Rich low carb mint chip ice cream with layers of gluten-free chocolate cake and a sugar-free chocolate ganache. Worth the effort for tasty summertime dessert!
I don’t consider myself a particularly indulgent parent. I don’t satisfy my children’s every whim and I try to instill a sense of responsibility and gratitude in them. If anything, I probably err on the side of being too hard on them, too unyielding. Sometimes it feels like I say no more than I say any other word, and it can come as a bit of relief to say yes once in a while. When my husband cooked up a rather indulgent scheme for the three kids a few weeks ago, I hemmed and hawed but I eventually gave in. And so we held a half-birthday party for our three kiddos, replete with cake, balloons and presents. If that’s not parental indulgence, I don’t know what is!
All of my kids are born in the last quarter of the year. My husband and I often feel that from early October through Christmas, we get no break whatsoever. We go from birthday to birthday to Thanksgiving to birthday to Christmas. Wham, Wham, Wham, one event after another with barely any time to breathe. As we are not particular indulgent parents, we don’t fete our children’s natal days with lavish parties and excessive gifts. Oftentimes, they are just small family get togethers, and yet we still find ourselves run ragged in those last three months. My husband, whose birthday is just after Christmas, is sensitive to the fact that the individual attention for each kiddo can get a little lost in the holiday season. And in terms of presents and new toys, it’s feast or famine for my kids. They get all their new goodies in the last few months of the year and then it’s a long dry stretch until “birthday season” rolls around again.
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So it was with that in mind that my husband picked up one present for each of the kids and coaxed me into saying yes to a Half-Birthday party. It was only the 5 of us, but it was really a sweet little evening. We hit the buffet at a good Chinese restaurant because the kids had been asking to dine there for ages, and then we surprised them at home with a big bunch of balloons and this delicious low carb ice cream cake. My husband had to employ a great many distraction techniques during the day for me to get the ice cream cake done. I nearly got caught red-handed while taking some photos, but my husband quickly intervened and whisked the curious child back up the stairs to the playroom. They knew something was up, but they really weren’t quite sure what to make of it.
As you might expect, they were absolutely delighted to discover the cause of Mummy and Daddy’s strange behaviour. They really enjoyed the full and being made to feel special on a random day in July when it was no one’s birthday. I loved seeing how happy they were and it was worth it for me to let go a little bit and say yes.
The cake was well worth it too!
- 2 cups almond flour
- 1/3 cup dark cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup unflavoured whey protein powder
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 6 tbsp butter softened
- 1/2 cup Swerve Sweetener
- 2 large eggs room temperature (or 3 egg whites, if trying to use them up!)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 2 1/2 cups whipping cream
- 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1/2 cup Swerve Sweetener
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
- 4 large egg yolks
- 2 tbsp vodka optional, helps reduce iciness
- 2 tbsp vegetable glycerin optional, helps keep it soft in the freezer
- 1/2 tsp mint extract
- 1/4 tsp liquid stevia extract
- 1/4 tsp xanthan gum
- 1/2 cup chopped dark chocolate or Homemade Sugar-Free Chocolate Chips
- 5 tbsp butter
- 2 oz unsweetened chocolate
- 1/4 cup powdered Swerve Sweetener
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
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Preheat oven to 325F and grease a 9-inch springform pan well (line with parchment and grease parchment if your pan has a history of sticking).
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In a medium bowl, whisk together almond flour, cocoa powder, protein powder, baking powder, xanthan gum and salt.
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In a large bowl, beat butter with sweetener until well combined. Beat in eggs or egg whites and vanilla extract. Beat in half the almond flour mixture, then the almond milk and finally the remaining almond flour mixture until well combined.
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Spread in prepared pan and smooth the top with a knife or an offset spatula.
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Bake 35 to 40 minutes, or until set and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean.
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Remove and let cool 15 minutes, then remove the sides of the pan and let cool completely. Once cook, cut horizontally into two even layers.
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In a large saucepan over medium heat, combine whipping cream, almond milk, sweetener and mint leaves. Bring to a low boil, then remove from heat, cover and let steep 30 minutes.
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Transfer to a blender or use an immersion blender and blend until mint leaves are pureed. Bring cream mixture back over low heat until it reaches about 175F on an instant read thermometer.
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In a medium bowl, whisk egg yolks and then slowly whisk in about 1 cup of the hot cream mixture. Then slowly whisk yolks back into cream, whisking continuously. Cook until mixture reaches 180F on an instant read thermometer.
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Pour mixture into a bowl set over an ice bath and let cool 10 minutes, Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 3 hours.
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Stir in vodka and vegetable glycerin, if using, and then stir in mint and stevia extracts. Sprinkle surface with xanthan gum and whisk vigorously to combine.
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Pour custard into the canister of an ice cream maker and churn according to manufacturer's directions. Once churned, transfer to a bowl, stir in chocolate chips and place in freezer while beginning to assemble cake.
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Line the sides of the same springform pan with parchment paper, with the parchment rising above the sides of the pan by an inch or two.
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Place on layer of cake on the bottom of the pan and spread with half of the mint chip ice cream. Carefully place the second layer of cake on top of the ice cream (Note: If the cake layers seem fragile, try cutting them in half to make it easier to transfer them back into the pan). Top with remaining ice cream. Freeze until ice cream is firm, at least 2 to 3 hours.
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In a medium saucepan over low heat, melt butter and unsweetened chocolate together, stirring until smooth. Stir in powdered sweetener and vanilla extract.
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Let cool 5 to 10 minutes, until thickened but still pourable. Pour over top of cake, allowing it to drip down sides. Serve immediately
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To cut the cake, immerse a sharp knife in very hot water for 30 seconds. Return to hot water as needed while cutting. The leftovers may freeze quite hard so let sit out 10 to 15 minutes before cutting again.
Serves 16. Each serving has 10.64 g of carbs and 3.84 g of fiber. Total NET CARBS = 6.8 g.
Food energy: 317kcal
Saturated fatty acids: 13.23g
Total fat: 27.17g
Calories from fat: 244
Cholesterol: 115mg
Carbohydrate: 10.64g
Total dietary fiber: 3.84g
Sodium: 149mg
Protein: 8.05g
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Taylor @ Food Faith Fitness says
I LOVE this story and the half birthday idea…so fun!
I also kind of wish I was your child (was that weird?) so that I could be eating this cake. Mint chocolate chip ice-cream is my fav…and low carb? Gimme dat!
janet says
What a great idea! I love it. My kids where born almost exactly 6 months apart so it was not a problem for us. but my older sis was born Dec. 12, so we were not allowed to do anything Christmas until after her birthday. No shopping, decorating, nothing! I just love the idea of a non-birthday family party.
Cecelia says
There are alot of things in the ice cream that we can’t have, so I was just going make the cake, with the ganache on it. Do you know what the carbs would be?
Thanks again
Carolyn says
No, I’m sorry, I don’t. But you can run the ingredients through something like MyFitnessPal.
Amanda says
Your pictures are so pretty! This looks amazing!!
Christine at Cook the Story says
Half birthday celebrations are the best, and they deserve a cake this awesome!
Sarah G says
Great story.
This is so crazy because today is my husband’s birthday and MINT CHOCOLATE-CHIP ICE CREAM CAKE has always been his cake request for pre-low carb birthdays. Crazy, I say.
mellissa @ ibreatheimhungry says
We’re big fans of random family days with presents or treats for no reason – it’s so much more fun (and less pressure) than obligatory celebrations on a given day! This cake is a real beauty – another ADIDAF favorite for sure!
Charlie says
The cake looks amazing! The half birthday is such a great idea (I think I should do it for myself 😛 haha).
Lady Jennie says
I have not been using any of my xylitol. I have not been able to wrap my brain around sugar-free cooking lately. But I must make this. Your recipes are still my idea of perfection.
(We only have on April birthday in our family. Otherwise it’s Oct, Nov and early Jan). What a great idea!
Alice // Hip Foodie Mom says
Wow, just stunning, Carolyn!! can’t wait to try this!
Molly H says
Hi again! What kind of ice cream maker do you use? I’ve seen some cheaper Hamilton Beach ones, but am not sure if they are any good.
Carolyn says
I use the inexpensive Cuisinart one, it’s about $50 and I’ve had it for about 15 years.
Della says
Oh my gosh I so feel your pain!! My three kids are Oct 6th, Nov. 5th and Dec. 1st! The end of every year is the bullet train!!!!! Can wait to try this recipe!!!
Carolyn says
Wow, yours are almost exactly like mine!
Thalia @ butter and brioche says
wishing i could have a slice right now, this ice cream cake looks so delicious!
nomi says
Can I use chocolate whey protein powder?
Carolyn says
Sure, that should work just fine.
Sarah V says
Thank you so much for this genius recipe! I made the cake and the ice cream, and they were both absolutely wonderful. My daughter loves both as well! I didn’t put them together all fancy like your photo yet, just made them separately and just plated them together for my first run with this recipe. But I will definitely be going all the way with the layers and ganache and showing this off one day soon for a diabetic uncle or my low-carb daughter’s birthday. You genius, you!!
Carolyn says
Glad you liked it!
eli says
CArolyn i cant seem to find vegetable glycerin and i REALY want to make this cake for my sons birthday on saturday whats a good subsitute for vegetable glycerin?
Carolyn says
Just leave it out. It will freeze a little harder so make sure to let it thaw a bit before slicing.
Konditoreja says
Very nice ice cream cake. Would probably be one of the best ice cream cakes I have ever tried. Loved the flavor of it. 5 out of 5.
Lori says
My son requests this for his birthday cake every year. We leave out the mint and still so tasty! Takes me a long time to make since you have to make ice cream, cake, and then put it all together. But, so worth if for a birthday celebration! No one knows it is low carb!
Carolyn says
That’s wonderful so glad he likes it!