Carvel Ice Cream makes me feel young. Some of my earliest memories are of my father taking me to Carvel every day for ice cream. EVERY DAY! I always got the same thing. Soft vanilla ice cream with chocolate sprinkles. Still my favorite.

My birthdays were always celebrated with a Carvel ice cream cake. If you have never had one, the cakes have these delicious chocolate crunchies layered between the ice cream. I have always been wild for those crunchies.

In my area of Vermont there are no Carvel stores. You can buy the cakes frozen in some supermarkets, but it is not the same as the excitement of picking up a personalized one at the shop.

I wanted to try my hand at making a Carvel style ice cream cake. This recipe comes pretty close. I couldn’t be fussed to get the “secret ingredient” whipped cream icing right, so I just dumped more crunchies on top to decorate. Easy.

If you love those Carvel cakes you’ll want to make this recipe. I closed my eyes while eating my slice and I was instantly a young Brooklyn girl again. Back in the day when I couldn’t wait for my next birthday. Ha!

Carvel Style Ice Cream Cake

Ingredients:

1 gallon vanilla ice cream
1/2 gallon chocolate ice cream (or any flavor really)
1/2 pkg Famous Wafers
10 Oreo Cookies
Chocolate Magic Shell

Directions:

Note: Assembling ice cream cake recipes will require a few trips back and forth to the freezer. Make sure you have enough room for cold air to circulate around the cake pan.

1. Start by chilling the cake pan. Leave the vanilla ice cream out to soften for about 15 minutes. (You’ll want the ice cream to be the consistency of soft serve, but not runny).

2. Place a cardboard cake disc in the bottom of a 9 inch springform pan. (I have a glass bottomed springform pan that I love. If you use one of these, you don’t need the disc.)

3. Use a metal spatula to spread vanilla ice cream all around the sides of the pan to about 1/2″ thickness. If the ice cream is so soft that it slides down the pan, put it back in the freezer for a few minutes before trying to spread again.

4. Make the chocolate crunchies: In a food processor, chop wafers and Oreo cookies into large crumbs. Add magic shell, a little at a time until crumbs are completely coated, but not swimming in it. (I used about 1/2 of the bottle)

Important: Do not refrigerate crunchies before adding them to the cake. They will chill into a solid lump.

5. Sprinkle vanilla ice cream layer with crunchies. Place pan in freezer until crunchies are hard.

6. Allow the second ice cream flavor to soften. Spread 2nd flavor into pan, packing it down as you go. Leave about 1/2″ space from the top of the pan.Chill until completely solid.

7. Spread the rest of the vanilla ice cream over the top. Sprinkle with the remaining crunchies if you like. (LIKE!)

8. Chill 1 -2 hours or until completely solid.

9. To unmold, run the sides of the pan under hot water until you notice a little melting along the pan sides. Place the cake pan on top of a bowl, unlatch the pan hinge and press the sides down. Remove the cake bottom.

Recipe adapted from Cake Decorating Corner

Now that I am feeling so young, I’m going to play some young music.

This song is so cool. Sounds like a bunch of other stuff, but that’s okay. Dawn Landes has that soft, sexy kind of voice that is irresistable.
Dawn Landes-Young Girl

Buy Dawn Landes’ music here.

I remember being 16 like it was yesterday. I can hardly remember yesterday, but 16 I recall. I was a bit crazy (well, a lot crazy).

Sixteen may be too young. I don’t know. I loved that year. And I love The Scotland Yard Gospel Choir.
The Scotland Yard Gospel Choir-Sixteen Is Too Young

Go buy The Scotland Yard Gospel Choir’s music here.

Cheers!