Hope's Homestead: Homemade Chocolate Ice Cream sandwich cookies

What makes you happy? For me, chocolate is right up there. Up there with eating chocolate, is making something chocolatey for someone I love. So on the heels of expanding my happiness quotient, I decided to share my recipe for Ice Cream Sandwich Cookies, CHOCOLATE, ice cream sandwich cookies. Just for you. Expanding happiness everywhere. I hope you enjoy them as much as my family did.

Will with the last bite of his ice cream sandwich

When I was at the grocery store recently I "almost" picked up a box of 4 ice cream sandwich cookies for my kids, a few of my kids. The cost was around $5.00 for this box, so to feed my family it would have cost me at least $10.00 for 8 cookies. A few of us however would be looking on longingly. I made double that amount for half the cost. It was healthier, PLUS, no packaging required.

First you need to make a batch of our
Country Fair Cookies

Ingredients

11/2 cups of butter
2 cups of sugar (your choice on how you sweeten it)
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla...or other extract flavouring of your choice
2 cups of flour
11/2 cups of cocoa mix
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp of salt
1 cup of adders of your choice...we use more chocolate..a cup of chocolate chips.

Directions:

In a large bowl beat 11/2 cups of butter until whipped. Gradually add 2 cups of sugar. Mix well.

Add two eggs, one at a time and beat until well mixed.

Add 2 tsp of vanilla or flavouring of your choice

Now add the dry ingredients together as well as 1 cup of chocolate chips, nuts or whatever you want in your cookies at this time.

This mixture takes awhile to come together so mix well, until you can make balls of dough.

Place one inch balls on a greased cookie sheet and press down....I also make a few larger balls for the bigger kids.

Before I bake the cookies I shake some coloured sprinkles on a few of the cookies.

(This cookie sheet has made thousands upon thousands of cookies...it doesn't look great but it's sacred in my kitchen)

Bake at 350 F for 10 minutes. When you bring them out of the oven, let them sit for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet before lifting them off so they set up. Then let them cool fully on racks. I put them into the freezer before I start spreading ice cream between them.

Now the best part of making these ice cream sandwich cookies is next. Decide what kind of ice cream you want to put between the cookies...the choice is ENDLESS. Personally, I like old fashion vanilla ice cream between this chocolate cookie.

Our oldest son likes to make ice cream from scratch for the kids at the Science center where he works in the summer....they think he is awesome.

Here's how to make homemade ice cream

Now take the ice cream and with a spoon and butter knife spread the ice cream on one half, then put the other cookie on the other side. Press gently. If you push too hard, you will break the cookies, (and oh gee, you will have to eat that one) but it helps if you have frozen the cookies slightly before you work with them.

You can eat them right away but they taste even better when you have allowed them to set up in the freezer and you can pull them out the next time you want to spread some happiness.

TA- DA!