S'mores Ice Cream Cake #recipe #giveaway Kim Davis

 

KIM DAVIS: Summer seems to call for desserts that cool you off, although there's something nostalgic about roasting marshmallows over a bonfire and making s'mores with family and friends. Growing up we always had homemade ice cream so I thought it would be fun to combine the two desserts and thus I set to work to create a S'mores Ice Cream Cake. 

First off, I knew I didn't want to take the time to make homemade ice cream. That special treat is best eaten all on it's own (at least in my opinion), but if you have the time, by all means use your favorite ice cream recipes. Also, it was right around Father's Day that I got to work on creating this recipe so I wanted to make it dairy-free so my husband could indulge. Thankfully, there are a lot of great dairy-free ice creams on the market now that are every bit as good as regular ice cream (okay, almost as good, lol). I couldn't find plain vanilla or plain chocolate dairy-free ice cream, so ended up with "extras" mixed in. It definitely added some extra texture and flavor and everyone enjoyed it. 

Next I didn't want to have to toast individual marshmallows for the topping and found that jarred marshmallow fluff toasts just fine. If you don't have a kitchen torch, no worries, the untoasted fluff tastes yummy! And while everyone raved over this sweet treat, I was happy that I could make it a few days in advance, even toasting it and returning to the freezer on the serving platter until ready to serve. 

Be sure to scroll all the way down to find out how to enter for a chance to win a copy of
Framed and Frosted! Contest is open to everyone.

S’mores Ice Cream Cake

 

Ingredients
 
1-1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (plus additional 1/3 cup for garnishing if desired)
1 tablespoon sugar
Pinch of salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted (or substitute with dairy-free margarine)
1 pint chocolate-based ice cream, slightly softened (or substitute with dairy-free ice cream)
1 pint vanilla-based ice cream, slightly softened (or substitute with dairy-free ice cream)
1/4 cup chocolate fudge syrup
1 jar marshmallow fluff

 

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 325°F. Place parchment paper on a baking sheet and set aside.

Line a 9-inch loaf pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang (or sling) to help remove the ice cream cake for serving.

Add the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and salt to the prepared baking sheet and stir to combine.

Drizzle the melted butter over the crumbs and stir. 

Spread the crumbs evenly over the parchment paper and bake 8 to 10 minutes until the crumbs are golden brown. Immediately remove the pan from the oven, place on a wire rack, and allow the crumbs to cool completely.

1) Press 1 cup of the cooled graham cracker crumbs into the bottom of the loaf pan. 

2) Top with the chocolate ice cream, spreading it in an even layer. 

3) Sprinkle the remaining crumbs over the ice cream. 

4) Top with the vanilla ice cream. 

5) Spread the chocolate fudge syrup evenly over the top. Place the filled loaf pan in the freezer for at least 6 hours or overnight before topping with marshmallow fluff.

Use the parchment overhang to remove the ice cream cake from the loaf pan. Working quickly, remove the parchment paper and place the ice cream cake on a serving platter. Scatter extra graham cracker crumbs on the platter if desired. 

Swirl the marshmallow fluff over the top of the ice cream cake. 

Using a kitchen blowtorch, toast the marshmallow fluff. Keep a close watch since it can quickly burn. 

Slice the cake and serve immediately. If you want to make the ice cream cake ahead of time, once you toast the marshmallow fluff, return the cake to the freezer for 30 minutes. Remove and cover loosely with plastic wrap, then return to the freezer. Once ready to serve, remove the plastic wrap and allow to sit for about 10 minutes to soften before slicing and serving. 

Note

An oven broiler won’t work to toast the fluff since the ice cream will melt too quickly. It will still taste delicious without toasting the fluff if you don’t have a blowtorch.

 💕 Click here for a free printable PDF of the recipe!💕

I'm celebrating my new release today!

While this isn't a cozy mystery, I'm celebrating the release today for my middle grade fantasy book, The Secret of Cherry Hill Orchard, the second book in The Board Game Chronicles! Suitable for ages 7 to 11. If you have kids or grandkids who needs to do some reading over the summer, please check it out. It's free on Kindle Unlimited, and ebook and print versions available on Amazon. Print is available on Barnes and Noble as well.

What it's about: 

Eleven-year-old Amber Addison is supposed to be in charge. But babysitting her little sister, Ava, and Ava’s cranky best friend, Harper, is hard enough before a board game magically comes to life. One minute, the girls are playing Cherry Hill Orchard. The next, a tiny cherry token swells to an impossible size, scoops them up, spins them silly, and drops them into a real orchard bursting with ripe cherries and plenty of trouble.

There, a family of enormous talking cats begs for their help. Sneaky dogs are stealing the harvest and trying to drive the cats from their home. The cats promise to lead Amber, Ava, and Harper to their queen, who may know how to send them back, but only if the girls can save the orchard first.

To get home, Amber will have to outsmart the dogs, keep her sister safe, and figure out whether Harper is really as impossible as she seems. Because in Cherry Hill Orchard, friendship may be the best magic of all.

A fun recipe is included

Purchase print, ebook, or read for free on Kindle Unlimited: HERE

Purchase Barnes & Noble print: HERE

Books available at most online retailers

 

Amazon * Barnes & Noble * Kobo * Apple

 

Cupcake Catering Mysteries * Essentials of Murder* Essentials of Death

 

About the Author:

Kim Davis writes the Aromatherapy Apothecary cozy mystery series, and the award-winning Cupcake Catering cozy mystery series. She has also written several children’s nature articles published in a variety of magazines. Kim Davis is a member of Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America, and Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators.

She lives in Southern California with her husband and rambunctious mini Goldendoodle, Missy, who has become an inspiration for several plotlines. When she’s not spending time with her granddaughters or chasing Missy around, she can be found either writing on her next book, working on blogs, or in the kitchen baking up yummy treats to share.

Click here to sign up here for Kim’s newsletter: Newsletter

Connect with Kim: Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, Bluesky, Bookbub, Goodreads, TikTok, and website

 

G I V E A W A Y   T I M E !!!

I'm giving away a copy of Framed and Frosted!

Comment below and include your email (yourname at yourserver dot com) for a chance to win a copy of Framed and Frosted. (Contest ends 11:59pm on Wednesday, July 15, 2026. Print is limited to US residents and all others will receive an ebook copy.)

Readers, do you have a favorite summer dessert you make every year?

Too Hot to Bake Oreo Ice Cream Cake

I went to a fun party last week—lots of my friends were there and it was great to have a chance to catch up and see how everyone’s summer was going.

We all brought food to share, which was fun because it gave us all a chance to sample different kinds of food. And it was scrumptious—from entrees to hors d'oeuvres, to desserts.

I was having my a/c units and furnace replaced, though. My ailing units had finally bitten the dust and the installation of the new equipment was a three day process.

So turning on the oven when it was already 95 degrees in my house? Not an option.

And, really, all I could think about was something cool. Cool—like frozen. That’s when I pulled out my recipe for…

Oreo Ice Cream Cake

1 large package of Oreos (crushed)
1/2 gallon of softened vanilla ice cream
chopped pecans (I used most of a small bag)
1 carton of Cool whip (I softened it a little to make it easier to spread)
Chocolate syrup (as much as you want. I probably used 3/4 of a cup)

Place the crushed cookies in the bottom of a long pan or dish. Spread the softened ice cream over the cookies. Spread Cool Whip over the ice cream for the next layer. Sprinkle the nuts over the Cool Whip, then drizzle with chocolate syrup. Keep in the freezer until ready to serve.

It was a hit! And I didn’t even have to turn on the oven. :)

Riley/Elizabeth
Delicious and Suspicious (July 6 2010) Riley Adams
Pretty is as Pretty Dies –Elizabeth Spann Craig
http://mysterywritingismurder.blogspot.com

Congratulations to Cleo on the release

of her new book

Roast Mortem!

Cleo brews up another mystery-and this time, it's New York's Bravest that get burned.

Cleo’s having mega release party giveaways on her site—enter for a chance to win some great prizes!

For online ordering, just click here!

Valentine's Day Dessert - Ice Cream Cake

As I prepared to write this blog post, I was faced with a pressing question:

What is the best possible thing to make for Valentine's Day?

The answer is - without a doubt:

RESERVATIONS!

Next Sunday is Valentine's Day and my sweetie and I will probably try to squeeze in a quick dinner out somewhere nearby. Next weekend promises to be a busy one, so we'll have to take a pass on long, lingering gazes over candlelight and opt instead for a quick meal at one of our favorite local places. Add a glass of red wine to the mix and I'll be content.

But if we were hosting a party, or if all three of our daughters were home for the big day, I'd be sure to prepare something festive, sweet, and - most likely - pink.

As it happened, all three of our daughters *were* home this past weekend. Although we hadn't expected a full house, we were nonetheless delighted to hang out as a family. Lucky me and lucky them -- I had a dessert to prepare for this blog. And so I adapted one of their all-time favorites for Valentine's Day.

When the girls were little, none of them liked traditional bakery cakes. They still don't. Ice cream cakes from Baskin Robbins, however, were (and are) universally loved around here, but they can be expensive. Back when the kids were little, I decided to make my own ice cream cakes. I experimented with box cakes but found the consistency of the cake part too weak to hold up the ice cream. So I changed to brownies. I prefer Betty Crocker and I always add an extra egg (to make it a bit more fluffy and less gooey).

For the girls' birthdays we always used Chocolate Chip Mint (which they insist is properly termed Mint Chocolate Chip) but for Valentine's Day we needed something pink. None of us cares much for strawberry ice cream, so I searched high and low and finally found raspberry (not sherbet).

Here's my super easy, delicious and fit-for-a-crowd Ice Cream Cake

1 box Betty Crocker Fudge Brownies

1/2 gallon ice cream - your choice of flavor (some now come in 1.75 quarts. That's fine, too)

1 12 oz tub of Cool Whip Frozen Whipped Topping, thawed according to package directions (this takes several hours, so be sure to take this out of the freezer and relocate it to the fridge the day before, if possible)

Remove ice cream from freezer to allow it to soften/melt a bit.

Prepare brownies according to package directions, adding a third egg if desired for a more cake-like consistency. Bake in a 9 x 13 pan, again according to package directions.

Allow brownies to cool for about a half hour, then pour softened/melted ice cream on top of brownies. Spread it out and smooth. Cover with foil and freeze until the ice cream solidifies (several hours).

Remove from freezer and spread the Cool Whip over the top. I don't always use the entire tub, but I use more than half, which is why I buy the 12 oz size.

Return to freezer.

The ice cream cake will be ready to be cut and served in an hour or two. Delicious and pretty, too!

Enjoy!

Julie

author of Eggsecutive Orders, third in the White House Chef Mystery series

www.juliehyzy.com

Don't forget Jenn's contest!

FUN NEW FOODIE CONTEST TO ENTER: Love

cupcakes? Love mysteries? Remember to enter your suggestion for the name of a fictional cupcake and have your name and cupcake written into the mystery novel BUTTERCREAM BUMP OFF! (The sequel to SPRINKLE WITH MURDER, which just

received a *Starrred Review* fromPublishers Weekly!). Send proof of your pre-order of SPRINKLE WITH MURDER, along with your name and cupcake name to Jenn at jennmck@yahoo.com LET’S GET THE PARTY STARTED!

-------

Julie here again...

Speaking of cupcake fun, my daughter and I were goofing around before the season opener of LOST last week. We made silly cupcakes.

We created islands, planes, smoke monsters, numbered cupcakes... you get the picture. Most were pretty amateurish, and not worthy of posting here (especially with a cupcake-master present) but my daughter did make one that I thought was particularly fun. It's the comic book character, Jughead. For those of you LOST fans -- get it?

LASTLY -- We've been awarded another blog award!

This one from Ingrid of The Conscious Cat

The Over the Top Blog Award

The rules state that we must complete the questions with one word answers! This is fun...

Your Hair? – Highlighted
Your Favorite Food? – Chocolate
Your Hobby? – Reading
Your Fear? – Pinecones
Something You Aren’t? – Athletic
Where Did You Grow Up? – Chicago
Your Life? – Wonderful
Your Mood? – Optimistic
Your Favorite Color? – Yellow