Missing your favorite ice cream treats? Learn how to make delicious homemade gluten-free ice cream sandwiches. Who needs store bought when you can easily take vanilla ice cream and sandwich it between two chocolate cookie wafers? They're the best!
These ice cream sandwiches are made up of two soft but sturdy chocolate wafer cookies that sandwich a layer of vanilla ice cream in between.
My oldest, like me, always thought the cookie was the best part of an ice cream sandwich. In fact, when he was little, he'd pick off and eat every last bit of that precious cookie before consuming the ice cream!
I used to love picking up a box of ice cream sandwiches when I'd go to the grocery store, but since I've gone gluten-free, they've been a big no-no. I still occasionally get them for my boys, but man it's a bummer not to be able to eat them.
Enter this recipe. The great thing is, you can even make these goodies into gluten-free dairy-free ice cream sandwiches by subbing a good dairy-free ice cream.
Also, I may be getting ahead of myself here, but here's a handy tip: It's possible to cut your ice cream sandwiches with a knife, but I highly recommend buying an ice cream mold/cutter. I've listed several affordable options over on my Top 10 Ice Cream Accessories and Tools post. Scroll down to #6!
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Although this recipe can be fairly time-consuming to make, it's easy enough that anybody can make it.
- Gf ice cream sandwiches feature deliciously soft gluten-free chocolate wafer cookies with a layer of vanilla ice cream (or any flavor) sandwiched in between.
- Did I mention that this recipe is gluten-free? You won't find these in the freezer aisle.
Ingredient Notes
- Vanilla Extract – I always avoid imitation vanilla, instead opting for 100% real vanilla extract. In my opinion, real vanilla is far superior in flavor.
- Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour – I almost always use Authentic Foods Classical Blend gluten-free flour. Time and time again, this flour blend has given me the best results and gluten-free baked goods that taste no different than the original.
- Gluten-Free Unsweetened Cocoa Powder – I prefer to use Hershey's cocoa powder. I appreciate the balanced sweetness it provides compared to a darker cocoa.
- Raw Milk – Although it is possible to make this recipe with regular old whole milk, I prefer to use the raw milk we get from a local dairy. You can also sub almond milk for whole milk; I actually love the way almond milk bakes.
- Vanilla Ice Cream – For this recipe, I prefer French vanilla ice cream, but you can use whatever vanilla you like. You can even make homemade vanilla ice cream or raw milk ice cream. Or use a different flavor like homemade Butterfinger ice cream or mint cookies and cream ice cream or homemade chocolate ice cream. Just be sure to check all ingredient labels, as not all ice creams (nor ingredients) are gluten-free.
How to Make Gluten-Free Ice Cream Sandwiches From Scratch
Before getting started, pre-heat the oven to 350º F and line two jelly roll pans (16x10x1) with parchment paper.
Make the Chocolate Cookie Wafers
- Mix together the butter and sugar.
- Add the egg and vanilla to the butter mixture, mixing well.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients, including the flour, baking powder, cocoa powder, and salt.
- Alternate adding the dry ingredients and the milk into the butter mixture, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients.
- Divide the cookie dough in half and spread each half into the paper covered jelly roll pans. The dough will be thin but should cover the bottom of each pan completely.
- Bake the cookie dough at 350º F for about 10-12 minutes, switching racks halfway through. Then allow the sheets to cool for about 20 minutes.
Chill the Cookies While You Soften the Ice Cream
- Place the baking sheets in the freezer for about 20 minutes.
- Now, rock hard, 100% frozen ice cream is next to impossible to spread without tearing the cookie into pieces. That's why I recommend beating the ice cream with a mixer on low speed for a few minutes. This will quickly soften the ice cream to a spreadable form without melting it, provided you're working with cold ingredients.
Assemble the Ice Cream Sandwiches
- Remove your cookies from the freezer, and spread the ice cream over one cookie wafer sheet.
- Top with the remaining cookie wafer sheet. Then remove the parchment paper from the top layer.
- Cover the entire cookie sheet with plastic wrap or foil and freeze for at least 2-3 hours.
How to Cut Homemade Ice Cream Sandwiches
- Cut the ice cream sandwiches into rectangles, using a knife or an ice cream sandwich mold/cutter. You can also use an imprint plate, if you'd like the look of tiny holes like a store bought ice cream sandwich.
They're ready to serve, or you can store them, individually wrapped with plastic, in the freezer.
Can I Make This Recipe Dairy-Free?
It's challenging, but it can be done. I've never made this recipe dairy-free, but here are a few ideas as to how you can make dairy-free ice cream sandwiches.
You'll simply need to replace any dairy ingredient in this recipe with a non-dairy substitute.
- Instead of butter, use something like dairy-free Earth Balance sticks.
- Instead of regular old milk, try using almond milk. Although the results may vary, you can also usually get away with using soy milk, oat milk, coconut milk, or even cashew milk.
- You'll also need to use a dairy-free ice cream. If you can't find dairy-free at your grocery store, you might check out this dairy-free vanilla ice cream recipe from Joy Food Sunshine. Homemade always tastes better anyways!
Just like that, you've (hopefully) just made a delicious batch of gluten free dairy free ice cream sandwiches! Let me know how it turned out in the comments below.
Expert Tips and Recipe FAQ's
You can use whatever flavor you'd like. I might recommend trying salted caramel ice cream, peanut butter ice cream, or strawberry ice cream. Heck, you could even use Neapolitan ice cream! The sky's the limit.
The best way to keep your ice cream from melting while making this recipe is to work with cold ingredients. This is why I recommend placing your cookie wafer in the freezer for 20 minutes before spreading the ice cream. Just try to be quick, and get your ice cream sandwiches in the freezer as quickly as possible.
The only way to store them is by freezing them. Wrapped tightly with a layer of plastic wrap and then a second layer of aluminum foil, they will keep up to 3 months in the deep freeze.
More Ice Cream Recipes:
If you love these gf ice cream sandwiches, you'll love…
If you try this recipe, why not leave a star rating in the recipe card right below and/or a review in the comment section further down the page? I always appreciate your feedback. You can also follow me on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. And subscribe to my email list too!
Gluten-Free Ice Cream Sandwiches
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 cup cane sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 3/4 cups gluten-free all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 1/2 gallon vanilla ice cream
Instructions
Make the Chocolate Cookie Wafers:
- Pre-heat the oven to 350º F, and line two jelly roll pans (16x10x1) with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, mix together the butter and sugar.
- Add the egg and vanilla to the butter mixture, mixing well.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cocoa powder, and salt.
- Alternate adding the dry ingredients and the milk into the butter mixture, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients.
- Divide the cookie dough in half and spread each half into the prepared jelly roll pans. The dough will be thin but should cover the bottom of each pan completely.
- Bake the cookie dough at 350º F for about 10-12 minutes, switching racks halfway through. Then allow the sheets to cool for about 20 minutes.
Chill the Cookies While You Soften the Ice Cream:
- Place the baking sheets in the freezer for about 20 minutes.
- Now, rock hard, 100% frozen ice cream is next to impossible to spread without tearing the cookie into pieces. That's why I recommend beating the ice cream with a mixer on low speed for a few minutes. This will quickly soften the ice cream to a spreadable form without melting it, provided you're working with cold ingredients.
Assemble the Ice Cream Sandwiches:
- Remove your cookies from the freezer, and spread the ice cream over one cookie wafer sheet.
- Top with the remaining cookie wafer sheet. Then remove the parchment paper from the top layer.
- Cover the entire cookie sheet with plastic wrap or foil and freeze for at least 2-3 hours.
How to Cut Homemade Ice Cream Sandwiches:
- Cut the ice cream sandwiches into rectangles, using a knife or an ice cream sandwich mold/cutter. You can also use an imprint plate, if you'd like the look of tiny holes like a store bought ice cream sandwich.
- They're ready to serve, or you can store them, individually wrapped with plastic, in the freezer.
