Mint Slice & Choc Oreo Brownie Ice Cream Cake

This was ridiculously, stupidly, crazily sweet and rich. Like, sickeningly so. But, with every mouthful I was saying, “Next time I’ll… and also next time I’ll…” The point is, you know you’re on to something good when you’re planning that there will *be* a next time before you’ve even finished *this* time. Oh yes, my pretty… there will be a next time.

It is not very often that I cook from recipes on the Internet. Of course there is nothing wrong with a lot of them, and it is an amazing resource, but I like to check my cook books I have in the house first, and then if they don’t cover what I need, then I will “Google it”. I recently stumbled upon this amazing looking food blog and have decided to try out a few of her recipes. Stand by for my post about this dessert in future… I have my eye square on it. 🙂 But for now, I was looking for a nut free dessert option, so I made this one. I’ve linked to the original content, because Lindsay deserves the credit for her work. However, it is an American site, and all the units needed to be converted (which I’ve done for you below), the sweetness needed to be eased back for the Aussie palate (which I now know for next time) and also some of the key products were unavailable in Australia.  The mint oreos for this mint oreo based dessert, for example, I couldn’t find. Alas, this was not going to slow me down! 🙂 I’ve done some experimenting with substitutions for you and they are detailed below. 🙂 The original instructions are well written, so feel free to have a read of her post in its entirely if you want more details and if you find something else on her site that you’d like me to try out (it’s quite likely, they look delicious!), let me know in the comments below. 🙂 Ok – so what follows is my (hopefully not too bastardised) version of Lindsay’s Mint Oreo Brownie Ice Cream Cake. It would be great for large groups who appreciate a very rich dessert. It fed 11 adults (to the brim), and there was still half left over. We simply couldn’t stomach it… 🙂 in a good way.

What’s in it?

• A batch of my usual brownies recipe, leaving out the choc chips
• 1/4 cup milk
• 250grams cream cheese – softened
• 1/2 cup caster sugar
• 2 tsp mint extract (I had essence rather than extract, so that’s what I used, and that was fine.)
• Very small amount of green food coloring or icing color (I used too much!)
• One cup of cream, to whip.*
• chocolate ice cream topping (I didn’t use as much as the original recipe wanted. I think our sauce is much thicker, so I just drizzled straight from the bottle each time it was needed. This worked well.)
• 1 packet Mint Slice chocolate biscuits, chopped
• 1 packet chocolate cream Oreo biscuits, chopped (“Normal” Oreos would work fine, there is plenty of chocolate elsewhere here)

* I tried her recipe for homemade whipped cream and that was really tasty, but I think adding the extra sugar and vanilla here is unnecessary for our Aussie palates Note – I have since discovered that we have mint Tim Tams available sometimes. If I could find these, I would use these next time instead of the two different biscuits above. I think that would work well… What ever you use, divide your biscuits in two larger groups for layering and one smaller, for decorating the top.

What do I do now?

Lindsay says: “An 8-inch springform pan is best for this recipe so that you can easily remove the cake once it’s been assembled. If you do not have a springform pan, line your pan with clear wrap before adding your parchment paper and cake board. You can use the clear wrap to lift your cake out of the pan once it’s assembled and frozen.”

Ok – firstly, take the cream cheese out of the fridge now. I had all sorts of issues, because I forgot to, and it wasn’t softened when I tried to mix it. Whoops.

Then, using the 2 springform pans, make and bake the brownies as per my previous recipe (omit the choc chips and shorten the cooking time –  try 20 mins and go from there). I say “brownies”, because you will devide the ONE batch between the TWO pans. (I made a double batch, and it was WAY too much, as you can see in the photo… and on my hips now. Haha!) Let the cooked brownies cool down, then remove from pans.

After the brownies are cool: using a mix master mix the milk, cream cheese, sugar, mint extract and food colouring. Mix these until completely combined. Remember that the green colouring will be washed out by the cream later on, but don’t go crazy. I used too much. Lindsay says you can hand whip here… Lindsay must be buff-as-bro. 😉  After this, fold in the whipped cream.

Putting it all together: 

• Line the sides of one of your original springform pans with baking paper. The paper needs to stick up above the top edge of the pan, as the cake will  be higher than your pan.
• Put the first brownie layer in the bottom of your pan and spread over it a mixture of both Mint Slice and choc cream Oreo biscuits. Drizzle chocolate sauce over the biscuits.
• Pour half of the mint ice cream in on top of that and flatten out. (Next time I will choose to pipe the icecream on with a very large nozzle, right up against the paper, rather than spreading it. Hopefully this would give a cleaner look around the edges when the paper is removed later. If you are not a “piping” kind of person, the spreading worked fine.)
• Repeat with the second brownie, more biscuits, more drizzled chocolate sauce and then the rest of the mint ice cream.
• Pop it all in the freezer (best of luck creating the space for it first…) and let the cake freeze completely (I left mine overnight, but I checked on it after only a few hours and it was good to go.)

When its good and frozen, take it out of the pan, put it on your serving plate and then take off the paper from the sides. Top it all off with a handful of biscuit and drizzle chocolate sauce, allowing it to run down the sides of the cake. (I actually didn’t read the recipe properly here and did this step before I put it in the freezer. It was fine, but then I re-drizzled to decorate the sides once it was on the serving plate.)

Note: It will need to thaw for a bit, in order to be able to be cut… as we discovered at the table… and then had to sit staring at it… waiting… 😉

Ummm… was it YUMMMM?     Why yes… yes it was indeed.

Was is ridiculously, stupidly rich, and something you couldn’t eat every day?    Sure.

Would I make it again?     Gosh darn, yes I would!

Well done, Lindsay. 🙂 Here, have a piece of ice cream cake. This version was not perfect I admit that, but it was well enjoyed, and there will be a next time! 🙂

Cupcakes, anyone?

Now, I know that every man and his dog has jumped on board the “homemade cupcake” train. Sadly I am one of those peeps too. I really get enjoyment out of decorating these pretty little cakes though. They give me satisfaction and usually the process is quite relaxing.

Lately I’ve been working on my fondant work, sugar flowers and butter cream piping. I’m happier with where my skill set is at now.

The problem is that quite often there are too many sweet goods in my house. Too many! Oh, my life is so hard! 😉

So, I’m looking for opportunities to practice my cupcake skills at the moment; opportunities whereby the cupcakes would then leave my house. 🙂

If you would like some cupcakes and you know that you live local-ish to me, let me know when you next have an event and I’ll give it a red-hot go for you! 🙂 It’s a win-win situation for everyone. Go here to see some examples of my work. 🙂

Here are some of my pieces from a recent farewell lunch at my work. Vanilla cupcakes – some with vanilla bean buttercream, some with fresh raspberry buttercream and some with buttercream and then fondant covered.

Sam’s Double Choc Raspberry Brownie Cups

These are made with the usual Double Choc Brownie recipe I use, however, in this case I substitute the plain flour with self raising flour. (You can make the normal recipe, if you want more of a “cupcake” rounded look. They still taste great.) If you DO substitute the self raising flour, for whatever reason, they rise, and then collapse in the middle. I suspect they are torn between the will to rise, and their insanely rich density, and it all gets too much for them. Happy accident for us, because it makes the perfect little cup to fill with raspberry buttercream, and then pop a sweet little raspberry on top. If they don’t want to sink in the middle I find calling them horrid names while banging the tray on a chopping board (while they are still hot) helps. 🙂

For me, in this case, the raspberry buttercream, and even more so the raspberry on top is, as they say on the Telly, the real “hero” here. For me, it cuts through the heaviness of the chocolate brownie.

What’s in the buttercream?

Based on the basic recipe in The Australian Woman’s Weekly Cookbooks: BAKE

• 125 grams unsalted butter
• 240 grams pure icing sugar (You might need to adjust this and add more, depending on your raspberries. Keep it handy.)
• a few raspberries, keep adding until you are happy with the taste/colour (I use frozen, because that’s what I usually have around.)

Beat the butter, until it is as white as possible. Sift the icing sugar. Push the raspberries through a sieve (I usually use both the juice and the pulp, because I like the raspberry seeds in the buttercream, but pushing it through the sieve breaks the fruit down.) Beat the icing sugar and the raspberry “puree” into the butter in two batches. Use a piping bag and nozzle to pipe into the brownies. (If you do not have a piping bag, Google how to make them out of a plastic bag, or greaseproof paper, it’s pretty easy.)

These brownies are full on rich, like for reals people. Rich as, bro. Enjoy!

A note, but not a lecture: When buying the choc chips and the cocoa powder, I strictly avoid the Nestlé brand. I initially came across the international boycott of this brand at my first University. They had a campus wide ban, and I was cranky because I couldn’t buy a certain chocolate bar I liked. It was an effective way of getting the message out there, and it certainly changed my view of things.
There is plenty of information about this boycott on the internet, and I’ll allow you to do your own research. 2 minutes of Googling and you’ll know enough to inform your choice.

Brownies you would sell your first born for

My husband came across this recipe at a site cutely named “cook like your grandmother”. I suppose I judged a book by its cover at that point, and we gave it a go. I have been making it for years now, and has become one of my most requested baked goods.

It is seriously rich, you only need a small piece. You may eat 4 of those small pieces, and no one is judging, you have been warned. 🙂

What’s in it?

• 1½ cups Caster Sugar
• ¾ cup Plain Flour
• ¾ cup Cocoa Powder (the best quality you can get your hands on)
• 3 free range eggs
• ¾ cup butter, melted
• ¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (the best quality you can get your hands on)

Stir everything, except the choc chips, together in a bowl until they are JUST COMBINED. Add the choc chips and stir in. Pour/scrape into a square tin, lined with baking paper. Use a spatula, or a spoon, to spread the mixture out evenly. Bake at 160 degrees for 20-30mins. The website gives the great advice that when checking to see if it is cooked through (with a skewer), remember that the choc chips will stay wet.

A note, but not a lecture: When buying the choc chips and the cocoa powder, I strictly avoid the Nestlé brand. I initially came across the international boycott of this brand at my first University. They had a campus wide ban, and I was cranky because I couldn’t buy a certain chocolate bar I liked. It was an effective way of getting the message out there, and it certainly changed my view of things.
There is plenty of information about this boycott on the internet, and I’ll allow you to do your own research. 2 minutes of Googling and you’ll know enough to inform your choice.

Classic Choc Chip Cookies

These choc chip cookies are one of my “go to” recipes for when we are craving something sweet. It is pretty much fool proof. The recipe is from The Australian Woman’s Weekly Cookbooks: COOK.
The raw dough keeps happily in the fridge, (it’s awesome to eat raw too) and these cookies are definitely more delicious baked fresh when you want them, and eaten hot when the chocolate is all melty. Yum!

It is not possible to pretend that these are good for you, so I’m not going to even try. Enjoy. 🙂

A note, but not a lecture: When buying the choc chips, I strictly avoid the Nestlé brand. I initially came across the international boycott of this brand at my first University. They had a campus wide ban, and I was cranky because I couldn’t buy a certain chocolate bar I liked. It was an effective way of getting the message out there, and it certainly changed my view of things.
There is plenty of information about this boycott on the internet, and I’ll allow you to do your own research. 2 minutes of Googling and you’ll know enough to inform your choice.