Can I share a secret? Valentine's Day is probably the worst time of the year to eat out as a couple. Prices are hiked up, people are squeezed in, there's an atmosphere of enforced romance, the staff really don't want to be there. The ideal solution could be a special meal at home. However if you go for that option you run the risk of spending more time slaving over a hot stove that gazing into each others eyes across the table. Time to harness the #PowerOfFrozen from Iceland Foods. Their range of frozen produce is tasty, convenient and absolutely perfect for when you want to enjoy quality food whilst spending time with someone special and not be stuck in the kitchen. With decadent desserts in mind I popped along to my local Iceland store and picked up a fantastic haul from their Luxury desert range. All were effortlessly easy to prepare with defrosting times ranging from 10 minutes to 1-1/2 hours. With a few accessories you can pimp and preen their presentation to perfection.
French Crème Brûlée
2 individual terracotta pots filled with a Madagascan vanilla custard base with caramel pieces included to create a crunchy glazed topping.
These cook from frozen under the grill in only 4-5 minutes. Deliciously decadent and reusable terracotta pots to boot. Be sure to let them stand for a further 5 minutes so the top crisps up nicely.
Raspberry & Prosecco Semifreddo
A creamy raspberry and Prosecco Italian style dessert made with marscapone cheese, topped with a raspberry compote and Heritage raspberry crumb.
This only needs 10-15 minutes to defrost. Pure indulgence and simply must be served accompanied by a glass of Prosecco for the full effect.
2 Pot Au Chocolat
Creamy dark chocolate dessert made with real Belgian chocolate served in individual terracotta pots.
2 Exotic Mousse with Coconut
A thin sponge layer topped with passion fruit and mango mousse with mango pieces, coated in mango icing and decorated with desiccated coconut.
2 Chocolate & Hazelnut Marquise
A layered desert on a crunch hazelnut and milk chocolate base with chocolate flavoued sauce, chocolate flavour brownie and dark chocolate mousse. Decorated with dark chocolate velvet dusting.
Why have one desert when you can create your own sharing platter of three? The exotic tropical mouse makes a wonderfully refreshing contrast to the indulgent dark chocolate.
Very Berry Individual Cheesecakes
2 individual baked vanilla cheesecakes, topped with a sweet berry sauce, raspberries and wild blackberries.
These creamy fruity cheesecakes and their Westcountry Salted Fudge counterparts make the perfect end to a special Valentine meal.
If you'd like to go a step further and make your own desert, you can head to the freezers at Iceland and combine ready to bake cookie dough with luxury ice cream to make Ice Cream Cookiewiches. These can be made in advance and you can mix and match the flavours of cookies and ice cream to suit. The 100's and 1000's are optional and could be substituted with chopped nuts, grated chocolate or popping candy. My kids were the taste testers for this creation and they absolutely loved them! Cookiewiches (or Sandookies??!!) are the perfect sweet treat to share with any loved one on any day of the year. We should really celebrate love all year round for everyone special in our lives.
These creamy fruity cheesecakes and their Westcountry Salted Fudge counterparts make the perfect end to a special Valentine meal.
If you'd like to go a step further and make your own desert, you can head to the freezers at Iceland and combine ready to bake cookie dough with luxury ice cream to make Ice Cream Cookiewiches. These can be made in advance and you can mix and match the flavours of cookies and ice cream to suit. The 100's and 1000's are optional and could be substituted with chopped nuts, grated chocolate or popping candy. My kids were the taste testers for this creation and they absolutely loved them! Cookiewiches (or Sandookies??!!) are the perfect sweet treat to share with any loved one on any day of the year. We should really celebrate love all year round for everyone special in our lives.
Ice Cream Cookiewiches ♥ Ice Cream and Cookie Sandwiches
Makes 3
1 Box Millie's at Home Ready to Bake Triple Choc Cookie Dough
Magnum Tub White Ice Cream
Hundreds & Thousands Sprinkles
Bake the cookies from frozen according to the pack instructions and allow to cool completely.
Remove ice cream from the freezer and stand at room temperature for 10 minutes.
Squeeze the pack and crack the thick Magnum white chocolate shell.
Spread a generous layer of the ice cream on the underside of 3 of the cookies and sandwich together with the remaining 3.
Tip some hundreds and thousands sprinkles into a small shallow bowl and roll around the edges of your cookiewiches.
Place the cookiewiches in a freezer proof container and return to the freezer for at least an hour before serving.
Let stand at room temperature for 5 minutes before serving.
For further Valentine's recipes utilising the #PowerOfFrozen take a look at these delectable deserts from my blogging colleagues
Recipes From A Pantry - Lime, Mango & Pineapple Loaf Cake
Little Sunny Kitchen - Valentine's Day Deserts with #PowerOfFrozen
The Hedgecombers - Wintry Summer Pudding
♥ Please Pin me for later...
Linking up to CookBlogShare
Disclosure: This is a commissioned recipe for Iceland Foods. As always, all views expressed are my own.
Thank you for supporting the brands who make it possible for me to continue to share my Edible Scottish Adventures with you. I’m super choosy and promise to bring you only the cream of the crop.
Oh. My. Gods. Did you buy the entire Iceland (store) Claire? And why wasn't I invited to help you get through them all??!
ReplyDeleteYou got an amazing haul there, I'm off shopping today & shall grab a pack of those salted fudge cheesecakes for my Mum <3
Have an AMAZING trip to Iceland (country), I'm only a little bit jealous!
Mwah!
Jane x
No I didn't buy the entire store but I did get some strange looks at the checkout with my haul!
DeleteI have a feeling I may fall in love with another Iceland this Valentines Day.
Everything here looks fantastic! I haven't given a thought to Valentines Day yet - oops!
ReplyDeleteDon't worry, It usually catches me unawares too! There's still time.
DeleteSo many wonderful treats for Valentine's Day! They all look lovely and pretty.
ReplyDeleteThanks Catherine! I little extra effort to the presentation makes a world of difference.
DeleteI don't want to wait until Valentine's Day - I want those tasty cookie sandwiches right now! Ha!
ReplyDeleteThe recipe makes three so you could try one out to make sure its OK and save the other two for the big day #winwin
DeleteYum! Such a wonderful, easy option for Valentine's Day! I love everything here, especially that semifreddo.
ReplyDeleteYup super easy but shows that you care. The semifreddo is also awesome - you really taste the Prosecco.
Deletelove the short cut cookie and ice cream combo. Looks homemade we will never tell.
ReplyDeleteThe Millie's cookie dough is SO good and really does taste and look homemade. Lets keep it a secret between us!
DeleteNow I'm really in the mood for Valentine's Day! The ice cream sandwiches look so yummy. (Love your pretty heart napkins, BTW.)
ReplyDeleteNapkins are from the pound store! Combined with the #PowerOfFrozen shows you don't have to spend a fortune for a romantic night in.
DeleteOh wow, all of this looks super delicious! I have not visited my local Iceland for ages now, didn't realise they have such a vast range of desserts!
ReplyDeleteI would happily eat them all by myself :)
Seriously you need to go to Iceland (the country and shop LOL) they have seriously upped their game of late. I promise that you will be surprised - in a good way.
DeleteOooh what a fab selection of desserts! Totally agree about Valentines Day being a rubbish day to eat out in restaurants - the bit I really can't stand is the cliched menus (well that and the terrible atmosphere). Hubby and I always have a nice meal in on Valentine's Day itself and go out for a meal on a different day instead. Thanks for linking up to #CookBlogShare :-) Eb x
ReplyDeleteYup! All that so called 'aphrodisiac' food. Much better to enjoy a meal at home and celebrate your love with a meal out on one of the other 364 days of the year.
DeleteThese desserts look fantastic! I definitely agree that Valentine's Day is the worst day to eat out as a couple. We normally just have a nice meal at home after the children have gone to bed.
ReplyDeleteI can assure you that they are. It was a tough job testing them all out but I battled on through!
DeleteThose salted fudge cheesecakes sound amazing.
ReplyDeleteLove the idea of the ice cream cookie sandwiches, especially with the sprinkles.
Anything sweet and salted is good in my book. I initially added the sprinkles just for looks but they add a fantastic additional texture to the cookiewiches.
DeleteI really adore the range of Iceland Food Desserts. These have seen me throught quiet a lot of supper parties.
ReplyDeleteSo handy to always keep a stash of them in the freezer and they really don't take long to defrost so can always save the day.
DeleteYummy! These look so good! I love that the cookies can be kept in the freezer for when needed. Thank you for sharing with #CookBlogShare x
ReplyDeleteMy Freezer is my absolute kitchen essential (although mine is in the garage!) don't think I could cook/eat without it!
DeleteI love Iceland's frozen desserts, they are so easy to defrost and the quality is excellent. The cheesecakes are my favourite, they're so creamy and rich.
ReplyDeleteI was really impressed with how they came out looking pretty much exactly as they did on the packaging.
DeleteSo many great frozen desserts! I love your ice cream sandwiches - must make them soon!
ReplyDeleteThe Ice Cream Sandwiches will most definitely be made soon again here - way too good to save just for Valentine's Day.
DeleteWow they look amazing, my mouth is seriously watering now. "Valentine's Day is probably the worst time of the year to eat out as a couple" - I hear you, it's just not worth the hassle. Luckily for me my fiancee ia always happy for me to cook instead! #CookBlogShare
ReplyDeleteDefinitely a better idea to cook up something special at home and eat out together on one of the other 364 days of the year.
DeleteThis is a great idea! What a delicious pudding to whip out of the freezer.
ReplyDeletePerfect for any time of the year, not just 14th February.
Delete