Birthday Ice Cream Bombe {#IceCreamWeek}

Welcome to #IceCreamWeek! Kim of Cravings of a Lunatic and Jen of Juanita’s Cocina have teamed up with more than 20 of their blog friends to bring you a week full of ice cream treats, including a special ice cream giveaway! Prepare to have your taste buds tempted with some of the best ice cream treats around! 

Today we are celebrating with a Birthday Ice Cream Party extravaganza for our friend Jen of Juanita's Cocina!  We love Jen noodles and brunches!  If you know Jen, then you probably adore her as well, so why not head on over to her website today to wish her the happiest of birthdays (or stop by her Facebook wall to wish her a Happy Birthday there).

Oh hey, why not grab a slice of this over-the-top Birthday Bombe before you go?  Doesn't it look insane?  And totally worthy of a birthday celebration!  And it is about 100x the size of the treat I originally intended to make for the party.

It's true.  I started out with the intention of making bonbons.  I mean, a frosty glass bowl piled high with them...but still bonbons.  I thought it would be simple.  I mean, little nuggets of ice creamy goodness in any flavor under the sun.  Right!?

Wrong.  Those buggers gave me a run for my money.  Before catching up and overtaking me.

It's really just a perfectionist sort of thing.  I wanted 'em how I wanted 'em, and I wasn't settling for anything less.  In my mind I pictured little domes.  I thought maybe I could use a small scoop and then turn them out and freeze them.  They didn't look pretty.

Okay, fine.  Next up, I dumped all the mini ice cubes form their (domed) tray and filled the holes with ice cream.  Promising.  Until I couldn't get them out.  They were just too soft, and wouldn't hold their shape.  What I need is a silicone mold that I can just turn inside out once they're frozen, but I wasn't going to be getting one in time.

So, I scrapped those deformed little nuggets (right into the little baby bird mouths chirping at me from behind).

I wanted festive.  And apparently I wanted something dome-shaped, darn it all!  So a giant, layered version was born.  An ice cream BOMBE!  Why yes, it is French in origin.

Ice Cream Bombe

by Heather Schmitt-Gonzalez

Prep Time: 8 hours

Cook Time: n/a

Keywords: dessert ice cream New Year birthday frozen ice-cream

Ingredients (serves 10-12)

• 1-1/2 - 2 pints (or so) Vanilla Bean Ice Cream, divided
• 10 Nutter Butter cookies
• 1/2 (7 ounce) bottle of Reese's Peanut Butter Ice Cream Sauce
• 1 pint (or so) Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream
• 1/2 of a frozen Sara Lee Pound Cake
• 4 ounces milk chocolate chips
• 1 ounce coconut oil
• SPRINKLES - LOTS OF 'EM

Instructions

Line a freezer-safe bowl (~1-1/2 quart size) with plastic wrap, leaving extra hanging over each end (to wrap back over).

Scoop about 2-3 cups of vanilla bean ice cream into the lined bowl and press it against the sides and bottom, so that it is fairly even and about an inch or so thick. Gently fold in the plastic wrap and set a smaller bowl inside, pressing gently to "smooth out" the insides. Remove smaller bowl. Freeze for at least 2 hours.

Place Nutter Butters and Peanut Butter sauce into a food processor and pulse until no large chunks remain, just small, wet crumbles. Remove plastic wrap from over the ice cream, and spread the Nutter Butter crunch in an even layer over the ice cream. Replace plastic and freeze for at least 2 hours.

Peel back the plastic, and scoop 1-2 cups of Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup ice cream into the concave dome, pressing gently into sides and bottom, forming about a 1-inch layer. Loosely set plastic back over and press a smaller bowl in to "smooth out" the insides. Freezer for at least 2 hours.

Peel back the plastic. Add another cup or so of vanilla bean ice cream to form a layer that is about 1/2-inch thick. Use a round cutter the size of your "center hole" to cut a circle from the pound cake. Gently, but firmly squeeze the pound cake into the opening. Put the plastic back over and freeze for at least 2 hours.

When you put the bombe back into the freezer for the last time, combine the chocolate chips and coconut oil in a glass bowl and microwave for 1 minute. Stir until smooth, and then set aside and allow to cool to room temperature while the bombe is freezing.

To finish it all up, peel back the plastic wrap and set a serving plate upside down over the bowl. Carefully turn the bomb over onto the plate, giving it a couple of good whacks on the counter to get it out of the bowl. Peel off the plastic wrap.

Pour the chocolate mixture (cooled to room temperature) over the top of the bombe, allowing it to run down the sides. Give it a little help with the back of a spoon, if needed. Immediately release a shower of sprinkles and/or jimmies over the top.

If not serving immediately, place back into the freezer (cover with plastic once the chocolate shell has completely hardened, if you wish).

To cut, run a long, sharp knife under hot water between slices.

note:

Switch this up with any type of ice cream or cake to make different variations. Use a jam layer or a chocolate crunch instead of peanut butter. Use white chocolate or dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate in the shell. The possibilities are endless!

Happy, happy birthday, Jen!

If you’d like to check out the final day of #IceCreamWeek recipes, drool over the blogs below:

• Mint Chocolate Chip Brownie Ice Cream Cake by Cravings of a Lunatic
• Ice Cream Crunch Cake by Juanita's Cocina
• Birthday Ice Cream Bombe by girlichef
• Japanese Yuzu Citrus Ice Cream by Ninja Baker
• Coconut-Key Lime Pie Ice Cream Cups by The Kitchen is My Playground
• Salted Caramel Ice Cream by Cookistry
• Chocolate Malt Ice Cream Cake by Food Babbles
• Funfetti Ice Cream Krispie Cupcakes by The Spiffy Cookie
• Brownie Fudge Ripple Ice Cream by Poet in the Pantry
• Wild Blueberry Ice Cream Smoothie by Foodness Gracious

Please join us today, Saturday, August 17th at 2 p.m. (EST) for our PinChatLive Event happening simultaneously on Pinterest and Google+. We have ice cream cookbooks up for grabs. We also have 10 Ben & Jerry's Swag Prizes up for grabs. So check out our Pinterest Board, #IceCreamWeek during the event at 2 p.m. today to win one of these amazing prizes. We'll be announcing the winners of our giveaway and talking ice cream -  see you at the Ice Cream Social!

Malted Milkshakes {#IceCreamWeek}

Welcome to #IceCreamWeek! Kim of Cravings of a Lunatic and Jen of Juanita’s Cocina have teamed up with more than 20 of their blog friends to bring you a week full of ice cream treats, including a special ice cream giveaway! Prepare to have your taste buds tempted with some of the best ice cream treats around! Make sure you enter the giveaway for a Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker and two fabulous ice cream cookbooks so that you can join in on the ice cream fun!

Chocolate Malts have been my favorite milkshake since the beginning of (my) time.   To this day, one of my favorite meals consists of 50's-style diner food.  As in, those super-thin, super-wide double cheeseburgers stacked on a buttery bun in a basket with shoestring fries, and alongside, a chocolate malt taller than the metal napkin dispenser sitting next to it on the table.

The absolute best places to get a meal like this are the old 50's diner-style restaurants, complete with red leather booths, black and white checkered floors, and mini-jukeboxes at your table.

We used to have a couple of them in the area when I was in high school.  One particular high school boyfriend-slash-best-friend and I used to ALWAYS drive to one the next town over.  I'm pretty sure it was called Sh-booms (Shabooms?  I don't remember).  I have no idea what happened to it.  It must have disappeared sometime when I was away for college, because I don't remember seeing it since we went so many years ago.  I would order the exact same thing every single time we went (see above).

There was another one in the area (actually I think they had at least two locations) called Alley-Oops.  Same diner-style, complete with personal jukeboxes filled with hits from the 50's.  I remember the one in South Bend closing when they tore the mall down, since it was built off the side of the mall.   Actually, the one a couple of towns over was built on their mall, as well.  I think I took my oldest to eat a few times when he was still pretty tiny.  And yes, I ordered the same thing every time.  I don't think that one is around anymore either.

Sigh.  The disappearance of Americana...

I'll admit, I order the equivalent at Steak 'n Shake.  But it's not quite the same.  I mean yes, it's good.  Particularly the chocolate malts.  I think it's just the ambiance that I'm missing.

So yes, I adore a good chocolate malt (and I even like a not-so-good one).  Fortunately, so does my whole family.  They tend to get other kinds when we go out, while I'm happily sucking on the straw stuck into my chocolate malt - but they are more than happy to clean out the blender when I make a big batch at home!

Warning: These malts may be addictive!  And also, they may be fattening.  Maybe.

Malted Milkshakes

by Heather Schmitt-Gonzalez

Prep Time: 30 minutes (mostly unattended)

Cook Time: n/a

Keywords: beverage dessert low-sodium nut-free soy-free vegetarian dairy milk frozen ice-cream American summer

Ingredients (serves 4)

• 1 cup whole milk, divided
• 3 heaping tablespoons Malted Milk powder
• 3 heaping tablespoons Chocolate Malted Milk powder
• 1 quart vanilla ice cream, divided
• malted milk balls, to garnish

Instructions

Place 1/2 cup of the milk into a blender with 3 tablespoons of malt powder; blend until powder is dissolved. Add 1 cup of the ice cream and blend until smooth. Add another cup, a little at a time, until it is smooth.

Pour two glasses halfway full with the vanilla malt, and pour the rest into a glass measuring cup. Place them all into the freezer for 10 minutes.

After 10 minutes, add the remaining 1/2 cup milk to the blender, along with the chocolate malt powder; blend until malt is dissolved. Add 1 cup of the ice cream and blend until smooth. Add the last cup, a little at a time, until it is smooth.

If you like, crush a few malted milk balls over the first layer of vanilla malt in the frozen glasses. Top off the 2 glasses with chocolate malt. Fill 2 empty glasses halfway with the remaining chocolate malt. Freeze everything for 10 minutes. Stir the vanilla malt that is left in the glass measuring cup, and then top off the 2 glasses that are halfway full with the chocolate malt (adding crushed malt balls in between, if you wish).

Serve garnished with a few more cut/crushed malted milk balls and enjoy immediately!

note:

Obviously, you don't have to make these two-toned if you don't want to. Make all vanilla or all chocolate (or go any flavor, using the plain malted milk powder).

adapted from Martha Stewart

If you’d like to check out today’s #IceCreamWeek recipes, drool over the blogs below:

• Peanut Butter, Chocolate and Banana Ice Cream Banana Splits by Cravings of a Lunatic
• Peachy Vanilla Ice Cream by Juanita's Cocina
• Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream Pie by Cook the Story
• Malted Chocolate Ice Cream by Foodness Gracious
• Malted Milkshakes by girlichef
• Ice Cream Social Week: Roasted Pineapple Coconut Ice Cream by Poet in the Pantry
• S'mores Ice Cream by Food Babbles
• Healthy Chocolate Coconut Milk Ice Cream by Quarter Life (Crisis) Cuisine
• Manischewitz Ice Cream Sandwiches by What Jew Wanna Eat
• Brownie Ice Cream Sandwiches by 52 Kitchen Adventures
• Nutella Ice Cream with Granola Topping by The Spiffy Cookie
• Chocolate Chip Caramel Swirl Ice Cream by It's Yummilicous

Make sure you stop by our Pinterest board #IceCreamWeek 2013 to answer today's question which enters you in our bonus prize draw.

Cherry Almond Crunch Ice Cream {#IceCreamWeek}

Welcome to #IceCreamWeek! Kim of Cravings of a Lunatic and Jen of Juanita’s Cocina have teamed up with more than 20 of their blog friends to bring you a week full of ice cream treats, including a special ice cream giveaway! Prepare to have your taste buds tempted with some of the best ice cream treats around! Make sure you enter the giveaway for a Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker and two fabulous ice cream cookbooks so that you can join in on the ice cream fun!

I'm still working my way through 10 pounds of cherries.  And yes, they are still my favorite fruit.  I don't think I could get sick of them if I tried.  I'm quite sure that a couple of pounds have easily been eaten out of hand.  I mean, since we took the time to pit them, they're now easy-pickins {ba-dum-bum} in the fridge!

But plenty of them have made their way into the food, as well.  Now, I had it in my mind to make a pie or a cobbler.  But really, I make my pies and cobblers using tart cherries.  Sure, you can cut back on the sugar and use sweet cherries and they'll still be one of the best pies out there, but personally, I couldn't do it.  I don't ever like to think of myself as a food snob...but I'm thinking that I have to admit to being a cherry pie snob.

But how about turning that summertime favorite into an ice cream flavor?  I know, right!  Sometimes I amaze even myself.  The only thing better than Cherry Pie a la Mode is A la Mode Cherry Pie.

Now admittedly, this doesn't taste exactly like I envisioned it would.  Yes, it has the cherries and the almond...and even the pie crust.  And while it is pretty durn kick-ass if I do say so myself, it wasn't close enough to bear the name "A la Mode Cherry Pie".   Between licks, and extra spoonfuls (for testing purposes), my oldest said it tastes more like a "Cherry Almond Crunch".

And so it was.  And so it is!

Cherry Almond Crunch Ice Cream

by Heather Schmitt-Gonzalez

Prep Time: 3 hours (mostly unattended)

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Keywords: dessert almonds cream cherries ice-cream frozen American summer

Ingredients (~1 quart)

for the Almond Crunch:

• 4 ounces pie dough (homemade or store-bought)
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/3 cup (~1 ounce) sliced almonds
• 2 teaspoons sugar

for the Cherry Swirl:

• 12 ounces fresh pitted & stemmed cherries (sweet or tart)
• 1/2 cup (2-1/4 ounce) sugar

for the ice cream base:

• 2 cups heavy cream, cold
• 1 cup whole milk, cold
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon almond emulsion or extract
• 2 big pinches sea salt

Instructions

making the almond crunch:

Preheat oven to 450° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Roll out your pie dough to 1/4-inch thickness (it doesn't matter what shape it is in). Set onto the prepared baking sheet. Brush with a thin layer of the beaten egg. Scatter the sliced almonds evenly over the dough, and then scatter the sugar over the top.

Use a pizza cutter or metal bench scraper to score the dough in 1-inch sections both vertically and horizontally. It's okay if the almonds break...and they will.

Slide into preheated oven and bake until golden and crips, 10-12 minutes. Set aside, and allow to cool completely. Use score lines to break the crunch apart. It's okay if it doesn't break evenly, the score lines were more of a guide.

making the cherry swirl:

While the almond crisp is baking, combine the cherries and sugar in a medium pot over medium heat. Bring to a simmer, pushing down on the cherries with a wooden spoon to break them up a bit and help them release their juices. Simmer gently until thick, mashing and stirring occasionally, 12-15 minutes. Pour into a bowl and allow to cool completely. Once they have cooled down enough, stick them in the fridge to chill.

making the ice cream base:

Place a quart-sized metal (or sturdy plastic) container in the freezer.

Whisk all of the ingredients together until the sugar has dissolved. Pour into the base of an ice cream maker and turn it on; churn according to manufacturer's directions. Once the machine stops, you should have a thick, soft ice cream (like soft serve).

putting them all together:

Scoop half of the ice cream into your chilled pan/container. Dot it with half of the chilled cherry mixture, and half of the almond crunch. Scoop the rest of the ice cream on top of that and smooth the top the best you can using a rubber scraper/spatula. Dot with the remaining cherry mixture and the remaining almond crunch. Run a thin-bladed knife back and forth, or in a swirling motion through the ice cream from one side of the pan to the other; this will swirl in the daubs of cherry and almond crunch.

Cover with a lid or plastic wrap and foil, and freeze for at least 2 hours before serving. You can keep any extra, covered, in the freezer for up to a week (maybe longer...you'd have to test that for yourself...ours was gone by then).

Check out today’s #IceCreamWeek recipes:

• Cookie Dough Ice Cream Sandwiches by Cravings of a Lunatic
• Butter Pecan Ice Cream by Juanita's Cocina
• Cupcake Milkshakes by Cook the Story
• Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Waffle Sandwiches by Food Babbles
• White Chocolate Copycat Ice Cream by Quarter Life (Crisis) Cuisine
• Manischewitz Ice Cream by What Jew Wanna Eat
• Blue Moo Cookie Dough Ice Cream by The Spiffy Cookie
• Cherry Almond Crunch Ice Cream by girlichef

#IceCreamWeek Announcement

Welcome to #IceCreamWeek! Kim of Cravings of a Lunatic and Jen of Juanita's Cocina have teamed up with more than 20 of their blog friends to bring you a week full of ice cream treats, including a special ice cream giveaway! Prepare to have your taste buds tempted with some of the best ice cream treats around! Make sure you enter the giveaway for a Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker and two fabulous ice cream cookbooks so that you can join in on the ice cream fun!

Vanilla Honey Sesame Milkshake

That's right, I am one of those 20 bloggers who will be joining in the week-long madhouse of ice cream love!  I haven't brought you a new recipe today, but all the photos you see are some of my favorite ice cream creations that I've shared in the past.

But, I will be back tomorrow, Thursday, and Saturday with brand new...creamy...irresistible creations to share!

From homemade ice cream to milkshakes, from ice cream toppings to ice cream cones, from ice cream on a stick to bite-sized ice cream morsels - you are in for quite a treat this week.

Peanut Butter Ice Cream Sauce

Here is the complete list of everybody participating this week.  Some of today's posts are a simple welcome or kick-off post like mine is - but scan through and you'll see plenty of tempting treats, as well.

Make sure you check out each of these blogs, today and all week long, for their #IceCreamWeek recipes ~ and for chances to enter to win our #IceCreamWeek giveaway!

• Cravings of a Lunatic with Red Velvet and White Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake Ice Cream
• Juanita's Cocina with a Welcome to #IceCreamWeek
• Poet in the Pantry with Voodoo Bacon Maple Beer Ice Cream
• That Skinny Chick Can Bake with Cake Batter Ice Cream
• The Corner Kitchen with Backyard Mint Ice Cream
• The Girl in the Little Red Kitchen with Dark Chocolate Fudge Pops
• girlichef with a Welcome to #IceCreamWeek
• Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker with Strawberry Ice Cream
• What Jew Wanna Eat with a Welcome to #IceCreamWeek
• Cook the Story with a Welcome to #IceCreamWeek
• The Kitchen is my Playground with 3-Ingredient Creamy Coconut Ice Cream {No Machine Needed}
• The Spiffy Cookie with a Welcome to #IceCreamWeek
• Quarter Life (Crisis) Cuisine with a Welcome to #IceCreamWeek
• My Catholic Kitchen with Strawberry Ice Cream
• 52 Kitchen Adventures with a Welcome to #IceCreamWeek
• Food Babbles with Roasted Apricot Honey Ice Cream
• Cookistry with Thin Mint Ice Cream
• Foodness Gracious with Molasses Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches
• The Ninja Baker with S'More Ice Cream
• It's Yummilicous with a Welcome to #IceCreamWeek
• Sugarhero with Salted Caramel Ice Cream Sandwiches

Follow our #IceCreamWeek Pinterest Board all week for chances to win bonus prizes!

Rum Raisin Ice Cream w/ Cajeta

Mixed Berry Gelato

Salted Peanut Swirl Peanut Butter Ice Cream

Are you ready for a week of ice cream!?  I'd love it if you'd share some of your favorite recipes (with links) in the comments below.  I'm always looking for more delicious frozen treats to stock my freezer.