Elegant Ice Cream Cake Made Easy

Last weekend we were having friends for dinner and I wanted to make a simple, quick, yet elegant seeming dessert. I remembered my Mother making ice cream cakes when I was little using Angel Food Cake and Sherbet. That was such a delightful dessert that was perfect for summer, but it was getting frosty outside and I also remembered that the company coming loved chocolate and coffee! So I whipped out a chocolate cake mix that I had in the pantry and baked it according to the directions, except I used applesauce in stead of the oil. I love saving calories wherever I can. I made one of the cakes thicker than the other so that I could slice it in half width-wise so that I would have three layers. I didn't use the regular size pans, but a bit smaller ones so that the cakes would be a bit thicker.

While the cake was cooling in the freezer (I took them out of the pans and placed them on dishes in the freezer to cool) I dashed to the store and bought two gallons of ice cream, the ones that were half the fat. One gallon of coffee and one that was a rich chocolate. I also got a large light tub of Cool Whip. I left the whip on the counter to thaw and got the cakes out of the freezer. They were the perfect temperature. I sliced the thicker one in half with a large bread knife. Be careful not to slice yourself. If you have three pans, that would work even better, but I've never thought it was worth the investment.

After slicing the cakes I began to scoop the coffee ice cream out and put a nice thick layer on the first cake. Working quickly, I laid the second layer of cake on top of the ice cream and then scooped out the chocolate ice cream using a table knife to get it as even as possible. Depending on how warm the house is, this is sometimes easier than others. After I placed the third layer of cake on top I used a table knife to "ice" the cake with the Coolwhip. You must work quickly so that the ice cream and whip don't begin to thaw. Have a chocolate bar and cheese grater ready as you finish the icing so that you can grate the chocolate all over the whip to make an elegant finish.

I hope your guests will enjoy this as much as my guests did last weekend! It's fun to be creative with your choices of cake and ice cream every time you make a new one.