Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Sandwich

This is the ultimate dessert cum snack on a hot and sultry summer’s evening.  You really don’t need to make the biscuits or the ice cream either for that matter – Good quality, thick set shop bought ice cream and Oreo Cookies with the filling licked out works well.

You’ll need 

For the biscuits

• 125g soft unsalted butter
• 200g muscavado sugar
• 1 egg
• 225g plain flour
• 50g cocoa powder
• 3/4 tsp baking power
• 200g chocolate chips

For the ice cream

• 100g sugar
• 3 egg yolks
• 250ml full fat milk
• 250ml double cream
• 3 tsp vanilla bean paste

To make them – about 24

1. First make the ice cream by whisking up the egg yolks and sugar until pale and frothy – takes a good 15 minutes with a hand whisk. 
2. Gently heat the milk and double cream until it just starts to simmer then whisk this into the frothy egg and sugar mixture.
3. Mix it all well and then return it to the pan to heat and thicken over a very low heat. It should take about 10-15 mins.
4. Take the pan off the heat, stir in the vanilla bean extract and then set aside to cool and then when it’s room temperature, pop it in the fridge while you make your biscuits.
5. To make the biscuits, preheat the oven to 180C, grease and line two large baking trays and set them aside for later.
6. Cream the butter  and sugar together until light and fluffy.
7. Slowly add in the egg beating all the time and then stir in the flour, baking powder and cocoa powder til you have now dry ingredients left.
8. Finally stir in the chocolate chips.
9. Scoop out a rounded tablespoon full, roll into a ball place onto the baking tray.
10. Repeat this until all your mixture is used up making sure you space the balls about 3cm apart from each other.
11. Bake for about 10 minutes, take out and squish down slightly and then bake for a further 5 minutes.
12. Cool them on a wire rack.
13. While your biscuits are cooling, churn your ice cream according to your manufacturers instructions and then put it in the freezer for about 15 minutes to firm up a little.
14. Prepare a piece of cling film on your work surface spoon out some ice cream on to this making a long sausage shape about the width of your biscuits.
15. Cover the sausage with the cling film.  You can neaten it off by pressing evenly to make it as cylinder shaped as possible. Place it back in the freezer for another 15 mins.
16. Your biscuits should be really cool by now so to prepare your ice cream sandwiches, simply cut a slice of the ice cream onto a cookie which is flat side up and then place another cookie on top – flat side on the ice cream.  You can even out the edges with a knife if it gets messy.
17. Eat straight away or pop back into the freezer til you are ready.

A labour of love but so totally worth the effort!