Black and Blue Icebox Cakes

preserve-jar

Here we go again! We got so lucky working with Food and Frederick for our last post. But, not only did Food and Frederick come through with the Banana Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies, but she also produced this decadent tower of creamy deliciousness. Check out the third installment of Food and Frederick’s McCutcheon’s creations below.

It’s August and it’s still HOT! So how about a quick dessert that is both pretty enough to serve to guests, sweet enough to satisfy any sugar craving, and only requires three ingredients and some time in the freezer? It’s not too good to be true, I promise.
Icebox cakes were created with this type of weather in mind and for those of us who have no interest in turning on our ovens when it is 95+ degrees out. It’s a layered dessert often made from ice cream, graham crackers or cookies, and fruit. The whole thing is left in the freezer for a bit so the ice cream and fruit can seep in and soften the cookies until the whole thing is easily cut through with a fork, just like a normal cake.
The star ingredient in this dessert is McCutcheon’s Black & Blue Preserves, a mixed-berry spread made out of a combination of blackberries and blueberries. It’s delicious and so, so summery!

icebox-cakes

Black & Blue Individual Icebox Cakes
makes 2 cakes
 Ingredients:
  • 4 graham crackers broken into 8 squares
  • Vanilla bean ice cream (I used a pint of Ben & Jerry’s)
  • McCutcheon’s Black & Blue Preserves
  • *Optional: fresh blueberries or blackberries for garnishing
Preparation:
1. Spread a heaping tablespoon of ice cream onto a graham cracker square, then spread a normal tablespoon of preserves on top of the ice cream. That’s your first layer.

icebox-cake-layer

2. Repeat with three more graham crackers. Then place the stack in the freezer and repeat the process to make a second stack. Let the cakes sit in the freezer for at least two hours. Garnish with fresh berries if desired and dig in.Note: You will need to work rather quickly to make sure the ice cream doesn’t melt too much during construction. This is where the cooking concept mise en place comes in. You’ll want to have all your ingredients out in front of you and ready to go.