Cake Batter Ice Cream with Sprinkles

So here we are, the blog is one! It's been an eventful year, featuring name changes, guest posts, fine dining, street food, foreign adventures and local grub. I've eaten oysters in Whitstable, pasties in Cornwall, currywurst in Berlin, jamon in Madrid and fish'n'chips in Whitby. I've foraged for wild garlic, borage and sloes; grown my own fruit and veg; cooked a roast turkey in mid June; subjected the Ewing to endless versions of rice pudding and pasta bake; and finally given up trying to make my own mayonnaise.

Through out all this fun and excitement I think one of the best moments was finally getting a big enough kitchen/freezer to house an ice cream maker. Although that may not seem terribly exciting to most suddenly a sea of sorbets, gelatos, granitas and icy treats awaited us. Dime bars, dulce de leche, tomatoes, mandarins, almond milk, Oreo cookies and blackberries are just some of the things that have been churned up in my kitchen in recent months.

Making ice cream is fun, easy, exciting and satisfying; I love the fact that I can go from pondering crazy flavour combinations in my head to actually trying them out for myself. (A strange alchemy seems to occur when things are frozen together that means all but the very oddest ideas seem to taste great.) And there is nothing like the feeling of turning a pile of freshly picked fruit, local milk, cream and eggs, or those random things at the back of the cupboard your not quite sure what to do with, into a frozen feast.

As there's no better way to celebrate a birthday than a cake with sprinkles and ice cream why not combine them all together into a bowl of sugary, creamy deliciousness? I first tried this flavour at the Manly branch of Cold Rock, while in over Australia, and have been wanting to recreate it ever since. (Their cinnamon mini donut with chocolate M&M's is also high up the to do list.)

Although this recipe may not qualify as my most grown up or refined it is pretty yummy. If you really want to go to town add some broken up chunks of sponge cake or choc chips to the mixture after churning. You could even, like the Ben and Jerry's version, stir a chocolate buttercream frosting swirl through the finished ice cream. I just happen to like a bowl of sweet, rum-spiked, vanillery goodness just as it is, candle optional.

Cake Batter Ice Cream with Sprinkles

1 cup semi-skimmed milk

2 cups double cream

1 1/2 cups packaged dry cake mix

1/2 cup caster sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tbsp rum/brandy (optional)

Sugar sprinkles to serve

Place milk, cream, vanilla and rum into a large mixing bowl. Add the sugar and whisk until sugar has dissolved.

Add cake mix and whisk again until fully incorporated. If the mixture seems lumpy then sieve into a clean bowl.

Thoroughly chill mixture in the fridge.

Whisk mixture again, then churn according to your ice cream maker's instructions.

Serve immediately or place into a freezer-proof container and freeze until required.

Serve with plenty of sprinkles.

Finally a big thank you to everyone who's read, commented, contributed or retweeted the blog. Thanks to all those who've eaten, drank, explored and patiently put up with my photo-taking with me. And much love to the wonderful Ewing; fellow glutton, partner in crime, gin-drinker, chocoholic, chauffeur and guinea pig for all my crazy ideas.