Mint Oreo Ice Cream Cake

One of my kids' favorite things about celebrating a birthday is choosing a cake! We've made all sorts of cakes over the years, but I'm partial to the ice cream cake. Oh, it makes a yummy treat for sure, but I especially love it for its ease. It comes together quickly (you don't want it to melt!), but it looks impressive with all those layers of goodness. 

We've made many variations of it, but the peanut butter cup ice cream cake is definitely a family favorite. When Zac chose an ice cream cake for his 10th birthday this year, I had expected him to pick that one.

I was pleasantly surprised when he decided on a Mint Oreo version.

I'm a sucker for all things Mint Oreo, so this cake ties with our peanut butter cup ice cream cake at the top of my list.

If you like mint, chocolate, whipped cream, and desserts that are easy to make, you need to try this Mint Oreo ice cream cake!

Mint Oreo Ice Cream Cake

Ingredients:

18 mint chocolate chip ice cream sandwiches

12 Mint Oreo cookies, chopped

Chocolate sauce

Fresh whipped cream (or 1-2 small tubs Cool Whip)

Directions:

1. Working quickly, place 6 unwrapped ice cream sandwiches on a serving platter. Spread a generous portion of the whipped cream all across the top. Sprinkle with cookie pieces. Drizzle the chocolate sauce across the top.

2. Arrange 6 more unwrapped ice cream sandwiches on top and repeat layer of whipped cream, cookie pieces, and chocolate sauce.

3. Place 6 remaining unwrapped ice cream sandwiches on top.
4. Cover cake with whipped cream. *Garnish with remaining cookie pieces and chocolate sauce. Freeze cake for at least 30 minutes, and until ready to serve. Keep leftover cake in the freezer.

*If your ice cream is starting to melt, you can put the assembled cake in the freezer for 15 minutes before coating with whipped cream and garnishes.


Whipped Cream
Ingredients:
1 pint (2 cups) heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
1. Place metal mixing bowl and metal whisk attachment in the freezer for 10 minutes.
2. Remove the bowl from freezer and place all ingredients in the bowl. Using the metal whisk attachment on a mixer, beat until stiff peaks form. Do not over-beat.

Mint Chocolate Chip Cake

Every year since she has been able to voice her opinion, Alyssa has chosen a chocolate cake with pink buttercream frosting for her birthday treat. So you can imagine my surprise this year when she asked for a mint chocolate chip cake.

"No pink girly cake? Really? Mint chocolate chip? Ok!"  

Mint chocolate chip was my absolute favorite ice cream growing up. Minty, creamy goodness with flecks of rich chocolate; nothing was better, that is until they created mint Oreo ice cream, but that's another story.

We made the cake during the day and kept it in the refrigerator to keep it cold and give it the essence of its namesake. Then we had to wait for Leighton to get home from work and eat dinner. (Something about chocolate cake not being a nutritious meal? I don't know.) It was hoooouuuurrrs before we could indulge.

But, oh, was it worth it. The kids each took a bite and agreed that the cake tasted exactly like the ice cream. The rich, dark chocolate of the cake pairs beautifully with the creamy coolness of the frosting. And those dark chocolate pieces? Those are just a bonus.

I admit, I was a bit sad when my girl didn't desire her traditional pretty pink cake, (Speaking of traditions, this was also the first year that she didn't want to have a tea party on her special day. Who said she could grow up?) but I think she made an excellent choice.

Maybe growing up isn't so bad after all.

Maybe.

Mint Chocolate Chip Cake

Cake Ingredients:

2 cups sugar

1 3/4 cups flour

1 cup Hershey's Special Dark cocoa powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1 cup milk

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3/4 cup boiling water

Cake Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350. Grease and flour 2 round 9-inch pans.

2. In a large bowl, mix together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

3. Add eggs, milk oil and vanilla and beat on medium for 2 minutes.

4. Stir in boiling water.

5. Pour evenly into prepared pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes. Cool 10 minutes in pans before removing to cool completely on wire racks.

*Recipe adapted from Hershey's.

Frosting Ingredients:

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

1/3 cup heavy cream

2 teaspoons mint extract

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 cups powdered sugar

4-5 drops green food coloring

2 ounces dark chocolate, finely chopped

Frosting Directions:

1. In a large bowl, beat butter until light and fluffy.

2. Add cream and both extracts and beat until smooth.

3. With the mixer on the lowest speed, slowly add the powdered sugar until just combined.

4. Add food coloring and beat on medium-high for one minute. Frosting should be smooth and fluffy.

5. Add chopped chocolate and mix on low until evenly combined.

Tasty Tuesday: Mock Shamrock & Mint Oreo Shakes

March is a wonderful month. The weather warms up. The ground starts to thaw. The birds return and chirp. The flowers begin to grow.  Green shows all around. My little girl celebrates her birthday.

Yes, all those things are wonderful. But the best part though? Shamrock shakes. It's true. I love them. The creaminess, the mintiness, the yumminess. Mmmm. What I don't love is that McDonald's never seems to have them. Oh, sure, they have the picture on the menu, but every time we go, they're out. Do you know how frustrating that is?!? We don't even eat at McDonald's but a couple times a year!  We've made special trips in the month of March though for the beloved Shamrock Shake. Do I want to substitute it for a strawberry shake? Nooo. How about a vanilla? Nope. Not even a chocolate shake can compete with my Shamrock. Sigh, we don't even bother anymore. 

What's a girl to do???

Why, make her own, of course! Why didn't I think of that sooner? We make our own shakes all the time. It's one of the kids' favorite treats on Sunday nights after church. We buy a big tub of cheap ice cream from the store for practically the same price as a single shake from a restaurant. Each one gets to choose which flavor he'd like. Some nights, I make 4 different flavors. It's quick, cheap, and makes everyone happy. Oh, yeah, they're delicious, too.   

So, the moment you've all been waiting for . . . the homemade Shamrock Shake ~ always in stock, always worth the price.

1. Dump all ingredients into a blender.
2. Place lid on blender (unless you'd like a show with your shake.) 
3. Blend.

Following me so far?

Pour into a glass, garnish, and enjoy!

Oh. My. Goodness. Soooo yummy! No longer do I have to wait for March. No more do I needlessly venture into McDonald's. Never again do I have to be disappointed at the lack of minty shakes! I now have my own mock shamrock. (Or maybe I should call it a sham shamrock? Or just a sham-sham shake. Say that 10 times fast!)

I wasn't sure if Jake would like it. He's not too keen on minty things. Let me tell you, he loved it! He has told me multiple times how yummy it was and asked when I can make it again. The other 2 kids gobbled it up as well. Their daddy, on the other hand . . . he liked the initial flavor, but not the aftertaste. Don't worry, I'm not offended. He's also not a big fan of mint. He'd rather use vanilla or orange toothpaste. Now, that's weird. And lest you think I deprived him of a shake just because he's weird and doesn't like mint, I'll tell you that I made him a fresh strawberry shake instead. 

Anyway, the only thing that could make this mock shake better is to turn it into my all-time favorite shake/ice cream -- mint Oreo. (Now do you see why I don't let my kids eat the mint Oreo cookies when I buy them???)  Another place we go maybe twice a year is Dairy Queen. (Are you starting to get the picture that we don't go out much? 'Cause we don't.) I don't know why I bother to look at the menu. Maybe to see if something else catches my attention. Maybe to make the employees feel good about the yummy pictures behind them. Maybe because it's what I'm supposed to do. It doesn't matter. I always get the same thing - mint Oreo blizzard. Such a risk-taker I am.

To make your own, back up to step 1 in the Shamrock directions and add crushed Oreos (even better if you use homemade ones.) Proceed as directed, lid on and all. Then, after you pour it into the glass, place it in the freezer for 30 minutes to soften the cookie pieces.

Perfection. 

You know what makes this shake better than one you can buy? No, it's not the convenience. No, it's not the price. No, it's not even that you know what ingredients are in there. It's because you can add as many cookies to the mix as you want. And nothing is better than that.

* I do not use measurements when I make shakes. I just pour, plop, blend, taste, adjust, blend, taste . . . Below are the amounts I used to make these shakes. Our ice cream was pretty soft, so I didn't need much milk. Adjust the amounts according to your personal consistency preference.

Mock Shamrock Shake

Ingredients: 

4 scoops vanilla ice cream                                        

1/2 c milk

1/4 tsp mint extract

8-10 drops green food coloring

Directions:

1. Blend ingredients until smooth. Adjust ingredients, as desired.

2. Pour into 2 glasses. 

3. Garnish.

Mint Oreo Shake

Ingredients: 

4 scoops vanilla ice cream                                        

1/2 c milk

5 crushed Oreo cookies

1/4 tsp mint extract

8-10 drops green food coloring

Directions:

1. Blend ingredients until smooth. Adjust ingredients, as desired.

2. Pour into 2 glasses. 

3. Freeze for 30 minutes.

4. Garnish.