Ice box cake Recipe
- 150g/5½oz butter, softened
- 250g/9oz granulated sugar
- 4 free-range eggs
- 5 tbsp strong cold espresso coffee
- 4 tbsp chicory and coffee essence, such as Camp
- 650g/1lb 7oz plain flour
- 50g/1¾oz cocoa powder
- 2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 litre/1¾ pint double cream
- 1 tbsp chicory and coffee essence, such as Camp
- 125ml/3½fl oz stem ginger syrup
- 42 coffee biscuits
- 3 balls stem ginger, thinly sliced
- For the ice box coffee biscuits, place the butter and sugar into a bowl and beat until light and fluffy, then add the eggs and beat well.
- Add the cold coffee and coffee essence and mix well. Fold in the flour, cocoa, bicarbonate of soda and salt and bring together to form a firm dough.
- Press into a 2cm/¾in thick block, then wrap in cling film and place in the fridge for one hour to rest.
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
- Roll the dough out to 5mm/¼in thick, then stamp out into discs using a 7cm/2¾in diameter plain biscuit cutter.
- Place onto a baking tray and bake for 8-10 minutes, or until just risen and firm to touch.
- For the cake, whisk the double cream with the coffee essence in a bowl until it just holds soft peaks when the whisk is removed from the bowl, then fold in the stem ginger syrup and coffee essence.
- Take a large plate or cake stand and place a little cream on the base, then place a 25cm/9in round cake board on top.
- Dollop two spoonfuls of cream in the middle and spread out to within 2cm/¾in of the edge, then place one biscuit in the centre and six around it in a circle. Spread a layer of cream over the top, making sure the biscuits are still visible at the side.
- Repeat the process layering up the biscuits like bricks, until you have used up all the cream and all the biscuits, finishing with a layer of cream.
- Place in the fridge overnight but preferably for 24 hours so that the biscuits soften.
- Decorate the top of the cake with the slices of stem ginger. Serve cut into slices straight from the fridge.
