How the Cookie Crumbles

Today we sampled a dessert made from a large chocolate chip cookie drizzled with chocolate and caramel sauces then topped with chopped pecans and mini chocolate chips. While the rich, decadent, sweetness filled my mouth I began to contemplate the many uses for chocolate chip cookies. Obviously, making a large cookie and covering it in excellent flavors (like the one we sampled) is the way to go for groups of people, but on an individual basis, I think ice cream filled cookie sandwiches are the best.

It occurs to me that the same dessert would be good in an ice cream sandwich. For example, drizzle the bottom of one cookie with chocolate sauce and sprinkle with nuts. Drizzle a second cookie with caramel sauce and sprinkle with mini chips. Then add a scoop of ice cream to the first cookie, slap the other one on top, and encase the goody in plastic wrap before putting it into the freezer. Of course, the guys would prefer this with vanilla ice cream, but I think coffee would be good, too. It might taste like a caramel macchiato from Starbucks! But let's not stop there - what about some marshmallow cream, nuts, and chocolate ice cream to make a rocky road filling? What about using peanut butter cookies drizzled with chocolate and Reece's Cup ice cream? How about using dark chocolate cookies with mint ice cream (or cherry) and chocolate chips? I'm sure mini M & M's, shredded coconut, and maraschino cherries could be of use, too. The possibilities are endless.

Other variations on ice cream sandwiches are made with thin layers of cake, which can also be doctored with almost anything before adding a scoop of your favorite flavor. Personally, I think a good dose of Wilton's decorator icing (which I keep left over in the freezer) makes the whole creation taste like a birthday party for one. (Of course, a package of good Birthday Cake ice cream with ribbons of frosting can accomplish the same thing, but more is always better.)

As the bite of cookie dessert melted away, I also thought of how the last week of summer break is often the sweetest. We do one more round of goofing off together - staying up late watching bad sci fi while eating over-the-top ice cream treats - in an effort to grab every crumb of summer left to us before school (with a sensible bed time) begins again.