Mint Ice Cream Sandwich Featuring The Girl in the Little Red Kitchen Bake Shop Signature Chocolate Chip Cookies

Mint Ice Cream Sandwich Featuring The Girl in the Little Red Kitchen Bake Shop Signature Chocolate Chip Cookies

A couple of months ago, Mrs. Stuntman came home from the supermarket with some ice cream sandwiches. At first, I couldn't understand the purchase. Why eat frozen food in the dead of winter? I might have even mocked her, suggesting that she could even store them outside overnight as it was colder there than in the freezer. Alas, a couple of nights later, I found myself reaching for one as I was watching television. As I was eating it, I was reminded of my favorite ice cream sandwich, It's-It. For the uninitiated, it's ice cream sandwiched between two oatmeal cookies, then dipped in chocolate. As I was eating the dessert, I thought to myself, I could do this better. Taking inspiration from the It's-It, I really liked the idea of using cookies in the dish instead of a chocolate wafer found in many store bought varieties which made me think of my friend Susan of The Girl in the Little Red Kitchen.

You might remember Susan from last summer when she prepared a Peach Slab Pie for my Adding Some Class with... series. If you'll remember, I noted at the time that she had successfully funded a Kickstarter campaign to open a bake shop. Well, I'm happy to announce (if you were unaware previously) that the bake shop is now open for business! The Girl in the Little Red Kitchen Bake Shop features Susan's Signature Chocolate Chip Cookies, Triple Choc-o-lot Cookies, Peanut Butter Cookies, Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwich Cookies, in addition to a Cookie Sampler Package that contains 4 each: Original Chocolate Chip, Triple Choc-olot Cookies and Peanut Butter Cookies plus a Cookie of the Month Club where she highlights cookies with seasonal flavors. Each order arrives in a beautiful gift box that contains cellophane pouches with two cookies in each pouch (or single-packed in the case of her Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwich Cookies).

After making my own purchase of Susan's cookies, I can highly recommend you do the same. In my case, I used Susan's Signature Chocolate Chip Cookies in this dish. If you have been reading this website for any length of time, you know I'm not a fan of taking short cuts, so you might be asking yourself why are you taking a short cut here? I would reply with is this a short cut? Had I baked my own, I would have used the same quality of ingredients Susan uses and prepared them with the same care which is a huge contrast to the mechanically prepared confections found at the supermarket. The mint flavored ice cream was made to appease my daughter because it's one of her favorite flavors in addition to it's visual appeal.

The Challenge

Successfully complement cookies from The Girl in the Little Red Kitchen Bake Shop.

The Source

I adapted David Lebovitz's Mint Chip Ice Cream recipe.

Ingredients

1 cup whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups heavy cream
1 pinch salt
2 cups packed fresh mint leaves
5 large egg yolks
1 to 2 drops green food coloring (optional)
1 dozen The Girl in the Little Red Kitchen Signature Chocolate Chip Cookies

Method

1. Combine the milk, sugar, remaining heavy cream, salt and mint leaves in a small saucepan and scald over medium-low heat. Once hot, shut off the heat, cover and let the mixture sit for 60 minutes to allow the mint leaves to steep and let the flavors infuse. After the hour has elapsed, strain out the mint leaves, and discard but not before pressing down on them against the strainer with a spatula to extract as much flavor as they can muster.

2. Whisk the egg yolks in a medium bowl and set aside. Rewarm the mint-infused milk, then slowly whisk in a small portion into the bowl with the egg yolks to warm the yolks. Combine the warmed yolks back into the infused milk and cook over medium-low to medium heat until the mixture reaches 170º Fahrenheit, stirring constantly until it thickens and coats the back of a spoon. Strain the infused milk and eggs into a bowl with the remaining 1 cup heavy cream and green food coloring (if using), then let it cool. Cover, then refrigerate overnight. Churn it in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

3. To serve, place one cookie on a plate, flat side up then top with a scoop of ice cream, then a second cookie, pressing down on the second cookie so the ice cream fills it's circumference.

Successful?

The mint flavor was a little strong but it still complemented the cookies well. Once again, I highly recommend you to patronize Susan's bake shop, but if you're unable to do so, please 'Like' her facebook page, add her on G+, follow her on twitter, Instagram and pinterest.