Ice cream cake

A frozen dessert that layers cake with ice cream, or builds a whole cake from ice cream over a crumb or cookie base.

Ice cream cake: A round ice cream cake with a slice cut out, showing a chocolate cake base, a vanilla ice cream layer and a crunchy cookie crumb center, covered in piped whipped cr
  • Frozen desserts and sweet beverages

An ice cream cake is usually assembled in a pan or ring: a layer of sponge, chocolate cake or crushed cookies, then one or more layers of softened ice cream, frozen firm between each step. Some versions use no cake at all and rely on a crunchy crumb layer for contrast.

The finished cake is covered with whipped cream or a whipped topping rather than butter frosting, because it stays softer and easier to slice straight from the freezer. It is a common birthday choice. For clean slices, the cake is rested briefly out of the freezer and cut with a knife dipped in hot water.

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Sources

Written by VanillaGoods in our own words from these sources. Last reviewed October 15, 2026.

  1. This Ice Cream Cake Recipe Is a Frozen Dessert Dream, Institute of Culinary Education