"This is the best thing I've ever had!" That's what my neighbor said after one bite of this Peppermint Ice Cream Cake. It's made with just four ingredients, starting with a thick OREO® crust. The 13×9-inch pan serves a holiday crowd.
This Peppermint Ice Cream Cake is the easiest dessert you’ll make all season. It starts with a thick OREO® cookie crust, then a layer of pink peppermint ice cream, whipped topping, and some reserved crumbs from the OREO® crust. You don’t bake anything, so just layer, freeze, and slice it.
It’s perfect for the holidays, because you can make it days ahead and pull it out of the freezer when guests arrive. The pink-and-chocolate layers look festive, and you could even put a few crushed candy canes on top to make it even prettier. One 13×9 pan makes enough for a crowd, so it's great for parties, potlucks, and cookie exchanges.
When I shared a slice with my neighbor, he said, "This is the best thing I've ever had!" And he gets a LOT of my recipe testing leftovers, lol! This recipe is a holiday twist on my Buster Bar Dessert, one of the most popular frozen treats here on the blog. If you love this peppermint version, be sure to try the original too!
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My Tips for Making It extra Easy
- A food processor will make quick work of blitzing the OREO® cookies into fine crumbs. You can use a plastic bag + a meat mallet if you don’t have a food processor. Or check out these small OREO® cookie crumbs which are already crushed for you.
- Be sure to soften the peppermint ice cream before you start. That’ll take about 20 minutes at room temperature. I like to take an ice cream scoop and place scoops of the softened ice cream on the crust before trying to spread it (see photo below).
- Give the ice cream cake at least 4 hours to firm up in the freezer before serving. You can also make it several days ahead and keep it in the freezer until you’re ready to serve it. I love a good make-ahead recipe!
- This doesn’t exactly qualify as “making it easy” but my kids LOVED helping with this recipe (patting the crumbs, scooping the ice cream, spreading the Cool Whip, sprinkling the crumbs). It’s a fun one to get young ones involved in, especially since it’s no bake.
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Ingredients
- You’ll need 42 OREOs® for this recipe, which is most of a family sized bag. You’ll have a few leftover. A treat for the chef!
- I love the look (and taste) of the bright pink peppermint ice cream in this recipe. If you’re more of a mint chocolate chip kind of person, that would make a really pretty light green ice cream cake. Any flavor of ice cream will do, actually!
How to Make Peppermint Ice Cream Cake
- Crush OREOs® in a food processor until finely ground. Reserve 1 cup of the crumbs for the top of the cake. Mix the remaining crumbs with melted butter and pat into a 13×9-inch pan.
- Scoop 1.5 quarts of softened peppermint ice cream onto the crust.
- Spread the ice cream into an even layer. I like using an offset spatula to make it easy.
- Spread defrosted whipped topping on top in an even layer.
- Top with the reserved OREO® crumbs and freeze for at least 4 hours.
- Cut into slices and serve.
The cake will keep in the freezer for several weeks. Make sure it is tightly covered to keep the freezer odors out.
Variation Ideas for Other Holidays
I love the flavor of this peppermint ice cream cake in December, but it easily translates with other flavors year-round!
- Strawberry ice cream for Valentine’s Day
- Green mint chip ice cream for St. Patrick’s Day
- Raspberry sorbet in the summer
- Pumpkin ice cream in the fall
- Birthday cake ice cream for birthday celebrations
- Flavors that work any time of year: chocolate chip cookie dough, chocolate peanut butter, orange cream, vanilla, chocolate, the list is endless!
You can also change up the crust to Golden OREOs® for a vanilla flavored crust.
📖 Recipe
Peppermint Ice Cream Cake
Ingredients
- 42 OREO® cookies (a little less than 1 family pack)
- 4 tablespoons melted butter
- 1.5 quarts peppermint ice cream softened
- 8 oz whipped topping (such as Cool Whip, defrosted)
Instructions
- Blitz 42 OREO® cookies in a food processor until fine crumbs form. You can also use a plastic resealable bag + a meat mallet to crush them.
- Measure out 1 cup of the crumbs and set aside for the top. Transfer the remaining crumbs to a large bowl and mix with 4 tablespoons melted butter.
- Pat the crumb mixture into a 13×9-inch pan (no need to grease it). Press firmly but not too hard. Pressing too hard can cause a crumbly crust.
- Top the crust with 1.5 quarts peppermint ice cream (I use an ice cream scoop and place scoops all over the crust). Spread into an even layer.
- Spread 8 oz whipped topping (defrosted) in an even layer on top. Sprinkle the reserved OREO® crumbs over the top.
- Freeze for at least 4 hours, or until firm.
- Slice and serve. I found that it sliced nicely right out of the freezer, but if it's too hard to slice, give it 5-10 minutes at room temperature first.
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