Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches
Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches are an easy to bite straight from the freezer chocolate chip pan cookie filled with vanilla ice cream. An easy hand held dessert that can be made ahead. Gluten free option too!
After making the Rainbow Brownie Ice Cream Sandwiches, I immediately started brainstorming other types of ice cream sandwiches. The girls joined in this process, and we quickly came up with Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches. We just needed to figure out a recipe.
One of my childhood friend’s dads would make chocolate chip pan cookies in a sheet pan, so I started by looking up some pan cookie recipes. I noticed some patterns in these recipes, notably the addition of an extra egg yolk and some cornstarch to keep the pan cookie softer and more cake-like. Generally I don’t like a cake-y cookie, but because these were going to be frozen, I knew that would help make them easier to bite when taken right out of the freezer.
Love pan cookies? Try this Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake!
These are SO good! They are soft enough to bite right out of the freezer, and can be made ahead and wrapped individually for easy distribution at a party or just an evening at home. While I stuck with vanilla this time, you can use any flavor of ice cream for endless possibilities of flavor combinations!
Recipe Details
Baking the Sheet Pan Cookie
I started with my go to quick chocolate chip cookie recipe on the back of the Ghirardelli package and added in an egg yolk and cornstarch.
This is basically a classic chocolate chip cookie dough and is made the exact same way.
I used a jelly roll pan that measures approximately 11.5×17-inches. If your pan is a different size, you may want to adjust the recipe accordingly. Line the pan with parchment paper. This will be important later when you have to transfer the top layer onto the ice cream, especially because you’ll be slightly underbaking the pan cookie.
Next, spread the cookie dough over the parchment paper. Make sure not to spread it all the way to the edges because, just like a cookie, the dough will spread. If the dough is touching all the edges, it will spread upward and create a lip around the entire cookie. That will make it harder to make even ice cream sandwiches.
I recommend slightly underbaking the pan cookie. You want it to be soft because it will be eaten straight from the freezer. As you can see, the baked pan cookie has spread to the edges as it baked and is now pretty even across.
Allow the pan cookie to cool to room temperature before adding the ice cream. If you are worried the cookie will be too soft to fold over in the next step, you can freeze the cookie for 1 hour to make it more stable.
Assembling the Ice Cream Sandwiches
To assemble the ice cream sandwiches, first cut the pan cookie right down the middle. You may want to use a pan-safe nylon knife.
Next, add scoops of the ice cream on one half of the cookie. You can use any flavor of ice cream you’d like. I chose vanilla this time. You can even color the ice cream, like I did for the Rainbow Brownie Ice Cream Sandwiches.
After the ice cream is scooped, smooth it into an even layer with a silicone spatula or knife.
Now it’s time to place the top layer of the sandwich on the ice cream. This is when the parchment paper comes in handy. You can lift the parchment paper from the edge of the cookie and raise it up to fold over the cookie. This puts the bottom of the pan cookie on the top of the sandwich. You’ll need to be extra careful during this step, especially if your cookie is slightly underbaked. I had a little bit of cracking, but if you froze the cookie for 1 hour this shouldn’t happen.
You can see here how gooey and delicious the cookie is.
At this point, you’ll slip the large sandwich into the freezer and allow it to freeze for at least 1 hour, possibly longer depending on your freezer. You want the ice cream to be completely set. Once frozen, transfer the large cookie sandwich to a cutting board. Using a large, sharp knife, cut the sandwiches into rectangles. If you want really nice, clean edges, you can trim off about 1/2-inch from all sides of your large sandwich before cutting into rectangles.
You can serve them immediately or wrap them up with plastic wrap individually and store them in a freezer bag. This makes them super easy to serve – just pass out a bar to each person!
Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches
Use a measure for measure gluten free flour, such as Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1 to 1 Baking Flour, in place of all purpose flour.
Looking for More Ice Cream Desserts?
Check out these other ice cream dessert recipes:
Rainbow Brownie Ice Cream Sandwiches
Brownie Peppermint Ice Cream Cake
Dairy Queen Copycat Homemade Ice Cream Cake
Oreo Shamrock Shakes
Grasshopper Ice Cream Pie
Mermaid Ice Cream Birthday Cake
Rainbow Unicorn Ice Cream Cake {My Little Pony}
And these homemade ice creams:
French Vanilla Ice Cream
Cinnamon Ice Cream
Mint Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream
Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches
Equipment
- 12×17-inch jelly roll pan
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 cups flour (all purpose or gluten free)
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 16 tablespoons butter (2 sticks)
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 eggs + 1 egg yolk
- 2 cups chocolate chips
- 5-6 cups vanilla ice cream (softened)
Instructions
Bake the Chocolate Chip Pan Cookie:
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Butter the bottom of a 12×17-inch jelly roll pan, then line the bottom with parchment or waxed paper. Butter the sides of the pan.
- In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a standing mixer, beat the butter, sugar and brown sugar until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, then add vanilla extract. Mix on low speed until incorporated.
- With mixer on low speed, gradually add the dry ingredient mixture to the butter mixture. Stir in the chocolate chips.
- Spread the chocolate chip cookie dough batter evenly in the pan, leaving about 1 inch of space between the edge of the dough and the sides of the pan on all sides.
- Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. You want the cookie slightly underbaked.
- Cool completely.
- Cut the cookie down the center of the longer side, to make two rectangles. If cookie is very soft, you can freeze it for 1 hour to set it before assembling the sandwich.
Assemble the Ice Cream Sandwiches:
- Spread the softened ice cream evenly over one of the cookie rectangles.
- Carefully transfer the other rectangle on top by lifting up the parchment paper to make a large ice cream sandwich. Freeze for at least 3 hours.
- Transfer the large ice cream sandwich to a cutting board and cut with a large, sharp knife into smaller rectangles. For sharp, clean edges, trim off 1/2-inch from all sides of large sandwich before cutting into rectangles.
- Wrap each ice cream sandwich in plastic wrap and store in a resealable plastic gallon sized freezer bag until ready to eat.
