Caramel Popcorn Ice-Cream Cake

Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease and line 2 x 20cm cake tins. Beat eggs, sugar and vanilla in a heatproof bowl until combined. Sit bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, making sure the bowl doesn’t touch the water. Beat for 10 minutes until pale, thick and tripled in volume. Remove bowl from heat and beat for a further 3 minutes to cool.

Sift half of the flour over egg mixture and gently fold in. Repeat with remaining flour. Drizzle over butter and fold in. Divide between cake tins. Bake for 20 minutes or until cakes spring back when gently pressed. Set aside to cool.

To make ice-cream; beat cream cheese and milk until smooth and creamy. Gradually add thickened cream and beat until mixture thickens. Combine with ice-cream, transfer to a container and freeze until firm.

To make popcorn; preheat oven to 160°C. Prepare popcorn following packet instructions. Toss popcorn with butter and sugar to coat. Transfer to a tray lined with baking paper and bake for 15 minutes or until crisp. Reserve 1/4 of the popcorn for decorating. Process remaining, in batches, until finely chopped.

To make caramel sauce; combine sugar, butter and cream in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring, for 3 minutes or until boiling. Reduce heat to low. Simmer for 2 minutes. Cool.

To assemble, slice each cake in half horizontally. Spread one layer with ice-cream and top with one third of popcorn mixture. Freeze. Repeat with two more cake layers, ice-cream and popcorn, stacking, and freezing with each addition. Finish with remaining cake layer. Spread top and side of cake with a thick coat of ice-cream. Freeze for at least 2 hours or until firm.

To serve, transfer to cake stand. Top with reserved popcorn and spoon over caramel sauce.