As I mentioned last week, we hosted a camping themed sleepover birthday party for 10 girls (12 including Savannah and Matilda). It was a lot of fun and I will share more party details with you next week (you can check out the invitations here). But first, I wanted to share the recipe for the Campfire Birthday Cake that I created for the party.
I typically do not do a ton of baking. I love to cook, but when it comes to the dessert part of the party, I usually order a cake. It might be the fact that I don’t really have a sweet tooth so desserts are kind of the last thing on my mind. However, dessert is one of the first things on Savannah’s mind. She said that this year she wanted an ice cream cookie cake and she wanted me to make it. How could I say no to that? The food for the party was pretty basic since it was all 7 and 8 year olds, so I decided to focus my attention on her cake.
I wasn’t entirely sure what she meant by ice cream cookie cake and I don’t think she knew exactly either. So I did a little research and came up with a plan. I wanted it to go along with her camping themed birthday party, so I decided to create a Campfire Birthday Cake.
Campfire Birthday Cake
- 1 tube pre-made chocolate chip cookie dough
- 1 quart chocolate vanilla swirl ice cream
- 1 quart vanilla ice cream
- 1 container cool whip
- 16-20 mini chocolate chip cookies
- 1 cup mini-chocolate chips
- 8 long, round wafer cookies
- 1 bag hard cinnamon candies
- 1 bag hard butterscotch candies
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
- To make the flames, line a sheet pan with foil or a silpat.
- Place the candies in two separate plastic bags and, using a rolling pin, crush them.
- Place the candies on the sheet pan with the red on one side and the yellow on the other. Bake in the oven for 15 mins. or so until the candies have melted. Just keep checking them.
- Once you remove them from the oven, use a knife to swirl some of the red and yellow together. Allow to cool.
- Once cooled, break candies so they look like flames. Select the best looking flames for your cake. You'll have leftover candy.
- To make the cake, using a large springform pan, spray the pan with cooking spray.
- Spread out the chocolate chip cookie dough in the bottom of the pan. Make sure to work it so it goes all the way to the edge. Bake at the temperature indicated on the package, but you will probably need to bake it for an additional 10 mins. since it's such a large cookie.
- Allow to cool.
- Take the chocolate swirl ice cream out of the freezer and allow to warm up for 10 mins. or so.
- Spread the entire quart of ice cream evenly on top of the cookie.
- Place back in the freezer to set up.
- Then do the same thing with the vanilla ice cream.
- Place it back in the freezer to set up.
- Spread cool whip all over the top of the vanilla ice cream.
- Using a piping tip, pipe flower like swirls of cool whip around the edge of the cake.
- Place a mini-chocolate chip cookie on top of each swirl.
- Place in the freezer to set up again.
- Finally, remove the outer part of the springform pan. You may need to use a knife to help separate the pan from the ice cream.
- Press mini-chocolate chips all around the edge.
- Place some mini-chocolate chips on the top of the cake in the middle spreading lightly to the outside. This will represent the dirt.
- Then arrange the long tube-like wafer cookies in a formation so they look like logs.
- Finally, stick your flames into the cool whip down into the vanilla ice cream.
- Place into the freezer until ready to serve.
This cake was really a lot of fun to create. I think I enjoyed this process since it wasn’t so much baking, but was more like assembling (aside from the cookie part). I thought it turned out so cute and Savannah and Matilda just loved it so much. And besides that, it tasted delicious! This would be a really fun cake to create for an outdoor barbecue or summer party as well. There are so many options and ways to get creative. I’ve got more fun details to share with you from Savannah’s Camping themed birthday party, so until next time……..
Have a great day!
Lindsay Wilkes is the owner and designer behind The Cottage Mama. She creates timeless, vintage inspired sewing patterns for children’s clothes. She is also a fabric designer for Riley Black Designers / Penny Rose Fabrics, author of the book ‘Sew Classic Clothes for Girls’ and can be seen teaching nationwide and online in her video series ‘Lessons with Lindsay’ sponsored by Baby Lock Sewing and Embroidery machines.
