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Matcha Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Sandwiches

The perfect creamy, minty, chocolate-y ice cream sandwiched between bourbon infused brownie cookies.  What more can you ask for on a hot summer's eve?! 

Course Dessert
Servings 8

Ingredients

Matcha Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

  • Makes about 1 quart
  • 1 1/2 cups (350 ml) heavy cream (at least 35%)
  • 3-4 teaspoons matcha green tea powder, cooking grade how green you want the shade will determine how much matcha you use.
  • 1 cup (235 ml) whole milk
  • 4 large egg yolks
  • 1/2 cup (3.5 ounces / 50 grams) granulated sugar
  • pinch salt
  • leaves from 1 large bunch mint 1 cup well packed
  • 5-6 dashes mint bitters
  • 1/4 teaspoon natural peppermint extract
  • 4 ounces (115 grams) bittersweet chocolate (70-85% cacao mass), chopped

Bourbon Brownie Cookies

  • 3 cups (375 grams) all-purpose flour, plus 2 tbsp
  • 2/3 cup cocoa powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon (3 grams) salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 cup (225 grams); 2 sticks butter, softened
  • 1 1/2 cups (300 grams) sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 1/2 tsp bourbon
  • 1/2 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract
  • 5-6 shakes of chocolate bitters optional but really helps

Instructions

Matcha Mint Chocolate Ice Cream

  1. In a large bowl, whisk together the heavy cream and matcha until combined (it’s ok if it’s lumpy – it will smooth out later).

  2. Place the egg yolks in a medium bowl and whisk in the sugar and salt until combined.
  3. Heat the milk in a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan until hot and steamy, swirling occasionally.
  4. Whisking constantly, slowly add the hot milk to the egg mixture.
  5. Return the pot to the stove and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a flexible heat-proof spatula, until the custard begins to “stick” to (form a film on) the bottom of the pot and/or registers 170ºF on an instant read thermometer.
  6. Immediately pour the custard into the cold matcha-y cream to stop the cooking.
  7. Cover and chill until cold, 2-4 hours or overnight.

  8. When the custard is cold, bring a small kettle with one or two cups of water to a boil.

  9. Fill a medium bowl partway with ice and cool water and place the mint leaves in a strainer. When the water comes to a boil, pour the water over the mint to wilt it, and immediately plunge the wilted leaves into the ice bath. Drain the mint and squeeze dry. I place them all in a tea towel and give it a good twist.

  10. Place the wilted and dried mint leaves in a blender and add half of the ice cream base. Blend until very smooth, gradually adding the rest of the base.

  11. Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh strainer, pressing on the solids to extract all the good stuff. Stir in the mint bitters and the peppermint extract.

  12. Chill the mixture again until very cold, 1-2 hours and up to overnight.
  13. Place a loaf pan or other vessel in the freezer to chill.
  14. When the ice cream base is cold, churn the ice cream in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
  15. While the ice cream churns, place the chocolate in a small, heatproof bowl set over a small pot of steaming (not simmering) water. Stir until just melted and let cool slightly.
  16. The chocolate should be cool but drizzle-able by the time the ice cream is done churning.

  17. Remove the loaf pan from the freezer and drizzle some of the melted chocolate over the bottom and sides.  This is going to be the fun part!

  18. Spread 1/3 of the ice cream over the chocolate, and drizzle with more chocolate.
  19. Repeat until you’ve used up all the ice cream and chocolate, then freeze until, well, frozen, a few hours.
  20. When firm, scoop and serve!

  21. Store the ice cream tightly covered. Enjoy within a month or so.

Bourbon Brownie Cookies

  1. Preheat oven at 350 degrees.
  2. Whisk dry flour, cocoa powder, salt and baking powder in bowl and set aside. Mix butter, sugar, eggs, bourbon, vanilla and chocolate bitters (if using). Gradually add flour mixture, and mix until smooth. Wrap in plastic and chill for at least one hour.
  3. Roll out cookie dough on floured counter. Cut into desired shapes, brushing extra deposits of flour off the top. (It does disappear once baked, though, so don’t overly fret if they go into the oven looking white.)

  4. For the ice cream sandwiches, I use a cutter at least 2 1/2 inches in diameter and roll the dough to 1/6 inch.  If you are wanting to use all the ice cream up for these ice cream sandwiches, you will need at least 16 cookies of this size.

  5. Bake on a parchment-lined baking sheet for 8 to 11 minutes (the former for 1/8-inch thick cookies, the latter for 1/4-inch cookies) until the edges are firm and the centres are slightly soft and puffed.
  6. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Assemble Ice Cream Cookie Sandwiches

  1. Remove the ice cream from the freezer and place scoops onto plastic wrap. Use the plastic wrap to help shape them into patties the same size as the cookies. Freeze them in the plastic wrap till set again.

  2. Take the cooled cookies and match them up into pairs based on thickness and shape.  Have them ready to accept the ice cream.  You will have to work quickly, to keep the ice cream from getting runny.

  3. Once set, place each ice cream 'patty' between two cookies, wrap in plastic and re-freeze to set again.
  4. Remove once set, roll the edges in chocolate sprinkles and serve.
  5. Of course, you can just scoop the ice cream onto the cookies, sandwich them and eat right away!! Because some of you are saying, Why do we have to wait?!

Recipe Notes

Ice Cream recipe by The Bojon Gourmet

Brownie Cookie adapted from a recipe by Smitten Kitchen

The cookie recipe will make about 60-65 cookies if you roll out the dough to 1/4 inch and use a 1 1/2 inch cutter.  You can either cut the recipe in half, or bake them all off and freeze, or even store some of the dough in the freezer till you want to bake more.