This Birthday Cake Gelato is birthday cake, in creamy, sprinkle-y gelato form! A wonderful summer frozen treat.
This Birthday Cake Gelato is yet another one of my “have to try and make it at home” adventures. I recently enjoyed a cup of this out. It was bright blue, sprinkly and delicious. My homemade version is a little less blue as I didn’t use a ton of the food colouring (didn’t think I needed it to be so blue really), but every bit as delicious.
The magic that makes it “birthday cake” is actual yellow cake mix. You can use either a store-bought one, or make your own yellow cake mix and use a cup of it. Other than that, it’s a standard custard. Add some food colouring and sprinkles to dress it up and it’s a party in a scoop.
Ingredients and Substitutions
A few notes about some of the key ingredients …
Yellow Cake Mix – yes, this is the boxed yellow cake mix. Pick up whatever brand you like.
Sprinkles – opt for the brightly coloured cake sprinkles, for best “birthday” channeling.
Heavy Whipping Cream – this is the 35% b.f. heavy cream. You’ll want to use heavy cream for the best, creamy results.
Recipe Tips
- I had originally added some sprinkles to the gelato while it was churning, but quickly discovered that my particular sprinkles were melting into the ice cream, so I waited until the end to add them. It could just have been my sprinkles, but it’s just as easy to add them at the end, so that’s what I’d recommend.
- Add as much food colouring as you like. I just added enough to give it a little colour. Note that the custard is slightly yellow coloured, from the eggs, so when you add blue food colouring, the resulting colour leans more towards green than pure blue. I’m sure you could play around with colour theory and get blue if you want to give it a go.
- This gelato is lovely, smooth and creamy and ready to be scooped straight from the freezer.
Get the Recipe: Birthday Cake Gelato
Ingredients
- 1 cup yellow cake mix , *see Note 1 below
- 3/4 cup white sugar
- 1 cup milk, at least 2%
- 2 large eggs
- 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- Cake Sprinkles
- Blue food colouring, optional
Instructions
- n a medium saucepan, whisk together the dry cake mix and sugar. Add the milk and stir until the mixture is smooth.
- Measure out the whipping cream into a 2-cup measure. Add the 2 egg and whisk together with a fork. Set aside.
- Place saucepan with cake mix mixture over medium heat and cook, stirring until mixture is warm, about 4-5 minutes. Take a ladle and spoon out a ladle of the warm mixture. Drizzle slowly into the cream/egg mixture (very lowly), while stirring, until the entire ladle had been added. If there is room in the measuring cup, add a bit more slowly. Add the cream/egg mixture into the saucepan and cook, stirring constantly for another minute or two. Do not let it boil! Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.
- Pour mixture into a metal cake pan (9×13 or 9×9). Allow to cool slightly, then cover with foil and chill in the refrigerator until completely cool, about 2-3 hours.
- *If you want to add food colouring, add to the cooled custard mixture right before adding to ice cream maker. Start with a little and add more to desired level of colour.
- Once cooled, place mixture in ice cream maker and churn until creamy according to your manufacturer’s instructions. Meanwhile, line a metal loaf pan with parchment paper. When ice cream is churned spoon half into the prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle with a layer of sprinkles. Add the remaining ice cream and top with more sprinkles. Using a skewer, swirl the ice cream to distribute the sprinkles. Add some more sprinkles on top, then cover with plastic wrap and then foil. Place in the freezer until frozen.
Notes
More Frozen Treats to Love!
Hi! I’m Jennifer, a home cook schooled by trial and error and almost 40 years of getting dinner on the table! I love to share my favourite recipes, both old and new, together with lots of tips and tricks to hopefully help make your home cooking enjoyable, stress free, rewarding and of course, delicious!
Such fun! Just what I was looking for. I used just egg yolks rather than whole eggs (for more of that standard custard feel that gelato has). Also if you freeze the sprinkles before you add them, they won’t melt at all. (Gelato additives should always be frozen first so they don’t melt the gelato around them and and ruin the creaminess.) I also left the gelato the natural yellow cake batter color and the colors of the sprinkles really pop.
So glad you enjoyed it, Monica :) Thanks so much!
I love this and it’s so festive! I do love me some Halo Top Birthday Cake so this might be my new homemade version. Thanks for sharing!!
Thanks Cindy :)
Love this flavor for gelato! Thanks for the recipe!
Thanks Anna :)
Hi. I am so exciting to make this one. But unfortunately I don’t have Ice cream maker. Do you think I can make without machine ?
Thank you .
Hi Yuri, maybe try this … after chilling the mixture, beat it well, then pour into a 9×13 metal pan. Cover and freeze, maybe stirring once after a couple of hours. It won’t be quite as creamy, but should still be tasty.
This is so so so fun, Jennifer! I mean, who doesn’t love birthday cake, right!? But birthday cake in gelato form with ALL the sprinkles?! Goodness YESSSS! I could do a lot of damage to a gallon of this gelato! ;) Cheers!
Thanks Cheyanne :)
I’ve been making ice cream for many many years and I’ve never come across anything like this, I love it! How pretty would this be alongside a birthday cake, I can’t wait to try it out, thanks Jennifer :)
Thanks Sue and yes, it’s so different. And delicious :)
What a fun, whimsical way to celebrate. I love this!
Thanks so much, Chris :)
So fun Jennifer! Nothing beats sprinkles for a quick pick me up! Or gelato on a hot day! Delicious!
Thanks Mary Ann :)
This is a fascinating recipe Jennifer. I had no idea you could use a boxed cake mix for something like this. I am intrigued and love the beautiful color.
Thanks Tricia and yes, who knew?! It makes for the most wonderfully smooth gelato, too!