Ice Cream Cake

We decided, with it being a hot weekend forecast, that we'd make an ice cream cake... having flirted, (momentarily) with thoughts of making a gluten free 'arctic roll' type ice-cream-filled-roulade, common sense (and laziness) returned.  A silicone cake mould had been bought a few weeks before and we had some Swedish Glace vanilla in the freezer... that, with some added extras, would be our simple cake! 

The 'main' ingredients used were a whole pot of vanilla Swedish glace and mixed nuts.  We used pecans, pistachios and macadamias in the cake.  Flaked almonds were used on the top together with a few of the pistachios.

If we'd had them, we would have put in some gluten free mini macaroons/amaretti biscuits or honeycomb to add a bit of crunch to the mix.

Using a whole pot of Swedish Glace, we put it in a bowl and softened it up by stirring.



 Taking our assortment of nuts, they were lightly toasted in a hot frying pan (don't leave them for long, they catch and burn quickly) then allowed to cool.



The cooled, toasted nuts were then roughly chopped...





... before being added to the softened vanilla ice cream.  Sous Chef J had a bit of a struggle to get the mixture combined but managed it in the end.


Next, the nut and ice cream mix was added to the silicone mould, which was then put in a large plastic bag and put in the freezer overnight (or you could leave it

longer) to re-freeze.

Once it was nearly time to serve the ice cream cake, we had to 'ice' it... to do this we made a ganache using equal volumes of dark chocolate and double cream.   The cream was heated to just below boiling point, allowed to cool slightly and then the chocolate was added and stirred well until it was smooth and glossy.

Whilst we were letting the ganache cool, we turned out the cake from the silicone mould. This was surprisingly easy.



The 'cake' looked pretty impressive and was ready to be 'iced'.

Taking the cooled chocolate ganache, it was gently spread over the ice cream cake and allowed to 'find its level' - aka leak all over!

When the chocolate ganache had been added, we sprinkled over the remaining pistachios and flaked almonds together with some chocolate stars I'd found in the cupboard.

The cake was then returned to the freezer, briefly.  Finally, we sprinkled over some dried raspberries to go with the fresh raspberries we added to the final dish for serving.

Almondy Sundae

We have long been fans of Almondy frozen 'cakes'... and the Toblerone version is a particular favourite.  Having seen a number of tweets from Almondy, tempting us with their fare, we decided to give our own twist to a gluten free Sundae.

The ingredients we used to 'assemble' the dessert were - Almondy Toblerone (one slice), Swedish Glace Vanilla Ice, mini marshmallows, chocolate buttons (and chocolate sauce or cream can be used too).

A couple of small scoops of the vanilla ice were placed in each bowl.

A slice of the Almondy cake was chopped into three, then cut into small pieces which were added to the bowl.

Next, some mini marshmallows were sprinkled over...

... before adding the giant chocolate buttons (chocolate sprinkles, stars or curls could also be used).

Adding the Eskal Wafer Rolls (and a drizzle of chocolate sauce or dollop of cream, if you like) and our speedy dessert was ready.

We have been trying to get Ocado to stock Almondy as, for us, it's the easiest way to get our frozen goods delivered.  No news on this yet... but the request(s) have been made!  All the other items used to make this dessert came from Ocado so to be able to buy a 'bundle' of all these ingredients would be FAB...

Carluccio's, Coffee and Ice Cream

The good news is that after many months, we finally found time to have a meal at Carluccio's.  It's an eatery we've been keen to try since reading about their Gluten Free menu.  The bad news is that we were so overcome by having such wonderful choice of food that we could order, we forgot to take pictures to show you.  However, by way of consolation, here's a pic of the wondrous menu....

Having studied the menu, we made our choices.  Sous Chef J went for pasta with a tomato and basil sauce, B chose pasta too and I had the risotto special (with asparagus).  When we placed the order we were told there'd be a wait of at least 15 minutes to allow the chef to cook the gluten free pasta which was fine with us. 

The food arrived on time.  Was admired and eaten with gusto.  Pasta dishes were declared yummy and I thought the risotto was excellent.

It was then time to move onto picking desserts.  Sous Chef J went for a vanilla ice cream, B chose panna cotta and I first opted for the chocolate fondant but, alas, it had sold out so went instead for Affogato with coffee.  This is what this blog post was inspired by!

Having seen the ice cream and coffee dessert at Carluccio's, Sous Chef J wondered if we could replicate it at home, so we gave it a try.  He gathered all the equipment needed.

Next, I added some vanilla ice cream to the latte glasses (nowhere near as  neatly as Carluccio's do!) whilst Sous Chef J brewed the coffee for us.

Then it was time to pour the coffee over the ice  cream and dive in.  We found these sundae straw/spoons very useful for getting to the bottom of the glass.

Here's a close up of the straw/spoon for those who fancy a look...

... and this is the view from the person eating/drinking the dessert!

Our first meal at Carluccio's was great.  We will be returning and will aim to take pics next time... although can't promise to.  I am keen to try the chocolate fondant and hope they haven't run out next time we're there.  We'll also spend more time looking round the shop as we liked the look of the HUGE meringues on sale.


This dessert could easily be made with Swedish Glace dairy free vanilla ice cream and we're sure it would be just as good as the one we made.

Strawberry Smoothie

 Today the sun has been shining and there have also been clouds.  Sous Chef J decided he needed a summery drink to 'get into summer' so decided to make a smoothie.

As is good practice, he gathered the ingredients (but forgot the orange juice in this pic) then set about preparing his Vitamin C packed drink of delight.

It's a simple to make concoction.  He puts all the ingredients into a container then whizzes them with the Braun Hand Blender (although, after seeing a Vitamix demo at last week's Good Food Show, he keeps telling me one of their blenders would be better!!)

Using a handful of hulled strawberries, juice of one orange and a whole ripe banana as a base he added a squirt of lemon, a squeeze of runny honey, a splodge of natural (home made) yoghurt and a dash of vanilla extract.

Then WHIZZZZZZZ.  Pour out into "suitable receptacles" and enjoy!

Gluten Free Berry Almond Slice

This is a recipe from an autumn edition of Waitrose Food Illustrated magazine that we have made a few changes to in order to make it both Gluten Free and also bakeable at any time of the year.  Here's a link to their website recipe and you will see, if you look, that we've removed the need for pastry and also use raspberries (in this case fresh ones but, at other times, we do use frozen fruit).

 

So the ingredients were gathered by Sous Chef J using the crumpled bit of paper I tore out of a Waitrose magazine some time ago.  We don't use the pastry or jam, though.  Our ingredients looked like this...

Sous Chef J in action!

Having preheated the oven to 170ºC, the softened butter and sugar were combined using a hand mixer until they looked light and creamy.  Sous Chef J actually did quite a lot of this (for a change) but would rather have a yellow stand mixer to be in control of... but he's going to have to wait a while for one of those!

Folding in ground almonds

Adding vanilla essence

Next, the vanilla essence was added.  The lightly beaten eggs were then incorporated, a little at a time.  Then the ground almonds were folded into the mix.

Spreading the mix

The berries are added

This slightly firm mixture was then spread, evenly, into a non-stick baking tin (ours is 19cm x 28cm) before having raspberries placed on top.  It was then placed into the warm oven.

 

 

After 10 minutes in oven

Sprinkled with flaked almonds

Having cooked for 10 minutes, the tray was removed and the sliced almonds were sprinkled over.  The cake was then returned to the oven for another 10 minutes to finish baking. 

We allowed the cake to cook in the tray for 15 minutes and then turned it out... the underside looked like this before we 'flipped' it back the right way up!

 As you can see, it was another successful baking session.  The slice freezes well - we freeze it in portions suitable for 3.  It can be served with a cup of tea as an afternoon treat or with creme fraiche as an easy pudding. 

Give it a go... it's a tasty treat and Gluten eaters also love it so it's a good offering to take to pals if you're going to be eating out.  I know it's puds and snacks that my pals struggle with when we visit - they can manage meat and veg without gluten but mention 'afters' and even the most hardy usually blanche at the prospect!