How Long Should You Let Ice Cream Cake Set Before Decorating?

We're going to take a wild guess that every ice cream cake you've ever had has been purchased from an ice cream parlor, grocery store, or bakery. There is nothing wrong with letting the experts handle the hard stuff. The thing is, though, an ice cream cake may seem intimidating, but it isn't really all that difficult to pull together. That said, there are a few tips and tricks that experts, such as Salt & Straw Co-Founder and Head Ice Cream Maker Tyler Malek, are happy to share with us civilians that help perfect the process.

One quandary you may have is when to add the all-important decorations to your ice cream cake. Busting out a sweet treat that is a bit intricate — such as our tri-colored traditional spumoni ice cream cake — is usually reserved for special occasions and, as such, you're probably going to want to add some flourishes with frosting and other ingredients. But an ice cream cake presents a unique problem in that it needs to be kept as cold as possible to hold its shape. Malek shared with Tasting Table that patience is of the essence, telling us that you shouldn't decorate the cake until it is "completely hardened" in the freezer, a process that takes, at minimum, "six to eight hours" or overnight.

If you've decided not to purchase an ice cream cake from a place like Salt & Straw — which launched its first-ever ice cream cakes in 2023 – then you've got to make a plan. It is important to decide what kind of cake you'll be using and an ice cream that will pair well with it. A classic yellow cake works with a variety of flavors, from strawberry ice cream to chocolate. You can even make an ice cream cake reminiscent of an orange creamsicle. No matter what flavors you go with, you should use the cake as the base of the dessert. The ice cream can be added atop or in multiple layers. Let the ice cream get soft before constructing the ice cream cake so that it is easier to sculpt, but not so soft that it can't hold its shape.

Decorating the ice cream cake can take many forms, from elegant frosting flowers to whimsical crumbled cookies. Once the ice cream cake is thoroughly set in the freezer, set about decorating it quickly. As with nearly all cooking, it is a good idea to have your vision ready before you begin. But, unforeseen circumstances can arise, and it is fine if you need to move it back to the freezer to allow the ice cream to retain its shape. Simply press pause and continue decorating the ice cream cake in stages.