ICE CREAM SANDWICHES
This week on Basics, I'm showing you how to make a few different ice cream sandwiches from scratch.
Ingredients
Chocolate Waffle Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
½ cup cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
3 large eggs
½ cup light brown sugar
¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp instant espresso powder
2 cups buttermilk
Faux Ice Cream Ingredients:
2 cups heavy cream
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 can sweetened condensed milk
Carrot Cake Ingredients:
2 cups carrots, peeled
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
½ tsp nutmeg
¼ tsp ground cloves
¾ tsp kosher salt
1 ¼ cup light brown sugar
½ cup white sugar
3 large eggs
¾ cup vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
***If chocolate cake is preferred, scratch the carrots and spices and add finely chopped chocolate chips.
Semifreddo Ingredients:
1 cup heavy cream
5 large egg yolks
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ cup white sugar
7 oz cream cheese
Method
Chocolate Waffle Method:
In a medium bowl, combine 2 cups of all-purpose flour with ½ cup cocoa powder, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, and whisk together until homogenous and set aside.
In a large bowl, combine 3 large eggs, ½ cup of packed light brown sugar, ¼ cup each of olive oil and vegetable oil, 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract, and 1 teaspoon of instant espresso powder. Whisk together while also trying to beat a little air into it until the mixture is smooth.
At this point, add in the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients while also adding in 2 cups of buttermilk and making sure not to over mix the mixture. Just make sure there are no streaks left.
Generously lube a waffle maker of choice, if it’s a Belgian waffle maker pour in ¾ cup to 1 cup of waffle batter and let it cook for about 4 minutes then place on a wire rack immediately to cool completely.
Let the waffles cool off for about 30 minutes before wrapping in plastic wrap individually and freeze for at least 6 hours to overnight. During this time is a good time to make the faux ice cream.
Using a pie plate lined with plastic wrap, place one chocolate waffle into the pie plate and generously cover with the faux ice cream before placing a second chocolate waffle on top. Wrap it up tight in plastic wrap and place back into the freezer for 6 hours or until completely firm.
At this point, feel free to decorate with the desired toppings like sprinkles!
Faux Ice Cream Method:
In a stand mixer, combine 2 cups of heavy cream with 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract (or paste) and whisking together using the wire whisk attachment until the cream reaches stiff peaks. This usually takes about 90 seconds.
At which point, lift up the stand mixer head and add 1 can of cold sweetened condensed milk and beat into the whipped cream for about an additional minute.
Once the cream has reached stiff peaks stop the mixer and place it into the desired bowl and place it in the freezer or stuff it between two chocolate waffles.
Carrot Cake Method:
Start by finely grating 2 cups of peeled carrots (8-9 carrots) onto a paper towel then pressing between two layers of paper towels to remove any moisture to help keep the cake tender in the freezer.
In a medium bowl, combine 1 ¾ cups of all-purpose flour with 1 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, 2 teaspoons cinnamon, 1 teaspoon ground ginger, ½ teaspoon nutmeg, ¼ teaspoon ground cloves, ¾ teaspoon kosher salt and whisk together until completely homogenous.
Into a larger bowl, goes 1 ¼ cup of light brown sugar, ½ cup of white sugar, 3 large eggs, ¾ cup vegetable and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract then whisking together until smooth then adding the “dry” carrots and whisking until combined.
Making sure there are no lumps or clumps and adding in the dry ingredients and gently folding together until no dry streaks of flour remain.
Generously oil a large rimmed baking sheet along with a sheet of parchment paper pressed into it before dumping the cake batter inside. Using an offset spatula smoothing it out as smooth and even as possible.
Place in a 350°F preheated oven for about 15 minutes until the top is soft and glossy. Invert the cake onto a cooling rack and again on another cooling rack so it can cool off while sitting on top of the parchment paper. Cool completely before cutting into half, wrapped in plastic wrap, and placed in the freezer for at least 6 hours or until completely firm. During which time is a good time to make the semifreddo.
Once the custard and cake are firm, trim the cake down to the desired size/mold and assemble the layers starting with the first layer of cake followed by the semifreddo and then the top layer of the cake.
Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and set in the freezer for another hour or two just to firm back up.
Once the cake & custard have firmed back up, take out of the freezer and commend to slicing into the desired sizes using a hot knife and rinsing off after every slice.
Semifreddo Method:
Start by beating 1 cup of heavy cream into stiff peaks and setting aside in the fridge while in a heatproof bowl combining 5 large egg yolks, 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract, and ½ cup of sugar. Whisk together until completely smooth.
Over on the stovetop, place the heatproof bowl over a small saucepan with 1” of simmering water and use the bowl as a double boiler constantly beating the egg yolk mixture for about 3-5 minutes until it is lighter in color and doubled in volume.
Whisk together for a couple of minutes off heat until it returns to room temperature, put it in the bowl of a stand mixer and add 7oz of room temperature cream cheese cubes, whip together on medium-high speed for about 5 minutes and occasionally stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl until the cream is completely smooth.
At which point, retrieve the whipped cream from the fridge adding it to the egg yolk mixture and gently folding into the custard, taking extreme care to not deflate the mixture.
Once there are no more visible streaks remain, using the desired mold lined with plastic wrap dump in the custard and smoothing it out before tightly wrapping in plastic wrap and freezing overnight or until completely firm.