Read on to learn how to make this incredibly easy homemade ice cream cake!
Looking for a quick and easy dessert that everyone will love? I mean, aren’t we all?
Well, you’ve come to the right place! This ice cream cake recipe is super easy and will have everyone coming back for seconds.
Seriously. I’ve made all sorts of fancy and complicated desserts that were very delicious and everyone was excited about, but this simple ice cream cake is just as popular!
So now this is my go-to dessert for when I need to please a bunch of people but don’t want to spend a lot of time making it. Everyone wins!
And since you can change up the cake and ice cream flavors, you could make this ice cream cake over and over and over without ever repeating the flavor combination!
The one pictured here is one I made for a family friend’s birthday — the birthday boy wanted chocolate cake with cherry ice cream and strawberry topping. Delicious!
When I made this for my daughter’s Frozen birthday party, she wanted vanilla cake and blueberry cheesecake ice cream. Also delicious!
You could try spice cake and vanilla bean ice cream? Mmm! Dark chocolate cake with peanut butter swirl ice cream? My mouth is already watering! See where I’m going with this? The possibilities are literally endless!
So let’s jump in!
Easy Homemade Ice Cream Cake
What you’ll need:
- sheet cake (any cake recipe you like, baked in a sheet pan lined with parchment paper)
- one container (about 1.5 quarts) of ice cream (it helps to let it sit out for a bit so that it’s a little soft, but not melty)
- one 8 oz. container of whipped topping
- 1/2 package of jello (optional — this is to flavor the whipped topping, if desired)
Make the cake in a sheet pan and cut in half
First, make your favorite cake recipe in a sheet pan lined with parchment paper.
Once it’s cooled, cut it right down the middle. Gently lift the parchment paper up on one side to lift up the cake. Slide your hands between the cake and parchment paper, and remove one half of the cake. Place it on your cake board (or another pan, whatever you’re using to store and serve the cake).
If you’re having a hard time moving half of the cake at once, you can cut it into smaller sections and move them over one at a time. I don’t have a problem with this with most of my cakes, but my chocolate cake recipe tends to be a bit more tender, so I do move it in smaller sections, as you can see below.
Add the ice cream!
Spread the whole container of ice cream over the cake.
Top the ice cream with the rest of the cake
Now remove the second half of the cake and place it on top of the ice cream layer. The second half of the cake is usually much easier to move over now that you have more space in the sheet pan to work with, so it’s easier to move the whole thing at once. But if your cake is giving you trouble, you can still cut it into smaller sections to move over just like the bottom layer.
Flavor the whipped topping, if desired
If you want to add flavor to the whipped topping, stir in half a packet of jello in your desired flavor. I personally really like plain cool whip, but it is fun to change it up, too.
Spread the whipped topping on the ice cream cake
Spread a thin layer of the whipped topping all over the cake, filling in any spaces between the ice cream and cake layers. This should use less than half of the whipped topping. Put the cake in the freezer until the whipped topping is hard, about 30 minutes.
This step is just to freeze all the loose cake crumbs in the bottom layer of whipped topping, so they don’t spread out and make your cake look messy.
Take the cake out and spread the rest of the whipped topping. Freeze again for at least 30 minutes.
And that’s it — you’re finished! If you want to add any sprinkles, I recommend waiting until shortly (like an hour or two) before you’ll be serving the cake to add them. Otherwise, they’ll dissolve into the whipped topping.
Store in the freezer.
What flavor combinations would you like to try with this easy homemade ice cream cake? Let me know in the comments!
