Let me first start by apologizing for the fact that I don’t have any pictures of the ice cream sandwiches because, well, we ate them! We ate them fast. Real fast. And they were good. Real good. I’m sorry.
But I do have this:
which proves that I did infact have the cookies. So that’s something right?
So if you want to make ice cream sandwiches, this is what you’ll need to do. Make these gingersnaps. Find yourself some ice cream. (I used coffee, but I really want to try it with that yummy brown-butter ice cream!) Temper the ice cream somewhat to soften it. Place a scoop of ice cream on one cookie. Top with the other cookie. Wrap the whole-dang-thing in a little plastic wrap. Freeze for a few hours. Remove from freezer. Eat. Moan. Go back to the freezer and eat another. Yum.
Gingersnap cookies adapted from The Baker’s Dozen Cookbook
*The only thing I would do differently next time is to add a couple Tablespoons of minced crystallized/candied ginger to the dough.
- 2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom
- rounded 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 Tablespoons brewed strong coffee, cooled
- 1/3 cup unsulfured molasses
- 1 Tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 12 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
In a medium bowl, gently whisk together the flour, baking soda, ginger, cloves, allspice, white pepper, cardamom, and salt.
In a medium glass measuring cup, stir together the coffee, molasses, and fresh ginger.
In the bowl of a standing mixer, using the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. With the mixer running on low, add the flour mixture and the molasses mixture, in three alternate batches, starting with the flour mixture, and ending with the molasses mixture. Finish the last few stirs by hand.
Chill the dough thoroughly, at least 4 hours, or overnight.
Place the oven rack in the center-most position, and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper. (The original recipe states that these cookies bake best on parchment paper)
Using a 1-Tablespoon measure, scoop out rough balls of dough, and roll them into balls with the palms of your hands. Space them two-inches apart on the cookie sheets, 12 balls per sheet. Using the palm of your hand or the oiled bottom of a drinking glass, flatten the balls to 1/4-inch thick. (Anyone have a tortilla press? I bet it would work beautifully!) Bake the cookies, one sheet at a time, for about *11 minutes. The centers will remain slightly chewy. Cool on the cookie sheets for two minutes before removing to a cooling rack.
*If you are using these gingersnaps for ice cream sandwiches, bake them so that they have slightly chewy centers. If you’re baking them to be eaten as gingersnaps, bake them for two minutes longer (13 minutes).
And while we’re at it, a friend of mine from work has been munching gingersnap-wiches filled with ricotta cheese. Oh gosh, they’re good. Since learning that, I’ve also tried panir and fresh farmer’s cheese. Yum.