Cinnamon and Coffee Terrine with Mexican Chocolate Ganache

A few weeks ago, when we had our ladies' game night, part of the fun was a pie-judging contest.

I was so excited that my pie was part of a four-way tie for first place!

This is really a super simple ice cream pie with a fancy name.

I made a few exceptions to the recipe:

• I didn't use the cayenne pepper.
• I couldn't find any cinnamon ice cream, so I used vanilla bean ice cream mixed with one teaspoon of cinnamon.
• I made mine in a regular pie pan, rather than a loaf pan, so it would qualify as a pie. This also eliminated the tricky part of pulling the pie out of the loaf pan, detailed below.

Let me know what you think about adding in the cayenne pepper. My small group is having a Mexican night in a couple of weeks, and I'm planning to make this dessert again with the pepper!

Ganache
8 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
1 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup heavy cream

Terrine
2 cinnamon graham crackers
1 pint coffee ice cream
1 quart cinnamon ice cream

To make the ganache, combine the first four ingredients in a stainless steel bowl. In a saucepan over medium heat, bring the cream to a boil while stirring. Remove from heat and pour over the chocolate. Mix with a wooden spoon until melted and well blended. Let cool at room temperature until spreadable and cool (at least one hour). Place in the fridge if you need the ganache to cool faster.

To make the terrine, put two layers of cling wrap lengthwise in a 9x5-inch loaf pan with several inches of overhang. Then put two layers of cling wrap widthwise, allowing five inches on each side for overlap. Let coffee ice cream sit out for 5 minutes, until softened. Spread softened coffee ice cream into the pan and put back in freezer for 15 minutes.

When the ganache is well cooled, spread it on top of the coffee layer, and place back in freezer for 15 minutes (until ganache is hardened). Soften cinnamon ice cream, and spread it on top of ganache layer. Crumble the graham crackers on top, and press lightly into ice cream. Cover with overhanging cling wrap.

Freeze for several hours before serving. Can be made three days in advance. When serving, use cling wrap to lift terrine out of pan. Slice horizontally into 8 servings.

Don't miss a post. Subscribe in a reader!