Christmas Pudding Icecream Cake

For anyone who is interested, Daz is doing better and is on the road to recovery.

Now, back to something important! Since Christmas is only 16 days away (only 16 days left and then I can be bad!) I thought I would do a twist on the traditional christmas pudding. Typically on Christmas day its pretty hot here in Australia, and eating a steaming hot pudding is not the most appetising thing after a heavy meal. What better way to top the day off than with ice cream!!

With this cake there are heaps of variations. After making this particular cake I thought how yummy it would be if I included some broken up christmas pudding in the mix, or some crushed short bread biscuits, you can even use a different combination of fruit depending on your taste...your only limited by your imagination. The trick with making this cake taste really good is by using ingrients of good quality. The cake will keep in the freezer for quite a while, however make sure to keep it tightly covered so crystals dont form.

So the recipe:

Makes 1 large cake to serve 8-12 people

Prep 15 minutes

Freezing 6 hours

INGREDIENTS:

200gm sliced almonds (toasted)

200 gm glace cherries (cut in half)

200gm sultanans

200gm raisains

brandy (good quality or other prefered liquor)

800mL cream, whipped

1 can of sweetened condensed milk

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

1 family block (250gm) of dark chocolate

METHOD:

1. You need to start this recipe well in advance. Combine almonds, cherries, sultanans and raisains in a medium sized bowl. Cover fruit with brandy. You may use as little or as much as you want, the more you use the boozier the cake. Set aside and soak overnight.

2. Use a spring form cake tin (20-22cm) that you KNOW is leak proof. Line the inside of the tin with glad wrap. Make sure to let the glad wrap hang over the sides, this makes getting the cake out much easier. Place in the freezer to cool.

3. Fold sweetened condensed milk into whipped cream.* Once two ingredients are just combined, divide into two separate bowls. To one of the mixtures add shifted cocoa powder and fold until combined.

4. Drain Brandy soaked fruit and add half into the plain mixture and half into the chocolate mixture. Fold until combined.

5. Place chocolate mixture in refrigerator. Add Plain mixture to cooled cake tin and smooth top with a spatula. Return to freezer. Allow to cool for 1-1.30 hours. Then add chocolate mixture and smooth top with a spatula. Cover the top with glad wrap, making sure that the glad wrap makes contact with the surface of the mixture. This prevents icicles from forming. Freeze for 6 hours or overnight.

6. For decoration around edge of cake**, melt chocolate and spread onto baking paper forming a thin film roughly 1-3mm thick. Once cooled, break into jaggered pieces. Invert frozen cake onto a cooled plate. Smooth surface of cake with a warmed knife making sure to pay particular attention to the edges. Arrange chocolate pieces around edges of the cake and return to freezer covered with glad wrap. Cut cake with a warm knife and serve by saying MERRY CHRISTMAS!

*Instead of making your own icecream, you can substitute 1 litre good quality vanilla ice cream, softened

**Instead of using chocolate pieces, you can cover the entire cake with a chocolate ganache. I've done this one before and it's REALLY yummi!

I'm going to have to make another one before christmas, I've already eaten the one I made a week ago!