{I Scream Cakes owner Kerry Soraci}
I Scream Cakes owner Kerry Soraci is well known for imaginative ice cream cakes crafted in her brightly colored Cherokee Street shop. However, she’s recently gotten into the pie game, creating ice cream pies with a rotating cast of traditional and off-the-wall ice cream flavors, ganaches and toppings (almost all of which are gluten-free). Orange-habenero ice cream hiding a caramel-white chocolate ganache topped with chocolate-covered pralines, anyone?
Since August is all about pies here at Sauce, we asked Soraci to give us the scoop on her ice cream pies and share a recipe straight from I Scream Cakes’ kitchens.
Why did you decide to make ice cream pies in addition to your cakes? I grew up working at Baskin-Robbins when I was a kid, and they had ice cream pies. I thought they were a nice option because it can be a little cheaper than a cake. It’s also more of a cookie than it is a cake, so even though they’re similar, they’re completely different.
What is the best crust for an ice cream pie? I think it depends on the kind of ice cream and also personal preference. I do like the crushed up chocolate cookie crust, but we haven’t used it yet because of the gluten-free concerns. I really love our almond cookie crust. It’s nice and soft, it’s easy to make gluten-free and it … enhances a lot of our flavors.
Why cookies? The cookie, as long as it doesn’t get baked too long, stays nice, soft and chewy when it’s frozen. It’s also a matter of balancing all the ice cream time and the baking time. We use (next-door neighbor) Black Bear Bakery’s oven, so we don’t bake a lot. It’s more focus on the ice cream, so it’s easier … to use the cookies as the pie crusts.
Have you ever made a pretzel crust? No … now that you say that, it’s a really good idea!
What flavors of ice cream pie do you offer? Right now, our seasonal pie is the Italian almond cookie crust with a layer of lavender-passion fruit swirl and blueberry cheesecake ice cream with a cream cheese icing. (But) I’m always making something different.
What do you top your pies with? Either a chocolate ganache or a white chocolate ganache. We use Kakao’s burnt caramel sauce … for a caramel ganache. Cream cheese icing, maybe some fruits.
Describe how you make an ice cream pie. We soften (our ice cream), spread it, and pretty much throw it in the freezer. After an hour or two, after it’s set, then we put a topping on it. The topping not only serves as an extra flavor and extra element, but it also is a good sealer so the ice cream isn’t exposed to air, so it stays fresher and doesn’t get freezer burn. Especially the ganaches – they kind of act like a magic shell.
Any tips for making an ice cream pie at home? I like the crust to be frozen. I let (the ice cream) sit no more than five minutes to get it soft, then I squish it and press it into the corners so it’s all in there and smooth it out. But you don’t want it to get too melted because melted ice cream, when it refreezes, is icy and not a very good texture. You just want it to be soft enough to spread, smooth it out, and put it in the freezer.
I want the crust to be as close to the temperature of the ice cream as possible so you don’t get that icy layer of (refrozen) melted ice cream at the bottom. Then I do freeze the ice cream for an hour or two before putting the topping on for the same exact reason … The ice cream does need to be cold, so when the ganache, which is slightly warmer than room temperature hits, it … almost immediately hardens. That hardening will then also make the ganache stick to the ice cream so that it can be spread.
If you don’t have an ice cream maker, can you make an ice cream pie with store-bought ice cream? Absolutely. (Just use) the ones with the (purest), natural ingredients.
Any other helpful advice for home cooks? Just play around! If you’re a little nervous at first, start out with everything store-bought. After that, bake your own cookies and make your own cookie crust … Just let the chewy cookies sit out, so they dry out and put them in a food processor with a little bit of melted butter. You can press that into the bottom of a pie pan and then let that freeze.
So do you prefer ice cream pie to regular pie? No … I love pie, period. I really love strawberry-rhubarb pie; I love fruit pies.
And would you eat that a la mode? Hell, yeah!
Salted Caramel Chocolate Pie Courtesy of I Scream Cakes’ Kerry Soraci Makes 2 9-inch pies
For the ice cream: 3 eggs
¾ cups sugar
1¾ cups whole milk
2¼ cups cream
3 oz. 100-percent cacao baking chocolate, chopped
1 Tbsp. cocoa powder
½ tsp. vanilla extract
For the Italian almond cookie crust: 2¾ cups raw almonds
1 cup sugar
2 Tbsp. gluten-free or regular cake flour
¼ tsp. kosher salt
½ cup egg whites (3 reserved egg whites plus 1 more)
½ Tbsp. almond extract
For the caramel-white chocolate ganache: ¼ cup cream
4 oz. high-quality white chocolate*, chopped
1 Tbsp. butter
1/3 cup room-temperature caramel sauce
Coarse sea salt to finish
Chocolate Ice Cream • Separate the eggs, reserving the whites for the cookie crust. Use a stand mixer to beat the yolks on high speed until pale, about 2 minutes. With the stand mixer running, beat in the sugar. Turn off the mixer and stir in the milk and cream.
• Pour the custard mixture into a large saucepot and warm over medium heat, stirring until it reaches 185 degrees. The custard should coat the back of a spoon. Remove from heat.
• Add the chocolate, cocoa powder and vanilla to the warm custard and let it sit to melt slightly. Use a stick blender to blend until smooth. Cover and refrigerate at least 6 hours.
• Pour the chilled custard into the ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer’s instructions. Makes 1½ quarts. Ice cream can be made 1 day ahead.
Italian Almond Cookie Crust • Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
• In the bowl of a food processor, pulse the almonds and sugar together until roughly ground. Pour the almond mixture into a large mixing bowl and stir in flour and salt. Set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the egg whites and almond extract on high speed into soft peaks, about 3 minutes. Scrape the whipped egg whites into the nuts and stir gently to incorporate.
• Divide the mixture evenly between 2 9-inch pie pans. Bake about 15 minutes until the cookie is just golden. Let cool to room temperature, then freeze until ready for use.
Caramel-White Chocolate Ganache • In a small saucepan, bring the cream to just below a boil over medium-high heat.
• In a small mixing bowl, pour the hot cream over the white chocolate. Add the butter and let it melt. Stir until the mixture is smooth, then stir in the caramel sauce. Let cool.
Salted Caramel Chocolate Pie • To assemble the ice cream pies, remove the ice cream from the freezer and let it soften slightly, about 5 minutes. Divide it evenly between the 2 frozen crusts, pressing it into the corners and smoothing the top with a spatula. Freeze 1 hour.
• If the ganache has hardened, microwave it on low in 10 to 20 seconds intervals, stirring until it is viscous. Divide the ganache evenly atop the 2 pies to cover the ice cream completely, then sprinkle with sea salt and freeze until the ganache has hardened. Let thaw about 10 minutes before serving.
*Look for white chocolate that contains cocoa butter, not palm oil.
-photos by Jennifer Mozier
This article appears in August 2014.