I have a massive sweet tooth – but I come by it honestly. My parents and sister are all big dessert eaters and we love to get together and bake. But I find that I’m definitely a person who craves a sweet treat after meals and I’m always trying to find something that hits the balance of tasty and healthy-ish.
Enter “Easy Ice-cream Sandwiches”. They’re essentially a watered-down version of an icebox cake, but I love how great the sandwiches taste and how easy they are to customize.
Ingredients:
- Tub of Cool Whip
- This can be the regular version, or the lite version. You can also choose the non-dairy coconut version.
- Box of graham crackers
- This can also be any cracker or cookie. I’ve made it with arrowroot cookies. I haven’t tried anything else because I love the taste of graham crackers so much, but I don’t doubt that you could use saltines, Oreos or chocolate chip cookies. Obviously, your cookie base will affect the number of calories and the “healthiness” of the dessert, so just keep that in mind.
- Optional Toppings/Mix-Ins:
- Chocolate Chips (any flavour)
- Peanut Butter
- Protein Powder
- Fruit
- Icing
- Custard/Whipped Cream
Directions:
1. Leave the Cool Whip on your counter for a few minutes to soften up enough that you can mix and scoop it with a spoon. This just makes it easier to spread.
2. While you’re waiting for the Cool Whip, prep the crackers on a cookie sheet or container.
3. Once your Cool Whip is easier to work with you can put it directly on the crackers or you can add protein powder. I would suggest starting with a small amount of protein powder – don’t add a plastic scoop’s worth right away – and tasting as you go. I do prefer adding unflavoured collagen but only because I don’t notice the flavour and it mixes in well.
4. Then scoop the Cool Whip over your cracker base and cover with a top cracker. I like to spread it so that I create a layer of Cool Whip. You can cut in between the crackers once the Cool Whip has hardened up.
5. Put the crackers sandwiches back into the freezer while you prep the chocolate topping. The optional chocolate topping is melted chocolate chips (which you measure with your heart) and a little bit of coconut oil, roughly 1-2 teaspoons. If you’re using the microwave, put the chocolate chips in for 30 seconds and then check and mix. If needed, return them to the microwave, but just microwave for 10-15 second intervals. You don’t want to burn your chocolate, so it is important to melt the chips slowly.
6. Take your sandwiches out of the freezer and drizzle with the chocolate.
7. Resist sneaking a bite and place back in the freezer. Wait for the chocolate and the Cool Whip to firm up (roughly an hour). Then cut and enjoy! I would also recommend that you cut all the sandwiches out and put them in a covered container, so they don’t get the “freezer” taste. They’re also even better when they’ve been frozen for a while and the crackers become a little soft. They’ll have a very similar texture to store-bough ice-cream sandwiches.
I love these and my kids love these! They’re so easy and so customizable – you can add fruit puree to the Cool Whip or cut fruit between the crackers. You could even top it with layers of whipped cream or custard to make this more of a dessert square.
Let me know if you make them and what you think!
