Three other phenomenal things to eat in Disneyland:
1. Half Baked Cookie Dessert from the Big Thunder Ranch BBQ. Four of us didn’t even come close to finishing this thing. I’m going to try to make it with my chewy nutella cookie recipe next week.
2. The classic frozen banana. I make these for the kids at home all the time, but they’re not the same as Disney’s. Does anyone know how they keep the banana inside so soft? Mine go frozen solid.
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3. Cream Cheese Pretzel. Apparently you can’t get them like this anywhere else in the world. That kills me a bit on the inside.
I’m crazy into ice-cream cakes at the moment. May have something to do with the sweat moustache I’ve been sporting, but they’ve become my new obsession, and the best part is that they are not just for 80’s birthday parties at McD’s – they’re for life. Or at least until I get carted off to Camp Biggest Loser. Anyway, here’s a basic one I whipped up earlier for the boys using vanilla ice-cream smashed up with crushed Tim Tams on the bottom layer, and strawberry ice-cream mixed with fresh raspberries on top. Last week I made much fancier (but devastatingly undocumented) four-layer one for the Silver Fox’s birthday consisting of chocolate ice-cream with crushed Ferrero Rocher on the bottom, then vanilla with macadamias and crushed Violet Crumble, then chocolate with crushed Peppermint Crisp, then strawberry with chopped up Cherry Ripe. Hello, lover.
Ice-cream cakes are deceptively impressive and crazy-simple to make. The downside is that it’s a drawn-out process as each layer needs to fully freeze before you put the next on top – you’ll need to start about a day before you want to eat it. Not so great if you’re more of a see-it-eat-it kind of girl like me.
Start by placing your first flavour of ice-cream (about one litre per layer should be enough – a 4L tub of Neapolitan is perfect, and not just in an ironic way) in a large bowl and set aside to soften, but not melt. Once soft, beat in the treats of your choice with a wooden spoon until well combined. Spoon into a 23cm round springform pan – making sure you pack it right in so it freezes perfectly in shape - and smooth with a spatula. Cover with foil and freeze for about four to six hours. Repeat the mixing process with the next flavour and whatever added extras you go for, remove the pan from the freezer, spoon the new layer on top of the first and smooth over. Freeze again, and then repeat with each additional layer.
Be careful when removing the collar of the springform pan (I’ve broken a couple using brute force to try to get them open while frozen, now I know to run hot water over the pan instead), then decorate however you like. I went old-school kiddie-style with this one, but you could try fresh flowers, a layer of whipped cream or – as suggested my mini-Martha Beauty Director Alexis - a casing of melted chocolate poured over the top. I’m all for experimentation: go nuts.
