Mint chocolate chip ice cream sandwiches

Another month goes by, and I have myself another kitchen toy! This time, it's an ice cream machine. So far, I've already made a lemon-basil sorbet, a chai ice cream, and a Nutter Butter cookies 'n cream ice cream. By peak ice cream season, I should have a good base recipe down (and a fridge filled to the brim with ice cream).

Today's attempt is one of my favorite flavors of all time: mint chocolate chip. Mint and chocolate are the perfect combination - sweet and refreshing, all in one bite.

To step it up even more, I decided to make them into ice cream sandwiches. The "bread" of the sandwich are dark chocolate chip cookies from my favorite cookie recipe. With the mint ice cream sandwiched in between them, it's eating a giant creamy frozen version of a Thin Mint cookie!

I baked my cookies the day before and froze them overnight to make them stiff enough for the assembly process. After sandwiching the ice cream, I wrapped them individually in tin foil and put them back into the freezer. Before serving, I thawed them out a little bit so people can more easily bite into them, but they were still a little hard.

Next time when I make these, I think I'll keep the cookies and ice cream separate until right before serving, so the result is a nice soft cookie sandwich that is a little easier to eat. 

Still, these turned out better than expected! Plus I have leftover mint ice cream to enjoy for myself. Here's to trying even more ice cream flavors and getting creative with it.

Mint Ice Cream Sandwiches (makes one dozen sandwiches)
(Ice cream recipe from AllRecipes)

• One batch of dark chocolate cookies (here's the recipe I used)
• 2 cups of whole milk
• 2 cups of heavy cream
• 200 g (1 cup) of white sugar
• ½ tsp of salt
• 1 tsp of vanilla extract
• 1 tsp of peppermint extract
• Green food coloring (optional)
• 1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate shavings

1. Make sure your ice cream maker is ready according to manufacturing instructions. 
2. In a mixer on low speed, combine the milk, cream, sugar, salt, and extracts together until sugar is dissolved. Tint with green food coloring, if desired. 
3. Pour into ice cream maker and churn/freeze according to its instructions. I churned mine for 20 minutes, added the chocolate, and then churned for another 20 minutes. 
4. Transfer ice cream into another container and store in freezer for 1-2 hours. 
5. Scoop ice cream (about 2 tablespoons) onto flat side of one cookie. Place another cookie on top and press down to form sandwich. 
6. Serve immediately. For storage, wrap in tin foil and place in freeze. Thaw slightly before serving.