Mini Stacked Ice Cream Birthday Cakes

Mini Stacked Ice Cream Birthday Cakes are the perfect sweet to celebrate a big (or little) birthday! Chocolate sponge cake serves as the base for these frozen treats and is cut into rounds once out of the oven. Layer your favorite ice cream between the fluffy rounds of cake, then stack. Freeze until firm, then serve to the birthday guests! Top with a drizzle of hot fudge and add a birthday candle to get the party started!

Mini stacked ice cream birthday cake on plate with lit candle on top

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When I was a kid, my mother made the best roll-up ice cream birthday cakes.

She’d take a homemade chocolate sponge cake, slather it with our ice cream of choice… let’s be real, this was always mint chocolate chip because it’s the best… and then roll it up, almost like a Buche de Noel, minus the icing.

The cake was topped with some powdered sugar (or cocoa powder) and served with warm hot fudge.

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    The combination of the fluffy sponge cake paired with the ice cream was out-of-this-world.

    Collage of images with batter in a glass bowl

    My mom traveled down to Louisiana for my 23rd birthday, along with several members of my family, and we celebrated in style that weekend.

    She even brought back the ice cream cake, which was a thrilling surprise for me and my friends.

    I watched her as she whipped the egg whites into soft peaks by hand (since I didn’t have a hand mixer, which is something she corrected at Christmas the same year) and asked a ton of questions about the cake as she pulled it together.

    And it tasted just as magical as it did during my childhood.

    Overhead close up of two baking sheets filled with chocolate sponge cake

    For her birthday this year, I decided I’d try my hand at this well-loved birthday cake recipe, thinking it’d be fun to let her enjoy the creation without having to put any of the work into it.

    The cake, while delicious, stuck to the pan, so we topped it with a scoop of ice cream, drizzled the creation with hot fudge and called it a day.

    Biscuit cutter cutting into sheet of baked cake

    So I was bound and determined to get this thing right by my birthday…

    But I failed.

    However, the cake didn’t stick to the pan. (Progress!) And after several failed attempts to get the darn cake recipe to roll, I decided to transform it into these Mini Stacked Ice Cream Birthday Cakes.

    They aren’t quite the birthday dessert of my childhood, but they’re delectably delicious… and they’re individually sized!

    Collage of images with stacked ice cream cakes on white serving plate

    Mini Stacked Ice Cream Birthday Cakes Essentials

    Two different angles of mini stacked ice cream birthday cake on plate

    Looking for more birthday inspiration? You can never go wrong with Sour Cream Funfetti CupcakesChocolate-Covered Raspberry Cupcakes or Small Batch Strawberry Cupcakes. Also? I’m partial to this Birthday Cake Martini for a birthday drink.

    Wanna make these stacked ice cream cakes? Scroll down to learn how to make these beauties and CELEBRATE!

    Info Graphic of mini ice cream birthday cake on plate with hearts

    Mini stacked ice cream birthday cake on plate with lit candle on top
    Yield: 5 mini cakes

    Mini Stacked Ice Cream Birthday Cakes

    Prep Time: 25 minutes
    Cook Time: 20 minutes
    Total Time: 45 minutes

    Mini Stacked Ice Cream Birthday Cakes are the perfect sweet to celebrate a big (or little) birthday! Chocolate sponge cake serves as the base for these frozen treats and is cut into rounds once out of the oven. Layer your favorite ice cream between the fluffy rounds of cake, then stack. Freeze until firm, then serve to the birthday guests! Top with a drizzle of hot fudge and add a birthday candle to get the party started!

    Ingredients

    • 1 heaping cup dark chocolate chips, (62% cocoa or more)
    • ¼ cup hazelnut coffee
    • 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
    • 7 eggs, separated
    • 1 cup granulated sugar
    • A pint of Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream, softened

    Instructions

    1. Make the cake: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 18" x 13" baking pan with parchment paper, and spray with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
    2. Measure the chocolate chips into a medium-sized glass bowl. Pour the coffee on top of the chocolate, stirring with a rubber spatula until the chocolate is completely melted. (If it doesn't melt completely, pop it into the microwave for 20 seconds or so, then stir until smooth.) Add the vanilla extract to the chocolate mixture, and set aside to cool.
    3. After the chocolate mixture is together, separate the eggs into two large glass bowls. Set the bowl with the egg whites aside for the time being.
    4. Add the granulated sugar into the bowl with the egg yolks. Using a hand mixture, cream the two together until the mixture is a light yellow and fluffy. (This should take a few minutes.)
    5. Once the chocolate has completely cooled, add to the egg yolk and sugar mixture, using the hand mixer to incorporate it into the ingredients. Set aside.
    6. If you don't have two sets of beaters for your hand mixer, wash the beaters thoroughly now, then dry.
    7. Using the hand mixer on a medium speed, whip the egg whites thoroughly until they form soft peaks.
    8. Scoop the egg whites from their bowl into the chocolate/egg yolk/sugar mixture, and gently fold the whites into the mixture until just combined. Be careful during this step, as you don't want to overmix or deflate the egg whites.
    9. Pour the batter on top of the parchment paper-lined baking sheet, spreading the mixture evenly. Transfer the baking sheet to the preheated oven, and bake for 20-25 minutes (depending on your oven).
    10. Once the cake is baked through and an inserted toothpick comes out clean, remove the cake from the oven, and let cool for 10 minutes.
    11. Remove the cake from the baking sheet using the parchment paper, and continue to cool on a cooling rack until the cake comes to room temperature.
    12. Make the Mini Stacked Ice Cream Birthday Cakes: Using a 2" biscuit/cookie cutter, cut 20 rounds into the cooled cake.
    13. Spread five rounds evenly on a long plate.
    14. Using a cookie scoop, dollop about one tablespoon of softened ice cream on top of each cake round. Smooth with a knife, then top with another tablespoon of the softened ice cream. Repeat until you've used four rounds in each mini ice cream cake.
    15. Wrap the individual cakes in plastic wrap, sealing tightly and transfer them to the freezer. Allow them at least an hour to set, though the longer they are in the freezer, the better.
    16. When ready for the Mini Stacked Ice Cream Birthday Cakes, serve cold, topped with hot fudge and various other toppings of your choosing, and enjoy!

    Notes

    Makes five individual cakes when you use four 2" rounds of cake in each.

    Adapted from Martha Stewart.

    Nutrition Information:

    Yield:

    5 mini cakes

    Serving Size:

    1 mini cakes

    Amount Per Serving: Calories: 567Total Fat: 24gSaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 286mgSodium: 151mgCarbohydrates: 75gFiber: 3gSugar: 69gProtein: 12g

    Nutrition facts are an estimate and not guaranteed to be accurate.

    How much did you love this recipe?

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    Maybe by my next birthday, I’ll have gotten the recipe right to be able to get this cake to roll?

    What’s one recipe disaster that you turned into a triumph?

    A woman with dark curly hair wearing a black tank top in front of a white wall

    About the Author:

    Erin Parker is a Southern gal living in Texas with her husband and two daughters. She started The Speckled Palate to share what she was cooking as a newlywed… and over the years, it’s evolved to capture her love for hosting. Specifically, the EASIEST, lowest key entertaining because everyone deserves to see their people and connect over good food. Learn more about her

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    22 Comments

      1. Thanks, Melanie! I cannot wait for you to have a kitchen again, too. Hopefully, you’ll be back in yours in no time flat and can bake once again. 🙂

      1. Thanks, Jenna! While it’s not my mom’s roll-up cake, these stacked ice cream cakes are pretty delicious. If you and your hubby give these a try, let me know what y’all think!

    1. OMG – this looks amazing. May I have it for breakfast? I’m pinning this one for sure and will be making it ASAP! And I bet it’s just as good as the roll up kind!

      1. Now that you mention having this for breakfast, Alli… I kind of want to take the remaining cake from my freezer and scarf it down. Totally not bad, right? Riiiiight. And while I’m unsure if it’s as good as my mom’s — because let’s be real, can anything we cook/bake be better than our mom’s? — it’s still pretty darn delicious!

      1. Thanks, Julie! I appreciate it! And this would make the best breakfast… though I’m skipping it in favor of cereal and fruit this morning. (Sidenote: Pregnancy cravings are weird.)

        I’m a professional photographer, so I shoot with a Canon 5D Mark II. I’ve answered some more questions about my photography on my FAQs page and am thinking of writing out a page/post about photography, in general. Would you be interested in that?

    2. Erin,
      This story is a lovely one, full of rich memories and sweet traditions. Thank you for sharing this on your blog. The pictures are beautiful and I believe that “failing up” is a piece of how we use our creativity tools to make a new vision… which you did! So love the idea of the traditional cake being turned into ice cream sandwiches with ribbons of hot fudges sauce dripping down the sides. YUM! xo, your mom

      1. Thanks, Mom! “Failing up” into these little ice cream birthday cakes was a delicious process… and maybe by the time Lady Baby is celebrating her birthday, I will have perfected your roll-up ice cream cake. Or maybe you can just come here and make the cake yearly, haha. xo

    3. I wish I had these on my birthday! They are just the cutest and most delicious ice cream cakes I have ever seen. Words cannot describe how much I had one to devour right now Erin!

      1. Thanks so much, sweet Thalia! I totally support you making a few of these for your next birthday because they’re oh-so-delicious and perfect for a celebration.

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