no-bake: ice cream cake

Hawwwt dog! And Happy 4th! I can't believe it's already July... hope this past weekend found you NOT melting and instead, enjoying fireworks, cool drinks, sparklers, and lots of summery eats. We stole away to Newport, Rhode Island for a breather by the sea and had a LOVE-ly time noshing on fresh raw oysters (the Blue Points are my fav), clam chowdah, steamed lobstah and sipping on some really great local Chardonnay. Here are a few shots from our weekend:

As promised, this post is steamy oven-free and a perfect summery dessert for the Chocolate heavy-hitters out there. It was Bf's birthday last week and when asked (by his BAKER girlfriend) what his favorite cake was, I got "ice cream cake" in response. Despite the lack of flour and butter, I was not to be outdone and found a Rachael Ray recipe that at least involved some skill (OK, well not much).

This ice cream cake is just like it was when I was a kid -- except it looks a little more sophisticated and is much more decadent. One word: GANACHE. And lots of it! I customized it with some of his favorites -- Ben & Jerry's mint chip and a Haagen Dazs double chocolate to add some personal flair.

This was delicious and the only thing I'd change is less ganache (it was really rich) and a more careful hand when lining the pan with plastic wrap. The ganache and ice cream got imprinted with the plastic wrap lines, but the cake popped right out and had lovely (and delicious) layers - and looked pretty when I sliced it.

If the oven's too hot for a summery fruit pie, grab two pints of your favorite ice cream and indulge. It's worth it.

Triple Chocolate Ice Cream Cake

Rachael Ray

1 cup (1/2 pint) heavy cream

12 oz. semisweet chocolate chips

1 12-oz marble pound cake, such as Entenmann's, cut into 1/2-inch thick slices

1 pint vanilla ice cream, softened

20 chocolate wafers, such as Nabisco brand

1 pint chocolate ice cream, softened

In a small saucepan, bring the heavy cream to a boil over medium-high heat. Put the chocolate chips in a heatproof medium bowl and pour the boiling cream over the chocolate. Let sit until the chocolate is melted, about 2 minutes. Stir the mixture with a fork for about 2 minutes, until the ganache is smooth.

Line a nonstick loaf pan with 2 overlapping sheets of plastic wrap, allowing a 4-inch overhang on all sides.

Pour half of the ganache (1 cup) evenly into the lined pan and spread to cover the base. Cover the ganache with a single layer of tightly packed cake slices; be sure the layer is flat and even. Working quickly, spread the vanilla ice cream evenly over the pound cake. Cover the ice cream with a layer made of half of the chocolate wafers. Spread the remaining ganache evenly over the wafers, then top the ganache with another layer, using all of the remaining wafers, and place the cake in the freezer for about 30 minutes to chill and firm up.

Remove the cake from the freezer and spread the chocolate ice cream over the wafers. Top with another flat, single layer of tightly packed slices of pound cake, trimming 1 or 2 slices to fill in the gaps (there will be a few slices left over). The cake may be slightly higher than the pan. Cover the cake completely with the plastic overhang and freeze until firm, at least 5 hours or overnight.

To loosen the ice cream cake from the pan, open the plastic wrap and invert the pan over a flat serving platter. Remove the plastic wrap, then slice and serve immediately.