If you ever go to Sweden (and I hope you do!), there is one thing you’ll quickly learn. Swedes love their coffee. In fact, we’re one of the heaviest coffee drinkers on earth. We almost drink twice as much coffee as Americans here in the States. Crazy right? I think it has something to do with that it gets so dark in the winter time. You need a whole lot of energy to stay awake during those dark hours. And then in the summer, you’re already addicted to the caffeine, so might as well keep on going. Everyone following my logic? Good.
Layers of heaven, that’s what it is.
Regardless. You can imagine my enthusiasm, when Laughing Man Coffee wanted to sponsor a giveaway here on bitterbaker! Are you kidding me? It made my week! Kind of funny too that they’re running a campaign focusing on things that make you happy. Coffee definitely makes it to the top of that list for me. Seriously. It has to be good coffee, though. If it’s bad coffee I’d just rather have nothing at all.
This baby could be yours! Read further down below the recipe on how to participate in the Laughing Man Coffee Giveaway.
So after a little while, this lovely little smelling box landed outside my door. Samples! Yay! (and there’s one in there for you, too! Read below on how to participate in the giveaway). Have you guys ever grinded coffee beans? I suggest you try it. It smells amazing. Really. And then the coffee is just a little bit more fresh than normal. It was hard to find a favorite out of the samples I tried. I really liked the Peru one, but also the original and the Mocha Java. They were all really, really good (and as a Swede, I know my coffee); full flavor, but not bitter or sour, even though I usually brew it pretty strong. To be really honest, I was relieved it was good. Remember I don’t drink bad coffee?
Hard to pick a favorite.
So now to the fun part – baking! I love ice cream, I love meringue, I love berries and I love coffee. So to celebrate this giveaway I thought of making coffee custard ice cream. But no matter how much I love ice cream, it felt a little boring to just have it on its own. So I paired it up with a chewy meringue (seriously, the best meringue I’ve ever made) and some unsweetened blackberries, to balance all the sweet stuff.
Looks pretty good, right?
And now to the really fun part – free stuff! Just enter below in the little widget. The Giveaway will close in a few days, so make sure to share with your friends (you might have to treat them to a cup of coffee if you win). The prize is one bag of 12 oz Organic Laughing Man Coffee, their home blend. It’s yummy, you guys, you’ll love it!
Enter Laughing Man Coffee Giveaway Here!
Coffee ice cream blackberry meringue cake
Total time: 1 hour to make the meringue and the ice cream, then 3-4 hours to let the ice cream cool. Then 5 minutes to put the cake together!
Ingredients meringue
- 6 egg whites
- 1 3/4 cup sugar
- 2 tsp lemon juice
Ingredients coffee custard ice cream
- 4 egg yolks
- pinch of salt
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- ½ cup strong coffee
- 6 tbsp butter
- 1 cup heavy whip cream
Toppings
2 cups blackberries, fresh or frozen
caramel sauce
Instructions
Start by making two meringue cakes. Heat up the oven to 305°F. Prepare a water bath by boiling water in a pot. Place a metal bowl on top of the water bath and put the egg whites, the sugar and the lemon juice in there. Beat with an electric beater until the meringue gets thick, for a good 5 minutes at least. Spread out the batter to two equally large round cakes (approx. 9 inches in diameter) on baking sheets. Bake at the lower rack of the oven for 1 hour. Take out the meringue and let cool thoroughly.
Meanwhile, make the coffee ice cream. Again, prepare a water bath by boiling water in a pot (or use the same one). Place a metal bowl on top of the water bath and mix egg yolks, powdered sugar, coffee and a pinch of salt in the bowl. Whip by hand over the water bath until the coffee custard gets foamy and thick, it’s a fairly quick process. Take the metal bowl off the water bath and add the butter, 1 tbsp at a time. Let the coffee custard cool. Meanwhile, whip the whip cream so that it gets thick. When the coffee custard is cool, mix the whipped whip cream and the coffee custard in a bowl and pour it into a round spring pan (9 inches in diameter). Freeze the ice cream for at least 3-4 hours.
If you’re using frozen blackberries, defrost them in the microwave, and then mush them to a sauce with a fork (do the same thing with fresh blackberries, except you don’t need to microwave them). If it’s really watery, just pour some of the juice out.
Time to put the cake together! Peel off the meringues off of the baking sheets. Make one cake the bottom layer. Take out the coffee ice cream from the freezer and place on top of the meringue. Spread out the blackberry sauce on top of the coffee ice cream. Place the second meringue on top of the blackberry layer and top off with some caramel sauce. All done!
Small tip: If you’re not eating the cake right away, let it wait in the freezer. Take out the cake about 20 minutes before you want to eat it, that’s when it will taste the best!
Meringue in the making.
Stack a layer of homemade coffee ice cream on top of the meringue.
Add some mushed blackberries
Stack the second meringue layer on top. Almost there! Only missing some caramel sauce..
Here we go. Feels much better now.
Now, the tricky part is cutting the cake. It’s not going to be pretty.
But who cares about a little messiness right?
Still looks delicious to me.
I love this simple yet elegant dessert!
Thanks so much Nicole!
I’m a coffee addict! I drink my coffee every morning with milk, no sugar. Anyway, when I think about coffee I think about that wonderful aroma of coffee beans. And I so wish I had a coffee grinder!
This meringue cake is absolutely gorgeous!
Glad to find another coffee addict! I usually just have my coffee black, but I take it with milk sometimes too 🙂 You’re so right about the aroma, that’s one of the absolute best things about coffee beans!
Oh my. I just ran out of coffee and I’m not laughing anymore.
Oh no! Better get you some coffee then.
I love to drink coffee first thing in the morning. That is the only time i can drink it. I use hazelnut creamer and think about how great the day will be. I can’t wait to make the meringue cake
Mmm, I love breakfast coffee too! Never tried it with hazelnut creamer, but I gotta give that a go!
I don’t drink coffee, but I do use it in baking. And, I used to drink coffee A LOT – then I just quit and never started again. But I still use freshly brewed coffee in baking, and this coffee ice cream cake looks very delicious!
It really was very yummy 🙂 Yeah, drinking too much coffee is not good, everything in moderation usually works. As long as you don’t miss the coffee drinking, there’s no need to start again 🙂 But it is nice to get that aroma in baked goods sometimes!
Oh my gosh Yvonne, that looks so good!!! I’ve been craving a good meringue lately, and the pairing it with coffee ice cream and berries sounds just amazing.
Oh Yvonne…. this looks beautiful and sounds simply amazing! Want to ship a piece to me? 😉
Absolutely, got one coming right up!
Beautiful dessert! You are amazing.
Thanks so much Karen!
Mmmmmmm, looks super good! =DDD So gonna try this tomorrow!
Oh yay! Perfect weekend dessert! 🙂
Yum! This looks delish! I’m just about to follow you on Facebook so I can get all of your yummy recipes! 🙂 Lucy
Thanks Lucy!! Oh aweseome, see you on Facebook then! 🙂
This is just so messy good!! I love my coffee with cream and sugar and most times I drink coffee when I am catching up with friends on coffee dates.
Haha, yup, messy is the word! Coffee is a great catching up drink!! 🙂
I adore coffee ice cream and with the meringue too, this just looks unbelievably good!
Isn’t coffee flavor ice cream the best? I pick that anytime I can! Thanks Anna 🙂
What an interesting and fabulous cake!
Thank you Jennifer!
Wow this looks fabulous!
Thanks so much Mallory!
I have been interested in making a meringue cake for some time now. This combination of coffee ice cream and blackberries just looks too good to pass up. Putting this in my recipe box to make for sure. Looks beautiful also, even the “not pretty” pictures look tasty.
Meringue cakes are one of my favorite desserts! I used to have it a lot when I was little (I wasn’t a huge fan of regular cake), but then I just kind of forgot about it… Thanks so much Derik, I hope you enjoy it!
when i think of coffee, i think “comfort.” literally everytime i pour a cup that is what pops in my head!! and i usually take mine with cream and just a dash of sugar, but i also like trying out new flavored creamers as long as they aren’t too sweet!!
Coffee truly is very comforting! Thanks for commenting Candace!
I’m always trying to cut back on my coffee…but to no avail! I just love it! I wake up with thoughts of my first cup! Sometimes I make espresso, other times in a coffee press, sometimes small cups, sometimes big bowls!! My breakfast follows my choice of coffee! And now of course it’s pumpkin flavored creamer – makes for a sweet coffee break! This dessert is just stunning in presentation and I can just imagine how delicious it must taste!! Once cut it really doesn’t have to look pretty, it looks so tempting!!
There’s no need to cut back on things you love!! (unless it completely takes over your life I guess..) Mmm, I love drinking my coffee in different ways too, the mood decides! Coffee presses are one of my favorites! Oo, I gotta keep an eye out for that pumpkin flavored coffee creamer, sounds intriguing. Thanks so much Linda, I hope you give the dessert a go! 🙂
I always need a cup of coffee to get me past that afternoon slump! i drink it black.
I know what you mean… I have mine black too 🙂
What a spectacular dessert! I love all the components! I don’t drink coffee anymore, but I DO use it in baking and coffee ice cream is one of my top 3 favorite ice creams!
Thank you Liz! The good thing about coffee is that you can still enjoy the flavor in other ways than just drinking it straight up! 🙂
Whoa, this looks INCREDIBLE! I feel like the messiest desserts are also the tastiest 🙂 I don’t drink coffee, but I love coffee ice cream. Yum!
I agree! The messier the better! 🙂
Thanks for the giveaway. Your dessert looks lovely.
Annamaria
My pleasure 🙂 This is really fun, I feel like I should do this more often!
When I think of coffee, I think of my rich coffee-filled gluten-free brownies:) I always make my coffee with a lot of foamed milk – (and sugar!).
Mmm, I looove gooey brownies, and they’re even better if they come with coffee flavor! I just saw them on your blog (which is awesome, btw), they look incredible! And I have a bunch of almond flour at home. That must be a sign 🙂
I’ve been a regular customer of Laughing Man since it opened both for the great coffee and the humanitarian commitment. This recipe looks amazing and will definitely be recreated soon. Thank you for the delicious idea.
That’s so true, that’s one of the reasons I really like them too! Thanks Jamie, I hope you enjoy it 🙂
My mouth is watering looking at this cake! Perfection!
Thank you Pamela!
I think coffee ice cream is my favourite way to have coffee, and this dessert looks wonderful. I have extra egg whites in my fridge, I’ll have to make this soon. 🙂
Hooray for extra egg whites!! Yup, coffee ice cream is really super yummy 🙂
I need coffee first thing in the morning to function 🙂 I like it with sugar and milk.
Coffee definitely picks you up in the morning!
What a classy looking cake! And I am obsessssed with coffee- since I became pregnant, my six-cup a day habit is the thing I miss most of all. More than wine, even, and that’s saying quite a bit! I’m surprised to see that Laughing Man is here in NYC, where I am, too; I’m so checking it out!! Once I’m back off the herbal teas, of course 🙂
Oh you’re lucky then – I’m far away from NY, all the way on the west coast 🙂 I can only imagine what it would be like to stay off coffee for that long! Herbal teas aren’t all that bad though 🙂
Yes, I would love to visit Sweden but perhaps in the summer! I love the look of this dessert. So pretty and meringue is one of my most favourite desserts. xx
Summer is lovely over there! Thanks!
That is an epic cake!! Gimme Gimme Gimme! If I don’t have my coffee before 1pm I get a killer migraine.!
Haha, so true, me too!
I think about coffee when I am stressed — a cup calms me down, surprisingly!
I like my coffee with some flavored dairy creamer
Digicats {at} Sbcglobal {dot} Net
Isn’t it odd what effect coffee can have? But it’s so true!
This cake looks amazing!! And the coffee, I can practically smell it through the screen 🙂 I haven’t had much coffee since I’ve been nursing my little one, but I always think of warmth and french vanilla!
Coffee does bring good memories!
i think about my dad! he’s who i would win this for! hes a coffee addict!
That’s really sweet!
Just thinking about coffee lifts my mood. I love it.
I so agree, coffee is a great mood-lifter!
I love coffee so it sounds like I’d fit in just right in Sweden. 🙂
Love your step by step pics. This cake looks like it came from a fancy bakery…gorgeous and delicious!
You absolutely would! 🙂 Thanks so much Tina, that’s really sweet of you to say so!