Mocha Chocolate Icebox Cake

As I confessed in an earlier post, I'm always looking for quick and easy recipes that are also yummy and presentable. Earlier this week, I was watching the Today show when Ina Garten of Barefoot Contessa fame came on and shared three recipes out of her new cookbook How Easy is That? One of the recipes was for her Mocha Chocolate Icebox Cake, and she had me at the ingredients list.... Kahlua, Espresso, Cocoa... how could you go wrong? Well, I decided to try it out since it was my turn to bring a snack to our weekly military wives Bible study. I think I've found one of my new staple desserts... it was quick, painless and delicious! Unfortunately, I didn't take a picture of the cake before it was devoured, but here's one from the Barefoot Contessa website. I'll admit, mine wasn't quite as pretty.

Here's the recipe:


2 cups cold heavy cream
12 ounces Italian mascarpone cheese
½ cup sugar
¼ cup Kahlúa liqueur
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, such as Pernigotti
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 (8-ounce) packages Tate’s Bake Shop chocolate chip cookies
Shaved semisweet chocolate, for garnish


In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine the heavy cream, mascarpone, sugar, Kahlúa, cocoa powder, espresso powder, and vanilla. Mix on low speed to combine and then slowly raise the speed, until it forms firm peaks.


To assemble the cake, arrange chocolate chip cookies flat in an 8-inch springform pan, covering the bottom as much as possible. (I break some cookies to fill in the spaces.) Spread a fifth of the mocha whipped cream evenly over the cookies. Place another layer of cookies on top, lying flat and touching, followed by another fifth of the cream. Continue layering cookies and cream until there are 5 layers of each, ending with a layer of cream. Smooth the top, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight.


Run a small sharp knife around the outside of the cake and remove the sides of the pan. Sprinkle the top with the chocolate, cut in wedges, and serve cold 

Now, a few tips from my experience. First, this cake does not travel well! If you're driving somewhere, make sure you have somebody else with you who can hold the cake, otherwise be prepared for the cake to slip and slide across the platter (and potentially your car!) as you make turns! I learned this one the hard way :) Also, the recipe calls for Tate's Bake Shop chocolate chip cookies - you can really use any chocolate chip cookies. I baked my own gluten-free cookies from a Betty Crocker mix. Last, I found that the whipped cream wasn't enough to make five layers. I ended up with three layers and was scraping the sides of the bowl. Also, I think that next time I make this I will go for more filling and less cookies. The general consensus was that the filling is the absolute best part of the cake!


Bon appétit!