Shannon's Dreamy Ice Cream Cake (EASY!!!)

My friend, Shannon, has made this ice cream cake countless times for me. It is so dreamy. It is dreamy for two reasons: #1. It is crazy good and #2. It is CRAZY easy!!! I love recipes that take very little effort and culinary skill, yet impressive the pants out of friends and family (and I'm sure you do, too). This recipe is also very versatile. You can use any flavor of ice cream you like; you can also use any type of "fudge" (think caramel sauce) or Oreo cookie. The possibilities are endless yet the result is always the same = delicious! Thanks for sharing this with me, Shan!

To make a 9X13" ice cream cake:

1 whole package of Oreo cookies
1 jar of hot fudge
1 1/2 gallon of your favorite flavor ice cream
1 regular size container of Cool Whip, defrosted in the refrigerator overnight
1 container of sprinkles (I only used 1/2 because it was all I had)

Take the ice cream out of the freezer. Let it sit on the counter while you prepare the crust. Put the entire package of Oreos into a large Ziplock bag and crush them into small pieces.

 

Transfer the crushed Oreos to a large bowl. Heat the fudge in the microwave (lid off) for 45 seconds. Pour the hot fudge over the Oreos and stir to combine. 

 

Pour Oreo mixture in the bottom of a 9X13" baking dish. Cover the Oreos with a large piece of wax paper. Use your hands to press into the bottom of the dish so the crust is even and smooth. (This is how I make Rice Krispie Treats- I love using wax paper). If you don't have wax paper (and you really should) you can also spray a piece of foil with cooking spray and do the same thing. It works almost as well. 

 

Remove the wax paper. You should have a nice evenly spread Oreo crust. 

 

Rinse out your bowl (no reason to dirty up a ton of bowls). Put the whole tub of ice cream in the bowl and stir it up until it is smooth. 

 

Very carefully smooth the creamy ice cream over the top of the Oreo crust, trying not to disturb the crust. 

 

Very carefully smooth the Cool Whip on top of the ice cream layer. I had the best luck using a frosting knife. When I tried using a wooden spoon, the Cool Whip kept pulling the ice cream into it....it isn't the end of the world, but, it just won't look as pretty. Sprinkle with sprinkles!!!!

Cover cake with a layer of plastic wrap (careful not to touch the cake with the plastic) and then a layer of foil. Put back into the freeze for at least two hours so everything can firm up. When you are ready to serve, remove cake from the freezer and let sit for just a minute or two to soften up before slicing. Enjoy!!!!!!!!!!!