These Sugar Cookie Peppermint Ice Cream Sandwiches begin with my homemade chewy sugar cookies, are filled with sweet peppermint ice cream, and are dunked in white chocolate (or regular chocolate). Crushed peppermints complete this winter dessert perfect for the Christmas season.
Sugar cookies are a Christmas cookie staple. Whether it’s frosted cutout sugar cookies or plain ones, no chill sugar cookies or chocolate sugar cookies, the sugar cookie is probably the most made cookie around the holiday season.
I have quite a few different sugar cookie recipes on the blog (all stellar and worthy of making again and again, in case you were wondering 😉), and I’ve been dying to sandwich a few of them with ice cream (because let’s be real, sugar cookie ice cream sandwiches are ahh-mazing!).
Back in college, I had a really good friend who introduced me to peppermint ice cream and sugar cookie pizookie. It was one of his favorite Christmas traditions, and I, being both the Christmas lover and sweet lover that I am, was more than happy to partake in this particular tradition.
As much as I love all things mint, that was my first time trying peppermint ice cream and it blew my mind. Ever since, I’ve been wanting to try an ice cream sandwich version, and this year, it finally happened.
Hallelujah, because sugar cookies and peppermint ice cream = the best Christmas dessert.
What I Love About This Recipe:
There are few things in life I love more than a simple recipe. Those quick, go-to dessert recipes are pretty much gold, and they have saved me more than once when I’ve needed to whip something up somewhat quickly.
These peppermint sugar cookie ice cream sandwiches have a few steps (mainly chilling time), but they are surprisingly simple.
The soft sugar cookies are my favorite no chill dough. They bake quickly and are nice and chewy. The peppermint ice cream is store-bought (the Haagen Dazs Peppermint Bark Ice Cream is the BEST ever). Dipping them in chocolate looks fancy, but it takes just a few minutes.
I could go on and on, but let’s just cut to the chase: These Sugar Cookie Peppermint Ice Cream Sandwiches are awesome.
Ingredients:
The sugar cookies used in this recipe are based on my Chewy Sugar Cookies recipe. The ingredients are fairly similar:
- Unsalted Butter: I prefer unsalted butter in my baking because I can control the salt content better.
- Granulated Sugar
- Egg
- Baking Powder
- Baking Soda
- All Purpose Flour
- Salt
- Vanilla Extract
- Peppermint Ice Cream: Use your favorite brand. I prefer Haagen Dazs Peppermint Bark version.
- White Chocolate and Chocolate: You can use any chocolate you like, or you can even use Almond Bark (almond bark melts a little easier).
- Crushed Peppermints
Let’s Talk About How To Make These Peppermint Sugar Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches.
Cookies: First off, make the cookies.
- Cream: With a mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 1-2 minutes. Add in the egg and vanilla extract, and using the mixer, cream until combined.
- Dry Ingredients: Add in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix until combined.
- Roll: This is a no chill sugar cookie dough so you can roll them into 1 1/2” balls right away. Roll each ball in sugar, and bake for about 10 minutes.
- Cool: Let the cookies cool to room temperature before you add ice cream.
Ice Cream: Scoop ice cream onto half of the cookies and top with the remaining cookies. Cover each cookie with plastic wrap and freeze until ice cream is firm.
Chocolate: Melt chocolate until smooth. Dip each peppermint ice cream sandwich halfway into the chocolate, then set on a parchment lined baking sheet, and sprinkle with peppermints. Work quickly to avoid the ice cream melting too much. Once done, put the tray in the freezer until ice cream is firm.
How To Get Perfectly Round Ice Cream For Ice Cream Sandwiches?
There are a couple of methods you can use to scoop your peppermint ice cream onto your sugar cookies. The first method is the simple method, and the method that probably won’t get you perfectly shaped ice cream sandwiches. The second method has a couple more steps, but you get perfectly round ice cream.
Method 1:
- Using a round ice cream scoop, scoop a large dollop of ice cream on top of the cookies.
- Top each sandwich with the remaining cookies and gently squeeze the cookies together to smush the ice cream to the edges of the cookies.
- Note that with this method, you may not have perfectly round ice cream all the way around each ice cream sandwich. However, it is the simpler method.
Method 2:
- Use a measuring cup that is roughly the same size as your sugar cookies (for me, that’s a 1/2 cup measuring cup).
- Place a piece of plastic wrap in the measuring cup.
- Scoop the peppermint ice cream into the measuring cup and press it down into the cup so the ice cream reaches the sides of the cup and forms a disc shape.
- Fold the plastic wrap on top of the ice cream. Remove from the measuring cup, repeat until you have all of the ice cream rounds, and freeze until the ice cream is firm.
- Once frozen, unwrap the ice cream and place the rounds on each sugar cookie bottom. Top with remaining sugar cookies.
Let’s Talk About How To Best Store Ice Cream Sandwiches
- After I add the ice cream to each sandwich, I individually wrap each sandwich in plastic wrap and I re-freeze until I’m ready to dip in the chocolate.
- Once frozen, I dip into the melted chocolate, and I place the sandwiches on a parchment lined baking tray.
- I freeze the peppermint ice cream sandwiches again, on the tray (so make sure you use a baking tray that will fit in your freezer), until firm.
- After the chocolate has set and the ice cream is firm, I store them in an airtight storage container. They don’t stick to each other because they froze while on the baking tray.
- When you’re ready to eat, I like to let them sit out for 1-2 minutes, just to slightly soften them. They’re easier to eat that way, but you can also dig right in.
Quick and Easy Tips and Tricks To Making These Sugar Cookie Peppermint Ice Cream Sandwiches Perfectly Every Single Time.
- Freezer Space: I suggest making a little freezer room first. The ice cream can melt really quickly and make things super messy, so you want to get the sandwiches into the freezer as quickly as possible.
- Sugar Cookies: Ice cream sandwiches work the best when the cookies are really soft, so don’t over bake the cookies.
- Chocolate: You can use any chocolate you like. I opted for white chocolate and semi-sweet chocolate, but you can use almond bark (vanilla flavored or chocolate flavored). Almond bark melts very quickly, and melts very smoothly.
- Toppings: I added crushed peppermints on top, but you can use chocolate chips, sprinkles, etc. Or, you can leave them plain.
A few of my other favorite peppermint and sugar cookie recipes:
- White Chocolate Peppermint Sugar Cookies
- Maple Sugar Cookies
- Flourless Chocolate Peppermint Cakes
- Peppermint Mocha Cupcakes
- Peppermint Oreo Bark
Merry Christmas!
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar (plus 1/4 cup for rolling)
- 1 egg, large
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 6 cups peppermint ice cream (I used Haagen Dazs Peppermint Bark Ice Cream)
- 2 cups chopped chocolate or almond bark (you can use any flavor you want)
- crushed peppermints
- mini chocolate chips
- peppermint chips
- m&ms
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- With a mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 1-2 minutes.
- Add in the egg and vanilla extract and mix until well combined.
- Add in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Mix until combined.
- Roll the sugar cookies into 1” to 1 1/2” balls and roll each ball in granulated sugar.
- Place about 2” apart on the baking tray and bake for about 10 minutes, or until the cookies have risen and have just set on top.
- Allow to cool completely.
- Spread plastic wrap in a 1/2 cup circular measuring cup.
- Spoon ice cream into the measuring cup making sure to press the ice cream down to make sure it forms a disc shape.
- Fold the plastic wrap over the ice cream to cover it completely.
- Remove from the measuring cup and repeat until you have 12 discs.
- Freeze until ready to use (I suggest freezing at least 30 minutes to 1 hour, especially if the ice cream has softened).
- Alternatively, you can just scoop the ice cream directly onto the cookies (the ice cream might not reach all the way around the cookies with this method).
- Melt the almond bark or chocolate in the microwave until smooth.
- I melt in 30-second increments on 50% power, stirring the chocolate after each hit in the microwave.
- Place 12 of the cooled sugar cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Unwrap the ice cream and place on disc on each cookie. Top with remaining 12 cookies.
*If the ice cream has melted at all during this process, re-freeze for 15-30 minutes, or until the ice cream is firm.
- Dip each peppermint ice cream sandwich halfway into the melted chocolate, and place on the parchment paper.
- Sprinkle with desired toppings.
- Freeze for at least 30 minutes before serving. (I freeze directly on the tray.)
- Serve and store leftovers in an airtight container.
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