Phenomenal Phoods

Strawberries and Cream Ice Cream Sandwiches

Ingredients:

For the strawberry syrup For the no churn strawberries and cream ice cream For the vanilla bean crinkle cookies

Instructions:

For the strawberry syrup
  1. Combine strawberries, sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium low heat. Bring to a boil, stirring until the sugar dissolves, and the strawberries are soft.
  2. Remove from the heat and use an immersion blender (or transfer to a regular blender) to blend until smooth.
  3. Return the pot to the heat. Mix cornstarch with about a tablespoon of water and pour into the syrup. Bring it back to a boil for 30 seconds to a minute just to thicken the syrup. Store in a sealed container in the fridge for up to a week.
For the no churn strawberries and cream ice cream
  1. Take a 9 x 13 baking pan and line it with plastic wrap.
  2. Stir vanilla bean paste into sweetened, condensed milk.
  3. Whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form and then fold into the sweetened, condensed milk.
  4. Pour into the prepared pan, smoothing it out with a spatula. Cover tightly with plastic wrap to prevent freezer burn, and let it freeze for 2 hours.
  5. After 2 hours in the freezer, fold in the chopped strawberries, making sure they are evenly distributed. Drizzle a few tablespoons of the strawberry syrup over the top of the pan and then use a spoon or butter knife to gently swirl it through the ice cream. Cover and return to the freezer for another 4 hours.
For the vanilla bean crinkle cookies
  1. Bring the butter to room temperature by cutting it into small cubes and letting it sit out for at least 10 minutes. I usually do this first, and it's ready to go by the time my other ingredients are all measured out.
  2. Use a hand or stand mixer with the paddle attachment to cream together the butter and sugar for 5 minutes until pale and fluffy.
  3. Add the egg and vanilla bean paste, beating for about a minute until smooth.
  4. Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt, mixing just until combined. Do not overmix.
  5. Use an ice cream scoop or spoon to scoop the cookie dough into balls using about 2 tablespoons of dough for each. You should get 12 giant cookies. Place on a cookie sheet and put in the freezer to chill the dough for 20 minutes. Don't skip this step, or the butter will be too warm and will cause the cookies to spread out way too much.
  6. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Place the chilled cookies onto the prepared baking sheets, at least 2 inches apart. I did 6 per cookie sheet. Bake for 10 minutes until puffed. Open the oven and carefully tap the tray a couple of times. Return to the oven. Repeat this process ever 2 minutes until the edges are browned, 14-16 minutes total. Tapping the tray is a trick I learned from The Vanilla Bean Baking Book. It is what gives you those perfect crinkles and a flat, chewy cookie.
  7. Do not, I repeat, do not try to make ice cream sandwiches while your cookies are still warm. Let the cookies cool completely. In fact, throw them in the freezer for a bit until you're ready to assemble.
To assemble the ice cream sandwiches
  1. Use the edges of the plastic wrap to lift the ice cream out of the pan and place it on a cutting board. Use a large, circular cookie cutter (I used a 4 inch one) to cut out 6 large circles. I was not able to fit 6, perfect large circles into the rectangle of ice cream. I took the scraps from the edges after cutting out the circles and just pressed them into the inside of the cookie cutter with a spoon for the last couple that were not full circles to fill them in. It worked great and used up every scrap of the ice cream.
  2. Use a spatula (or if you're really messy like me, your hands) to transfer the ice cream discs to half of the cookies. Top with the remaining cookies. Serve with the remaining strawberry syrup poured on top or on the side for dipping.