At the end of every basketball season I have my daughter’s team over for a celebration. By now I have made a basketball-shaped cake, basketball-inspired cupcakes, and basketball-themed cookies. If this goes on much longer I will have to learn how to do ice sculpture.
But this is 8th grade, her last year at the school she’s been at since she was 4 so I may not need to tax my creative muscles in this particular genre any longer. (Pardon me while I quietly sob in the corner. Does this growing up nonsense never end? It’s very hard on mothers.)
In addition to the cookies I made a highly yummy ice cream cake that combined my two favorite flavors: mint and chocolate. This was a great and easy recipe that I found on Epicurious from Bon Appetit, December, 2003. There is absolutely no baking and if you just buy peppermint ice cream (vs. mushing peppermint candies and peppermint extract into vanilla ice cream) it practically makes itself.
So if you’ve got a special team in your life think about celebrating with this cake. They might love it as much as these wonderful girls.
Most of the team. Go Cardinals!
Cooks illustrated.