Coconut Cream Ice Cream Cake a slice of sunnier days

Article Tools

Photo: , License: N/A, Created: 2018:04:09 15:09:25

BUTCH COMEGYS / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Clarks Summit resident Lisa Sickler is this week’s Local Flavor: Recipes We Love contest winner for her Coconut Cream Ice Cream Cake.

Don’t let the cold, damp days bring you down. Real spring (and summer) weather is on its way.

Until then, Clarks Summit resident Lisa Sickler knows the perfect recipe to drum up feelings of sunny skies and warm breezes: Coconut Cream Ice Cream Cake.

Sickler obtained the recipe years ago and never strayed from the ingredients. She made it for dozens of events — from family get-togethers, birthdays, backyard parties and more — over the years.

“It’s just so easy and light. That can get dangerous,” Sickler said on a recent afternoon at the home she shares with her husband, William. “You can take more than one piece and not feel full.”

Don’t let the name fool you — the cake isn’t frozen, even though Sickler mixes a half-gallon of vanilla ice cream into the cake’s filling to provide it with a creamy, cool consistency.

Sickler thinks an unexpected flavor tops it off. She makes the crust with butter and original-flavored Ritz crackers, which give the cake a salty, buttery side.

“(My brother) always says he can’t believe it’s Ritz crackers,” Sickler said. “It really makes the taste.”

Sickler described the dessert as a simple one to make, and she sometimes makes it the night before if she has to take it somewhere. Noting how she once tried making the cake with skim milk but it wouldn’t set, she recommended that bakers use whole milk. Also, she suggested adding in milk gradually and stirring for best consistency and to avoid splatter.

Otherwise, the cake is an effortless treat. Sickler said bakers might even want to substitute the coconut cream pudding she uses for chocolate to give the dish a different taste.

“It’s just very easy,” she said. “Anybody can make it.”

Coconut Cream Ice Cream Cake lived up to its hype. From the creamy coconut filling to the light flavor of the whipped cream to the salty flavor of the Ritz cracker crust, the whole dessert provided the perfect escape.

Sickler enjoys cooking but is an avid baker. She got her start baking goodies with her mom, Maude Petroski, and her grandmother, the late Mary Ace. Sickler makes everything from scratch-baked cookies such as Linzer Tarts to specialty treats including Tandy Cake and Banana Cake.

From the Polish side of her family, that of her father, the late Anthony Petroski, Sickler learned recipes for Jelly Cookies and Kruschiki, which she still prepares. With her niece, Jillian, away at college, Sickler sends care packages filled with the young woman’s favorite goodies, such as Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread and Chocolate Chip Muffins.

One of Sickler’s biggest hits continues to be her Coconut Cream Ice Cream Cake, and with the approaching warmer weather, it soon will be in high demand.

“It’s a nice spring-summer cake,” Sickler said. “That coconut flavor reminds you of the nice weather.”

Contact the writer: gmazur@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9127; @gmazurTT on Twitter

Lisa Sickler’s Coconut Cream Ice Cream Cake

60 Ritz crackers, crushed

1 stick butter, melted

1/2 gallon vanilla ice cream, softened

1 1/2 cups whole milk

2 (4-ounce) packages coconut cream pudding

Cool Whip, or any whipped topping, to frost

For crust: Mix crackers with butter and spread 3/4 of mixture on bottom of 9-inch-by-12-inch pan. Set 1/4 of mixture aside to garnish cake.

For filling: In a separate bowl, stir ice cream until smooth. Add in milk gradually and stir. Then, beat in pudding mix. Pour over crust and let set.

To finish: Spread Cool Whip on top. Sprinkle remaining cracker mixture over top. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.