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Indulge in the ultimate dessert experience with this Ice Cream Cookie Cake. This decadent creation layers rich homemade chocolate chip cookies with smooth vanilla frozen custard, making it a perfect treat for celebrations or a luxurious end to a special meal. Each component complements the other, resulting in a dessert that’s as enjoyable to make as it is to serve and savor.

This recipe is combining my favorite desserts into one. Inspired by the classic comfort of chocolate chip cookies and the creamy luxury of homemade custard, this cake is designed to be a crowd-pleaser. It’s a fusion of flavors and textures that celebrates the joy of homemade desserts.

freshly made ice cream cookie cake

The Chemistry of Ice Cream Cookie Cake

The ice cream cookie cake is a marvel of culinary textures, achieved through the careful preparation of its components. The cookies provide a chewy, slightly crisp layer that contrasts beautifully with the creamy, rich custard. Baking soda in the cookie allows them to rise slightly and maintain a soft interior, while the custard’s base, enriched with eggs and cream, undergoes a freezing process that locks in a smooth, airy texture. The layering technique is crucial, as it ensures each bite includes a harmonious blend of cookie and custard.

How do I ensure the cookie layers don’t become too hard when frozen?

By underbaking the cookies slightly, they retain a chewier texture even after freezing, ensuring they don’t turn too hard.

Can I use store-bought custard for this recipe?

While homemade custard is recommended for its flavor and texture, store-bought frozen custard can be used as a time-saving alternative.

freshly made ice cream cookie cake

What’s the best way to layer the cake without making a mess?

Using a cake ring and acetate paper helps contain the layers as you build the cake, keeping the custard in place until it sets.

How long will the ice cream cookie cake keep in the freezer?

Store the cake in the freezer for up to 1 month. Cover it tightly with plastic wrap to avoid freezer burn.

freshly made ice cream cookie cake

What is in an Ice Cream Cookie Cake?

All-purpose Flour

Builds structure as it absorbs liquids and expands. All-purpose flour falls in the middle of bread flour (high in gluten) and cake flour (low in gluten). It’s exactly what it is named, all-purpose, the most universal flour that can be used in most baked goods.

Baking Soda

Elevates the pH level of your batter or dough. It increases the spread in your treat and encourages browning, which gives the crispy outside and soft inside texture that everyone loves. Baking soda needs both an acid and a liquid to react. Things that will activate your baking soda are: vinegar, fruit juice, molasses, brown sugar, tartar, buttermilk and sour cream. Baking soda only reacts once, which is right when it’s mixed into your batter or dough. The soda creates little air bubbles all throughout your treat. When the air bubbles get heated up in the oven, they expand.

Fine Sea Salt

Enhances flavor, adds balance, masks any bitter flavors. Salt is the most powerful and oldest preservative. Always make sure to use fine sea salt so it melts down at the right speed in the heat of the oven. If you use larger granule salt, it will not melt down fully when baked and will leave salt crystals throughout your treat, making it crunch like you dropped it into sand. All of my favorite salts are from Redmond and I have a discount code for you to get 15% off.

Unsalted Butter

It is always important to use unsalted butter when baking. If you use salted butter, you have no way of knowing how much salt you are adding to your dough or batter and it will result in an overly salted treat.

Butter adds fats to your dough or batter which helps with moistness, flavor and texture. Butter melts at body temperature, which creates a ‘melt in your mouth’ sensation.

When baking with butter, the temperature is important. If the butter is too warm, your treat will melt too fast and overspread in the oven, leaving you with a greasy, flat mess. If your butter is too cold, it will have the opposite problem and not melt down enough, leaving your treat too thick.

Shortening

Being 100% fat, it provides a flakier texture and prevents spreading because it does not melt down in the oven.

Brown Sugar

Is granulated sugar with a little molasses mixed in. Molasses is a somewhat smoky flavored natural sweetener, which makes brown sugar a bit sweeter than granulated sugar. Brown sugar draws more moisture into your treat, keeping it softer for longer. It’s also more acidic, which means it will help activate your baking soda.

Granulated Sugar

Adds sweetness, provides a caramelized flavor and crisp texture. Sugar assists with rising when creamed with butter. It helps add moisture to your treat and helps it evenly spread as it melts into a liquid in the heat of the oven. Sugar also helps with naturally preserving your baked treat.

Eggs

Adds both a protein (egg whites) and fat (egg yolks). The egg whites help with rising because, when foamed, little air pockets get trapped inside the egg white mixture. The water content in egg whites encourages steam while baking, which helps with gluten formation, resulting in nice and thick treats. Egg yolks have emulsifying properties that bring batters and doughs together and help them from collapsing. Unless otherwise specified, always use large eggs.

Vanilla Extract

When using pure vanilla extract, as opposed to imitation flavoring, it will add the deep rich flavor that everybody wants in a treat.

Chocolate Chips

Is a form of chocolate. Chocolate chips are not pure chocolate, they are typically made up of cocoa, sugar, emulsifier and vanilla. Chips are good for baking because they do not melt completely in the oven like pure chocolate would. That way you get confined pockets of chocolate throughout your treat.

Frozen Custard

Offers a creamy, smooth contrast to the chewy cookies.

Storage Tips

Store it fully assembled in the freezer for up to 1 month. Cover the cake well to maintain its best quality and prevent freezer burn.

Freezing Options

Freeze the assembled cake as directed to set the layers properly. For longer storage, wrap the cake tightly in plastic wrap after the initial setting period and keep it frozen until ready to serve.

freshly made ice cream cookie cake

Making Ahead

Prepare the cookie layers and custard in advance. The cookies can be baked and stored at room temperature for up to two days before assembly, and the custard can/should be made and refrigerated overnight before churning.

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Why make ice cream cookie cake?

Picture this: a slice of ice cream cookie cake, with its enticing layers of golden-brown chocolate chip cookies and velvety vanilla custard. This is the luxurious texture and appealing flavor of the cake, inviting everyone to dive into this exquisite dessert that’s sure to impress at any gathering or special occasion.

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ice cream cookie cake

Ice Cream Cookie Cake

Author: Madison Reid
Total Time: 55 minutes
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Resting Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 12
Layers of homemade chocolate chip cookie with vanilla frozen custard.

Ingredients 

  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter
  • 1/2 cup shortening
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 bag chocolate chips

Frozen Custard

  • 1 batch Frozen Custard

Instructions

  • Start the day before by preparing your vanilla custard. It must rest in the fridge for at least 8 hours before churning.
  • In a standing mixer, mix your butter, shortening & sugars
  • Once combined, whip the sugar mixture on high for 1-2 minutes until lighter in color and texture
  • Stir in eggs & vanilla. Be sure to not over mix.
  • Pour in flour, soda & salt
  • Mix until the dough comes together & then stop
  • Fold in chocolate chips
  • Cover bowl & place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to rest
  • Preheat your oven to 375 degrees
  • Press the cookie dough into three 6" cake pans that have been lined with parchment paper.
  • Bake for 10-12 minutes
  • Remove cookies and allow to cool for 5-10 minutes
  • While the cookies are cooling, churn your already prepared vanilla custard in an ice cream machine.
  • Take a 6" cake ring and acetate paper. Line the acetate paper up inside the cake ring and tape on the outside edge of the acetate paper. You can also tape the edges of the ring to the acetate paper to keep it in place. Put this on a plate or cookie sheet that will fit in your freezer.
  • Put a 6" baked cookie into the acetate paper ring you just formed and push it to the bottom so that it is touching the plate or pan. Pour 1/2 of the frozen custard on top.
  • Place the second 6" baked cookie on top of the custard you just poured. Pour the rest of the custard on top. Finally, place the last 6" cookie on top of the custard you just poured.
  • Place in the freezer for 4 hours to set before cutting.

Nutrition

Calories: 494kcal Carbohydrates: 65g Protein: 4g Fat: 25g Saturated Fat: 12g Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g Monounsaturated Fat: 6g Trans Fat: 1g Cholesterol: 48mg Sodium: 206mg Potassium: 147mg Fiber: 1g Sugar: 42g Vitamin A: 276IU Vitamin C: 0.001mg Calcium: 46mg Iron: 1mg

Have you tried this recipe?

I’d love to see it! Follow @_mrs.madi_ on Instagram and tag your photos with #mrsmadi.

freshly made ice cream cookie cake