Through more than 15 years of incarceration, I’ve celebrated holidays, birthdays, graduations and goodbyes — anything special. It’s important to find joy wherever you are, but especially in prison. One way to ensure a good time is through good food.
In prison I’ve had to alter, adapt and experiment with recipes, including my family’s dark chocolate wafer and whipped cream cake.
The magic is in letting it sit overnight. Of course, I do not have a refrigerator, so I put it under my bed on the cold concrete, covered, and let the magic happen.
NO-BAKE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE AND WHIPPED CREAM CAKE
Serves 4
- 1 18-ounce package chocolate chip cookies
- 7 2-ounce packets cream cheese
- 1 8-ounce bag powdered coffee creamer
- 14 sugar or sugar-substitute packets
- Optional: 1 full-size snack bag of M&M’s or nuts
Mix half the bag of creamer with all the cream cheese packets and sugar packets in a bowl with a spork. You can double up on sporks if they are the thin kind.
Add the remaining creamer and whip together until smooth and frosting-like. Line an empty thin box, such as the one Keefe oatmeal cream pies come in, with a sheet of plastic, such as a canteen bag.
One at a time, coat each side of a cookie with the frosting mixture and set it on edge in the lined box. Do this until all the cookies are stuck together in a log formation.
Spread the remaining frosting to fully cover the log. Shake cookie crumbs from the package over the log for a nutty look, or add optional candy or nuts. Close the box lid over the log and set it in a cool place overnight.
To serve, cut on an angle to show the layers.