
Another great find from Our Best Bites: pumpkin spice ice cream sandwiches. Find the recipe right here.
Cookies
Follow instructions for Cake Mix cookies, using a "Spice Cake" flavored mix. Use a cookie scoop so you make sure to get uniform cookies. Before cooking, use the bottom of a glass sprayed with cooking spray to flatten the cookies (they'll be better frozen if you flatten them). Under cook them. This is important! You want them very soft, otherwise they'll get rock hard in the freezer. Cold crunchy cookies are not good. Frozen, soft, doughy cookies? Good.
Easy Pumpkin Spice Ice Cream (no-cook!)
2 C Heavy Cream
1 C Whole Milk
1 C canned pumpkin
2 t vanilla extract
3/4 C Brown Sugar
1 t cinnamon
1/8 t ground ginger
1/8 t nutmeg
1. Make sure all liquid ingredients are very cold.
2. Place brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg in a mixing bowl. Stir with a whisk to combine. (Doing this helps the spices to distribute better in the mixture). Add cream, milk, pumpkin, and vanilla. Stir with a whisk until the brown sugar is dissolved.
If you have time, chill the mixture for a few hours in the fridge before putting in your ice cream maker. If you don't have time, make it right now. Process according to the manufacturers instructions. When finished, transfer to an airtight container and place in freezer to firm up.
The perfect ice cream sandwich needs to have the perfect balance of the perfect consistency of both the cookie and the ice cream.
Making these ahead takes a little more effort, but the extra steps help with a great finished product.
1. Make your cookies. The most important step is to under cook the cookies. More undercooked than you think you want them. Even if they're "doughy" they'll be a great consistency when frozen. Cook them so they're just done around the edges.
2. Let them cool completely and then pop them in the freezer for a bit to help them firm up. This way, they won't fall apart when you're smashing your sandwiches together.
3. Make your ice cream and place it in the freezer to harden. Don't let it freeze all the way, just a couple of hours or until it's a good scooping consistency, but still soft enough to smash. And if you do end up freezing your ice cream all the way, that's really okay too. Just let it sit at room temp until it's soft enough to scoop.
4. Take your cookies and place a spoonful of jarred caramel sauce on each cookie. Don't spread it around. It will spread on its own when you smash the cookie together.
5. Use a cookie scooper to get nice, even sized ice cream scoops. Place another cookie on top (you can caramel both sides, or just one- up to you.)
6. Place on a plate/cookie sheet/whatever in a single layer and place in the freezer immediately. If you're making a bunch of sandwiches, put them in the freezer as you go so they don't melt on your counter! Wait until they harden completely (overnight) before putting them in an air tight container or Ziploc bag.
When you want to eat them, just let them sit at room temp for about 5 minutes to let them soften a bit and they'll be perfect!
{Photo and recipe from Our Best Bites.}



