This summery Rhubarb Ice Cream Cake recipe was an Honorable Mention Winner in the Cashew category of our #FrozenFridays Recipe Contest. The event was sponsored by So Delicious Dairy Free and hosted by us, Go Dairy Free. But this frozen dessert recipe was created by Alicia of Eat Your Way Clean.
I had the opportunity to meet Alicia at a conference about a year ago, and she is a forthright, energetic, glowing person who happens to be talented at recipe creation, too!
Alicia says, “Eating well to live well has become somewhat of a mantra for me. I am on a mission to heal the body through healthy and non-inflammatory foods.”
You can enjoy the journey with her and find healthy, clean eating recipes and holistic living tips on her blog at www.EatYourWayClean.com. Everything she whips up is gluten free, dairy free, lower sugar, and as she calls it, paleo-ish.
Our Testing Notes:Â Rhubarb Ice Cream Cake
This fresh take on frozen dessert was a hit with our lead test kitchen:
Everyone in our family really liked this dessert, which is always surprising for a non-chocolate ice cream recipe! Although it has a lot of steps, the recipe is well-written and easy to follow. The filling is sweet, but it balances the tart rhubarb flavor and the savory almond crust. The mixture of the tartness with the cashew ice cream actually reminded me of cheesecake. Our rhubarb turned green when cooked, not pink, so it wasn’t as pretty, but it still tasted good! Overall, I thought it was a unique, successful recipe, and one of my kids ranked it as his number one pick from the recipes we tested! However, I do recommend lining the Springform pan for easier removal of the frozen rhubarb ice cream cake.
Special Diet Notes:Â Rhubarb Ice Cream Cake
By ingredients, this recipe is dairy-free / non-dairy, egg-free, peanut-free, soy-free, vegan, plant-based, and vegetarian.
- 2 pints dairy-free cashewmilk ice cream (used So Delicious Creamy Cashew Frozen Dessert), divided
- 4 stalks fresh rhubarb, chopped (about 2 heaping cups chopped rhubarb; can use fresh or frozen)
- 1 medium gala apple, chopped
- ½ cup water
- 1 cup almond flour
- ¾ cup almond butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 1 pint blackberries
- ½ pint raspberries
- ½ pint blueberries
- Preheat your oven to 350ºF.
- Remove 1 pint of the ice cream from the freezer to soften while you begin the recipe.
- Put the rhubarb, apple, and water in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Let it cook for about 3 minutes and then increase heat to medium-high. Cook the rhubarb and apple mixture until reduced, about 9-10 minutes total. The rhubarb and apple should have lost form and look like a puree or thick jam. If the water evaporates or gets fully absorbed, add a little more water to the mix so that there is always some liquid in the pan (to prevent the fruit from burning).
- Remove the mixture from heat, cover, and let cool for about 10 to 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, start the crust. In a medium bowl, stir together the almond flour, almond butter, olive oil, lemon juice, and vanilla until fully combined.
- Spread the crust dough evenly over the bottom of a 9-inch spring form pan (optionally lined for easier removal).
- Bake the crust for about 20 minutes or until cooked through and slightly paler in color.
- Let the crust cool completely.
- While the crust bakes, mash the rhubarb and apple mixture with a fork or potato masher until evenly combined.
- Using a strainer over a small serving bowl, drain the rhubarb and apple mixture to separate the liquid sauce from the rhubarb pulp. The puree will remain in the strainer and the liquid reduction will be in the serving bowl. Make sure to drain the rhubarb puree well, extracting as much liquid as possible. Extra water in this mixture will lead to an icy rhubarb layer in your ice cream cake Reserve the liquid sauce, or rhubarb reduction, for garnishing the cake just before serving.
- In a medium mixing bowl, mix the rhubarb puree with the coconut oil until evenly combined. Let cool completely.
- Add 1 softened pint of the cashew ice cream into the rhubarb puree with a hand mixer until thoroughly combined.
- Spread the rhubarb ice cream mixture over the cooled crust and place it in your freezer to set, about 30 to 45 minutes.
- Remove the second pint of ice cream from the freezer to soften.
- When the first layer is relatively firm, empty the second pint of cashew ice cream into a mixing bowl. Mix the softened ice cream with a hand mixer. It should be smooth and creamy, like soft serve.
- Spread the softened cashew ice cream on top of the rhubarb flavored ice cream layer. It's okay if the two layers combine a little. Even out the top of the ice cream cake. Freeze until firm, about 1 to 2 hours.
- When ready to serve, remove side of spring form pan from ice cream cake.
- Drizzle the reserved rhubarb sauce around edge of ice cream cake, allowing it to dribble down the sides. Garnish with mixed berries.

2 Comments
I’m in the process of making this right now. My grocery store didn’t carry cashew ice cream, so I purchased coconut ice cream. I also didn’t have cashew butter, so I substituted a mix of peanut butter and dairy butter. My family does not have allergies; I was just looking for a good, cool dessert to use some rhubarb. I’m hoping this has good flavor despite all my substitutes. It would have been helpful for the recipe creator to suggest other items to use in case we couldn’t find what she listed. Thanks for the recipe!
Pingback: Rhubarb Dump Cake Recipe (Simple, Delicious & Dairy-Free!)