vegan ice cream cake

i've had some questions about the making of evan's vegan ice cream birthday cake, so i thought i would just go ahead and share the recipe here. it's really so super easy, it just takes a little bit of patience, and maybe a dash of restraint as it's pretty tough not eating the ice cream as you're making it!

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

WHAT YOU'LL NEED...
1- spring form cake pan
1- gallon of ice cream, or 2 half gallons if you'd like 2 different flavors
1- package of oreo cookies
1/2 cup vegan butter (i used earth balance)
1- bottle of magic shell, we used the reese's one cause it's super delicious!
1- large ziploc freezer bag
TO MAKE THE CRUST AND MIDDLE LAYER-
put all oreos into the ziploc bag and mash the heck out of them! you want a very crumbly consistency here. the crumbier the better! next melt the butter and dump it over the oreos in a large bowl. mix it all up so that everything is coated. there ya go, the crust is made!
THE ASSEMBLING-
take half of the oreo mixture and press it into the bottom of the spring form pan. try to get it as even as possible. finger tips work best here folks! now stick the pan in the freezer for about 30 mins to harden. while waiting on this, take your ice cream out of the freezer to soften. if you're using 2 different flavors you only need to take one out now.
remove pan from freezer and dump your first flavor of ice cream (or just half of the gallon if you're using a single flavor) over the oreos. spread out as evenly as possible and stick it back in the freezer. freeze for 45 mins to an hour.
remove pan from freezer and dump the rest of the oreo mixture in. spread evenly, and yup, you guessed it, stick it back in the freezer. this time for about 30-40 mins. take your second ice cream flavor out now to start softening.
remove pan from freezer, add your second flavor of ice cream (or the rest of your gallon), and spread evenly. put back in the freezer for 45 mins to an hour.
remove pan from freezer. run a knife all along the inside edge of your pan to release the ice cream from the sides. unlatch your spring form and remove it, while leaving the cake on the bottom piece. grab your bottle of magic shell and get messy! i dripped it all in one direction first, and then crossed in the other direction. i also made sure to get it to drip down the sides too. do this on a large piece of wax paper, or tin foil so that you won't care about it dripping everywhere. then stick it on back in the freezer!
freeze for at least another hour, a minimum of 2 hours is probably best though.
lastly, cut it up and enjoy the heck out of it!
side notes- if you're impatient like me, you can microwave your ice cream for a few seconds to soften it up. this makes for easier spreading if it hasn't softened enough sitting out. i used trader joe's cherry chocolate chip for the bottom layer, and vanilla on the top. this was a delicious combo! i've also done it with the cherry on the bottom and chocolate on the top and that was super yummer too!

evan's birthday bonanza!

evan and our friend steph have birthdays that are 2 days apart, so each year we throw a dual celebration in honor of two of the most fabulous people in the world! the party always has some sort of ridiculous, non-sensical theme, and this year was no different.
here are some pics from this years zombie/disney/superhero bash!
the day was started with a serious breakfast of tofu scramble & cinnamon rolls. we needed our energy!

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

the birthday kids...

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

the bounce house!

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

my costume... preggo zombie

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

some thought this may have been in poor taste. psssh... what do they know!

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

taking a bouncing breather...

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

there may have been some roof dives into the bounce house...

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

snazzy superheros!

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

captain america was no match for spiderman!

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

party favors!

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

preggo zombie hanging with zombie amy winehouse

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

oh yes, there were wholesome lawn games too!

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

and a snow-cone machine!

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

mmmmmm...

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

birthday boy!

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

and we ended the night with a homemade (by me!) vegan ice cream cake. not to toot my own horn or anything, but goooood lord was it delicious!

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

happy birthday again evan & steph. your the best hubs, and the best bud, a gal could ask for :)
hope everyone had a great holiday weekend!

weekly bean update... x2

last week i was a fruit baby slacker... there, i said it! i took the pictures and then for some reason just never got around to posting them. so lucky you, you get 2 fruit babies for the price of one this week!

first here are last weeks 20 week photos... that's right, i'm now half way there!!!

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer


jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

and here's this weeks 21 week photos!

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

this bump is getting legit i tell ya!

and this week according to the bump...

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer

HOW FAR ALONG- 21 weeks 5 days

SIZE OF BABY- 10.5 inches and 12.7 oz

MATERNITY CLOTHES?- i've been doing a lot of non-maternity leggings this week. i found a few uber comfy pairs and i now don't want to wear anything else. and don't tell anyone... but i've even fallen victim to the jegging! luckily i have the pregnancy excuse.

STRETCH MARKS?- none yet, and i will keep lathering up with lotion to help keep it that way!

SLEEP?- i've been doing a lot of tossing and turning this past week, but i always fall right back to sleep, so i'm not complaining just yet.

FEELING ANY MOVEMENTS?- penny is really hitting her stride this past week. she gives some really good jabs and upper cuts to my inners. i love it! it feels like popcorn popping in my belly. evan finally got to feel her kick last week too. i'm so excited to be able to share that with him now because for weeks only i could feel it and it's so amazing that it must be shared!

ANY CRAVINGS?- oh boy, yesterday i do believe i had my first really preggo craving. i convinced evan (let me just say that it didn't take much work) that it would be a great idea for us to have chocolate milkshakes for dinner. he obviously agreed, so we got ourselves some soy delicious chocolate ice cream, and topped them off with some soy whip whipped cream. it was vegan heaven!

ANY FOOD AVERSIONS?- still can't eat brocolli

VISIBLE BUMP?- oh yes yes! finally it's a real baby belly. i've even started to experience people reaching out and rubbing it without warning. we'll see how quickly that loses it's charm :)

BELLY BUTTON. IN OR OUT?- still in

STILL WEARING RINGS?- yup, so far so good!

BEST MOMENT OF THE WEEK- that milkshake is right up there, but another favorite moment was taking a nap a few days ago while playing some music to my belly for penny. she kicked a bit at first and then fell right asleep with me. heart... melt!

WORST MOMENT OF THE WEEK- it was totally not pregnancy related, but our shed was broken into friday night! 5 or so other houses on our block were hit as well. it was a real bummer, but luckily they didn't really get anything from us. just having people creeping around our backyard while we slept totally freaked me out a bit. bastards!



a few peeks at the nursery...

this past week has been spent making over our guest room into a new little nursery for penny! we haven't really gotten very far yet, but it already feels like such a huge change. here's a peek at our progress thus far...

the walls were a deep mauve sort of color to begin with. this isn't the best picture, but silly me forgot to take a bunch of "before" shots...

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer


we decided to repaint the room a lovely shade of antique white... which meant it took 3 coats to cover up the old color. pain in the neck, but so very worth it!

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer


the mr. gettin' down to business! he and i have our painting method down pat. i do all the trim and edge work, and he rolls it all out. we're quite a team!

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer


mirabelle was a bit nervous about all the action...

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer


i scored this vintage lace curtain for $4 at a thrift store. it's absolutely perfect!

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer


and a close up of those sweet sweet ruffles!

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer


and this amazing rocker was a gift to us from my friends parents. i've known them since i was about 13... crazy!

jenn pierce, charlotte nc photographer


so that's it so far. this is my favorite thing to work on and think about lately. one might say i'm obsessed, but i LOVE doing room makeovers, and to be doing one for the little lady in my belly makes it more special then i can even tell you.

i'll be sure to share more baby room goodness as it develops!