Cookies and Cream Cake

I know it may sound crazy, but one of my all time favorite cakes is the Cookies and Cream cake from the Publix bakery. My mom randomly brought this cake home one day a while back and my family loves it now. The icing is like Heaven in your mouth and it goes perfectly with the cake. We like to keep in in the fridge and the icing gets cold and then melts in your mouth.. It's seriously amazing.

I ran across a copy-cat recipe of this cake and I had to try it out. 

Honestly, this recipe is good, but I'm still on a search for the perfect one. 

Cookies and Cream Cake

3 cups sifted all-purpose flour

1Tbsp. baking powder

3/4 tsp salt

1 cup room temperature milk

2 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter

4 large eggs, at room temperature

4 ounces of chocolate, melted and cooled (it calls for bittersweet but I used semi-sweet)

For the icing:

4 egg whites

1 1/2 cup sugar

4 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature but cold on the inside

2 tsp vanilla 

1 sleeve of Oreos, finely choped

1.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease two 9 inch pans. In a bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, and salt. In a small bowl, mix the milk and vanilla

2. In a mixer with a paddle attachment, beat the butter at medium speed until really light and fluffy. Add the sugar and beat until combined and fluffy (about 4 minutes). Beat in the eggs one at a time, scraping down the bowl each time. Mix in the dry ingredients, alternating  in 3 batches, alternating with the milk, scraping down the bowl as needed.

3. Mix two cups of the batter with the melted chocolate. Pour the remaining batter into the two pans. Dollop the chocolate batter over the plain batter and swirl using a knife.

4. Bake in the oven for around 30 minutes, or until springy and toothpick comes out clean (I took mine out a little early so it wouldn't be dry). Let the cakes cool for 15 minutes, then take them out of the pans and put them on a cooling rack.

For the icing:

1. Lightly whisk the egg whites and sugar in a double boiler over simmering water. Whisk until the egg white mixture is hot to touch.

2. Pour hot egg whites into a bowl and whip with a wire whip on medium high, until the egg whites double in size and become stiff. In the meantime, cut up the butter into 2 inch pieces (the butter should be cold on the inside but moist on the outside).

3. On your mixer, exchange the wire whisk with the paddle attachment. Add half of the butter into the bowl and turn the mixer on and off in a jerky motion until the butter is covered completely with the meringue. Add the rest of the butter and turn the mixer on and off again until covered. Slowly increase the speed, starting at low and going until medium, increasing every 10 seconds.

4. Continue beating until the mixture looks light and fluffy. Reduce the speed to low and add the vanilla and Oreos. Then beat on medium-high for a minute.

5. Ice the cake and put a Oreo on the top for decoration.

I thought I would change it up and put my dad in the picture.