Snickerdoodle Ice Cream Sandwiches – Vanilla ice cream is sandwiched between two soft cinnamon sugar cookies
Happy National Ice Cream Month! July marks the beginning of the month celebrating all things cold and sweet. I have been celebrating this for 4 years now and have featured everything from sorbet to milkshakes to floats. Just when I think I have hit a creative roadblock, new flavors and combinations inspire me again. So here’s to another 4 more years of celebrating National Ice Cream Month!
This month’s first recipe is for these Snickerdoodle Ice Cream Sandwiches. They were inspired by my husband’s favorite cookie. Since snickerdoodles are soft and chewy they make for a perfect cookie to use in an ice cream sandwich. Instead of making them into round cookies, I made them into bars and then sliced them into sandwiches are assembling them. I like the neat, sharp edges created from this method vs just using round cookies.
The resulting ice cream sandwich is incredible. The Snickerdoodle stays soft even when frozen but slowly gets softer when the ice cream starts to melt into it. It’s really a delight and I can’t wait for you to try it.
Before we get into the recipe, let’s drool over some photos, eh?
How are these ice cream sandwiches made?
Ice cream sandwiches are super simple to make. There are only a couple of things that make a great ice cream sandwich:
- Soft cookies
- Flavorful ice cream
For this recipe, we are making the cookies from scratch but using store-bought ice cream. I don’t shy away from making my own ice cream. But for this recipe, the cookies are the shining star so why spend the effort on the ice cream when I can just buy some that is just as great?
Snickerdoodle cookies
To make the cookies for these ice cream sandwiches, we’re making them into bars instead of round cookies. This makes assembly so much easier and I think the sandwiches look neater this way.
Making the cookies into bars also makes the baking process much simpler. All you have to do it make the batter, spread into a 13×9 baking pan, bake, and cool. Once they’ve cooled down, they are frozen to make them extra firm before we add on the ice cream.
Assembling the sandwiches
Once the cookies are firm, we split the large cookie layer into two halves. The ice cream is spread onto the bottom half and then topped with the other half and frozen for 6-8 hours or until the ice cream is completely firm again. This is super important because it makes cutting the sandwiches neater and cleaner.
Tips & Tricks
- Parchment paper is easier to fit into a rectangular pan when splitting the corners in half. Here’s a quick video of the process.
- Use an offset spatula to make spreading the cookie dough much easier.
- Do not overbake the cookies. If they too firm, they will be too hard to bite into when frozen. If using a dark metal pan for baking, reduce the oven temp to 325 degrees instead of the typical 350 degrees.
- Do not attempt to cut the bars into sandwiches until the ice cream has solidified. I try to wait even overnight before slicing them to make sure.
Snickerdoodle Ice Cream Sandwiches
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter salted, melted
- ¾ cup granulated white sugar divided
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 quart vanilla ice cream slightly softened
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees (325 if you are using a dark metal pan). Line 13×9 baking pan with parchment paper. Lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
- Place melted butter into a medium bowl. Add 1/2 cup of white sugar and 1/3 cup of brown sugar to bowl and whisk together until smooth and when the butter has cooled down. Add vanilla extract and egg and whisk together until smooth. Add flour and cream of tartar and fold with a spatula or wooden spoon just until combined. Do not overmix!
- Spoon batter into prepared pan and smooth into an even layer. The layer will be pretty thin so an offset spatula really help push it into all the corners.
- Mix remaining 1/4 cup of sugar and ground cinnamon in a small bowl. Sprinkle the sugar mixture over the batter so that the whole top is covered in an even layer of cinnamon sugar. Use all of it!
- Bake in preheated oven until set and edges just begin to turn brown, about 15 minutes. Make sure the center is cooked all the way by checking with a toothpick. Remove from oven and let cool completely and then freeze for 30 minutes.
- Let vanilla ice cream soften at room temperature for about 10 minutes. Remove chilled snickerdoodle layer from freezer and cut in half lengthwise to make two halves. Flip one half upside down so the cinnamon sugar layer is facing down. Top with scoops of vanilla ice cream and spread into an even layer. Top with other layer of snickerdoodle cookie, cinnamon sugar facing up. Press down gently and place back into 13×9 pan and into the freezer to chill for 6-8 hours, or until firm.
- Once ice cream has firmed to a solid/semi-solid state, it's time to cut the sandwiches. You can cut into three strips and then into 3 large sandwiches per strip or 6 small sandwiches per strip. Wrap each one in plastic wrap and store in freezer until ready to consume. S
Notes
Pin for later:
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It has been WAY too long since I’ve had a snickerdoodle! And with ice cream? Sounds like the perfect treat!
These look so good, what a fun family activity to make together!
Snickerdoodles are my favorite cookie. And you paired it with ice cream?! Genius! I gotta try these.
OMG !! Never tried these but I’m eager to try it now.. Ice cream and snickerdoodle, sounds like a match made in heaven .. Yummm
You had me at snickerdoodle! They are my absolute favorite cookies! It’s such a simple classic. Can’t wait to stuff some ice cream in the middle and try your recipe!
I am making this in the weekend. So incredible, can’t wait to have these layers.
I love snickerdoodles and I never would have thought to make this! Sounds delish!
You’ve basically taken my two favorite desserts and combined them into one. I can’t wait to try these.