip in the same sentence.

Have you made slutty brownies yet?  They have a brownie layer, an Oreo layer, and a chocolate chip cookie layer.  For this cake, those extravagant bars are baked in a round springform pan.  Two kinds of ice cream are smoothed on top, then the whole thing is coated with vanilla bean whipped cream and drizzled with chocolate ganache.  BOOM.

This cake is adapted from the Slutty Brownie Ice Cream Cake on What's Gaby Cooking, one of my favorite food blogs ever.  Since the cake was for my boyfriend's birthday, I had to let him pick the ice cream flavors.  When he chose mint chocolate chip and coffee oreo, I was a little bit skeptical.  I love both those flavors independently, but together?  I wasn't so sure.

Well, I have to give credit to the birthday boy--it was fabulous!  A mint mocha in ice cream cake form.  There are lots of other flavor combinations that would be amazing, though!  I hope you try your own version of this for your next over-the-top occasion.

Note:  Like many ice cream cakes, this is a little bit of a plan-ahead project.  I baked the slutty brownies on Tuesday, layered on the ice creams and froze everything yesterday, and added the whipped cream and ganache today.  

Ingredients:

1 recipe slutty brownies, baked in a 9-inch springform pan (underbake them a little--brownie layer should be a little jiggly--so they won't be too hard once they're frozen)

1 pint coffee oreo ice cream, softened

1 pint mint chocolate chip ice cream, softened

1 1/2 cups heavy cream, divided

Seeds from 1 vanilla bean, divided

Pinch of salt

4 ounces bittersweet chocolate

2 tablespoons brewed coffee

1 teaspoon granulated sugar

2 teaspoons powdered sugar, sifted

When the slutty brownies are completely cool, top with one of the pints of ice cream and smooth with a spatula.  Freeze for 2 hours or more, then repeat with the other ice cream flavor.  Freeze for at least two hours again.

To make the chocolate ganache, roughly chop the chocolate and set aside in a medium bowl.  Place 1/2 cup heavy cream and the coffee, granulated sugar and salt in a small saucepan.  Scrape in the seeds of half a vanilla bean (save the other half for the whipped cream).  Heat the cream mixture until scalded (about to boil), then pour it over the chocolate.  Cover and let sit for 5 minutes, then stir until smooth.  Set aside to cool before using.

To make the whipped cream, combine the remaining cup of heavy cream and the seeds from the other half of the vanilla bean in a large bowl.  Beat on high using an electric mixer until medium peaks form. Add the powdered sugar and beat again to combine or until stiff peaks form.

To serve, remove the ice cream cake from the springform pan.  Spread the whipped cream on top, then drizzle on the chocolate ganache.  Slice and go crazy!