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She always gives time for me and makes a delicious ice cream cake! (They're HUGE.) Click on my picture to learn how!

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I recently discovered that ice cream cake is a surprisingly divisive topic. When I asked friends and readers whether actual cake belonged in ice cream cake, the responses were severely split. Of course! said some. Absolutely not, insisted others. It turns out, you see, that many, many people were raised on the Dairy Queen and Carvel ice cream cakes, which are nothing but pure and cold ice cream, with chocolate cookie bits in the middle, and a luscious layer of whipped frosting over it all.

So today, dear readers, for those of you who dream of nothing more than recreating this childhood memory at home, perhaps with your own homemade ice cream, here is a step-by-step recipe to let you do just that. How to make an ice cream cake - it can be even better than DQ's, if you can imagine that.

The Dubious Economics of Homemade Ice Cream Cakes

Before we get started, though, I need to level with you. Making an ice cream cake from scratch is not an entirely good deal, economically speaking. Dairy Queen charges about $20 to $25 for its regular round cakes. Making this with good-quality ice cream and store-bought ingredients, like fudge sauce and cookies, will probably be quite a bit more.

Of course, money isn't the only reason to do something from scratch; you may want to use your own special homemade flavors, or create a cake with dairy-free ice cream. You might want to decorate it specially, or include home-baked cookies inside.

But just fair warning - if you want the cheapest option, pick one up at your local shop. For all the other reasons, proceed!

Now that we've talked about that, let's talk about how long this will take you. Making an ice cream cake is not a lot of work; I dare say it's easier than a baked cake. But it does take time - almost entirely hands-off time, but still. If you want an ice cream cake for a birthday party, I would start at least three days ahead.

You need a day to create the first layer, which has to freeze until solid. Then the next ice cream layer, and after that, it freezes overnight so it's stable enough to remove the springform ring. Then you frost the cake with whipped cream, and it's really best to let it sit in the freezer one more night before serving. You're always fighting the clock when working with ice cream, so give yourself plenty of time to let things chill out between steps.

Last but not least: freezer space. You need a lot. Enough to slide a whole sheet pan into the freezer. Upright freezers are best for this; side-by-side and bottom-drawer freezers make it tough. Clear your freezer and do a test run with the pans before getting started.

How To Make an Ice Cream Cake

Serves 16

Ingredients

Equipment

Wax or parchment paper

Baking sheet

9- or 10-inch springform ring, chilled in the freezer overnight (see Note)

Stand or hand mixer

Spatula

Large round cake plate or platter

Offset spatula

Piping bag, optional

Instructions

Recipe Notes

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How To Make an Ice Cream Cake (Even Better than Dairy Queen!)

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I recently discovered that ice cream cake is a surprisingly divisive topic. When I asked friends and readers whether actual cake belonged in ice cream cake, the responses were severely split. Of course! said some. Absolutely not, insisted others.

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I love my mom because she always makes me laugh.

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My mom is great because she can make almost anything funny.
我喜欢我的妈妈应为她很滑稽。

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My mom is great because she is kind and caring.(And also because she makes delicious cakes, yum.)
-Shriya

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I love my mom because she is great at sewing and knitting. she also makes terrific food. (She also tought me how to knit.)

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I love my mom because she makes the best cookies ever!!

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My  Mom is kind and Caring. She  Bakes very well and really loves to do things with me.

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My mom is patient, caring, and understanding. She always knows how I feel and helps me with my problems and makes me feel better if I am down.

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I love my mom because she such a great mom

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I love my mom because she loves me back and is very kissing.

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My mom is very loving,caring, and a great cook. She also always helps me.

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i love my mom because she is very caring and a great cook.
-Rishi

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My mom is a   great hugs we snuggle a lot
Quinn

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my mom is amazingly-awesome she is the one who teaches me everything I know about cooking and baking and I quite a bit if I do say so myself

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My mom is great because she is really nice. Also because she is amazing at cooking!!!

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My mom is great because she is Caring and very artsy, she loves to paint like me! (Plus the yummy muffins)

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My mom is very nice and always takes my feelings into account!

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My mom is very talkative she makes me happy every time I'm sad.

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My mom is very talkative she makes me happy every time I'm sad.

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My mom is very crafty. She can knit, sew, make quilts, and she's also a terrific cook!

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My mom is very crafty. She can knit, sew, make quilts, and she's also a terrific cook!