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I think I’m in the minority when I say I’m not the biggest fan of ice cream. Don’t get me wrong, I think most ice cream tastes good, but if given the choice I would always choose a chewy cookie or brownie as my “treat” over a scoop of ice cream any day. However, this recipe combines the best of both worlds– dairy-free ice cream sandwiched between two of my favorite cookies!
While most recipes I come up with are inspired by my childhood favorites, I never had ice cream cookie sandwiches like these growing up. We have a new ice cream shop here in Kansas City called Betty Rae’s, and it was their sandwiches that actually inspired me to try making my own at home. They offer a variety of flavors, ranging from classic chocolate chip cookies filled with vanilla ice cream, to double chocolate cookies filled with peanut butter ice cream, to matcha green tea cookies filled with strawberry ice cream, and they all sound amazing. But I never have the appetite to try one when we visit! (My stomach feels like it’s the size of a pea these days, though it certainly doesn’t look that way at 29 weeks pregnant…)
So, I decided to try making my own ice cream sandwiches at home this weekend, making them a bit more manageable in size, not to mention dairy-free and naturally sweetened. They are actually surprisingly easy to make, and as an added bonus, you might have some extra cookies to keep on hand if you decide to not turn the whole batch into ice cream sandwiches. I love having the extra cookies around!
As usual, I took the fastest and easiest route for making these sandwiches, using banana “ice cream” as the base. If you’re not familiar with it, banana ice cream calls for just one or two ingredients, and is ready in literally 5 minutes or less– no need for an ice cream maker, and you don’t have to wait for it to set in the freezer. You are welcome to use any other type of ice cream you like, but this is definitely the easiest! I’ve also included other dairy-free recipe options below, if you’re inclined to try something different. Feel free to mix-and-match!
Vegan Ice Cream Cookie Sandwiches
Makes up to 12 sandwiches
Ingredients:
1 batch Cashew Butter Cookies
2 to 4 frozen bananas
Water, as needed to facilitate blending
1 to 2 tablespoons nut butter (optional)
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips (optional)
Crushed cashews or other nuts, for topping (optional)
Directions:
Prepare the Cashew Butter Cookies using the directions here. The recipe should make 24 cookies, though you might want to make them a little smaller since these sandwiches can be very rich. Cool the cookies on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, then move them to a cooling rack to cool completely. You can put the cookies on a plate in the freezer to help speed up the process!
Once the cookies are cool, prepare the banana ice cream. I’ve found that 2 large bananas create enough ice cream to fill about 6 cookie sandwiches, so use that as your guide when deciding how much ice cream to make. If you want to fill all of the cookies you’ll probably need about 4 frozen bananas. I only wanted to fill half of of the cookies (so I could have leftover cookies to enjoy, too), so I used 2 frozen bananas, plus 1 tablespoon of organic peanut butter to make the ice cream extra-creamy. To prepare the ice cream, it helps if you cut the bananas into small pieces or coins so that they can break down quickly and evenly in a food processor. (I just used my hands to snap them into manageable chunks.) Place the bananas, and nut butter if using, into a small food processor or blender and add a couple tablespoons of water to help facilitate blending. Blend and scrape down the processor until the bananas have a smooth, ice-cream-like texture. (Add more water if you need to– I ended up adding a 1/4 cup total.)
To make the ice cream sandwiches, arrange 6 to 12 of the cookies bottom-side-facing-up on a large plate or baking sheet. Add a generous scoop of banana ice cream to each one, then place another cookie on top of the ice cream to create a sandwich. Place the sheet of cookies in the freezer to firm up, at least 1 hour before serving.
For an extra decadent treat, I like to dip half of the frozen cookies in melted dark chocolate and sprinkle them with crushed nuts. To melt the chocolate, simply use a double boiler (I use an oven-safe bowl over my 2-quart saucepan filled with 2 inches of water) and stir until melted. Use a spoon to pour the melted chocolate over the frozen cookies then quickly sprinkle them with crushed nuts before the chocolate hardens. Return each chocolate-coated cookie to a plate lined with parchment paper to prevent sticking. Serve frozen and enjoy!
Ingredients
- 1 batch Cashew Butter Cookies
- 2 to 4 frozen bananas
- Water , as needed to facilitate blending
- 1 to 2 tablespoons nut butter (optional)
- 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips (optional)
- Crushed cashews or other nuts , for topping (optional)
Instructions
- Prepare the Cashew Butter Cookies using the directions here. The recipe should make 24 cookies, though you might want to make them a little smaller since these sandwiches can be very rich! Cool the cookies on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, then move them to a cooling rack to cool completely. You can put the cookies on a plate in the freezer to help speed up the process!
- Once the cookies are cool, prepare the banana ice cream. I've found that 2 large bananas create enough ice cream to fill about 6 cookie sandwiches, so use that as your guide when deciding how much ice cream to make. If you want to fill all of the cookies you'll probably need about 4 frozen bananas. I only wanted to fill half of of the cookies (so I could have leftover cookies to enjoy, too), so I used 2 frozen bananas, plus 1 tablespoon of organic peanut butter to make the ice cream extra-creamy. To prepare the ice cream, it helps if you cut the bananas into small pieces or coins so that they can break down quickly and evenly in a food processor. (I just used my hands to snap them into manageable chunks.) Place the bananas, and nut butter if using, into a small food processor or blender and add a couple tablespoons of water to help facilitate blending. Blend and scrape down the processor until the bananas have a smooth, ice-cream-like texture. (Add more water if you need to-- I ended up adding a 1/4 cup total.)
- To make the ice cream sandwiches, arrange 6 to 12 of the cookies bottom-side-facing-up on a large plate or baking sheet. Add a generous scoop of banana ice cream to each one, then place another cookie on top of the ice cream to create a sandwich. Place the sheet of cookies in the freezer to firm up, at least 1 hour before serving.
- For an extra decadent treat, I like to dip half of these cookies in melted dark chocolate and sprinkle them with crushed nuts. To melt the chocolate, simply use a double boiler (I use an oven-safe bowl over my 2-quart saucepan filled with 2 inches of water) and stir until melted. Use a spoon to pour the melted chocolate over the frozen cookies then quickly sprinkle them with crushed nuts before the chocolate hardens. Return each chocolate-coated cookie to a plate lined with parchment paper to prevent sticking. Serve frozen and enjoy!
Nutrition
Per Serving: Calories: 252, Fat: 16g, Carbohydrates: 25g, Fiber: 2g, Protein: 6g
Other cookie & ice cream recipes you could use for sandwich variations include:
Cookies:
- Healthy Double Chocolate Cookies
- Healthiest Cookies Ever
- Paleo & Vegan Almond Flour Cookies
- Vegan & Gluten-free Chocolate Chip Cookies (nut-free)
- Paleo & Vegan Sugar Cookies
- Paleo & Vegan Gingerbread Cookies
- Coconut Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ice Cream:
- Chocolate Coconut Ice Cream
- Instant Peach Ice Cream
- Peanut Butter Banana Ice Cream
- Mint Chocolate Ice Cream
And if you’d prefer not to turn on your oven this summer, you should try my more traditional looking No-Bake Ice Cream Sandwiches.
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Reader Feedback: What’s your favorite summer treat?
When I make banana ice cream it has a strong banana flavor that I find unplesant even though I love fresh bananas. Add-ins do not help as the flavor overpowers. Am I doing it wrong? Also, these look like a mess to eat. Is that so?
I’m not a fan of anything that tastes too banana-y, and my previous experiments with vegan banana ice cream have been just that. But with the addition of simply about a teaspoon of both sunflower seed butter and maple syrup, this ice cream tastes perfect — and has an amazing texture! I sandwiched some between two buckwheat chocolate chip cookies (but used white chocolate chips), and I’m kind of obsessed. I made the cookies to take to work, but now that I’ve had these delectable treats two nights in a row, I’m thinking they might become dinner for the week.
I absolutely love these ice cream sandwiches! They are the perfect healthy summer treat
Huge warriors fan here. While I was watching the last finals game, I also made banana soft serve. I happened to have your cashew butter cookies in the freezer already too, so I broke them up to make cookie dough ice cream. I wish I had made sandwiches!!
I made these for the kids today, and they are delicious! I used your chocolate chip cookie recipe from your cookbook.
I bet this recipe would be awesome with your chocolate cookie recipe and peanut butter banana soft serve. It is nice to be able to offer the kids a healthier ice cream sandwich.
Hi Megan, congratulations on your pregnancy and this delicious-sounding recipe. Would it work to make the ice cream in a Vitamix? Xx
Thanks! Yes, I think the Vitamix would work fine– especially if you have the 10-speed model and can use a low setting. You might need to add a little water to help it get started!
Can you do some pregnancy posts? I love when you did it last time! Tips for a healthy pregnancy?
I plan on doing a pregnancy update in my next What I Ate post! I haven’t done ANYTHING special this time around, so it seems like I have very little to talk about pregnancy-wise… 😉
Thank you so much for the vegan recipes. I’ve been following your website for several years now, and recently eliminated all animal products. What’s so awesome about your blog is that I’m still able to use the majority of your recipes.
Anyway, my kids LOVE banana-based ice cream, and this cookie one is gonna take it to the next level!
I LOVE that you used banana ice cream for these ice cream sandwiches!! Such a healthy and delicious alternative. And also I find that I can eat more banana ice cream than I can the original… it’s a lot more refreshing and less heavy than its counterpart 🙂