My very favourite Ice Cream novelty hails from California, and it’s called the IT’S-IT. I used to buy them from my So-Cal high school cafeteria. No luck finding them here in the great white north.

Picture this: a large round of ice cream sandwiched between two oatmeal cookies and encased in a thin chocolate shell. My favourite ice-cream flavour was always mint! Though, I also dug the strawberry and coffee. And I ‘d be psyched to try their expanded line of flavours, like pumpkin and matcha.

While there are several IT’S-IT copy-cat recipes out there, I think mine’s a winner. First, I really dig my oatmeal cookie recipe [and so do the kids]. Second, while I don’t make my own ice cream, I do insist on making the ice cream patty LARGER than the cookie itself: that’s how the darned thing comes out of the factory! Third, I include the option of adding salt to my gourmet chocolate shell recipe. This last part’s not exactly canon. The IT’S-IT coating is NOT salty. But if you’re going to make a bespoke chocolate covered oatmeal-cookie ice cream sandwich, you might as well take it up a notch.

Print Recipe

IT’S-IT Style Chocolate Covered Oatmeal Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches

Makes 8

Ingredients

Ice Cream

~1.8 Litres of Ice Cream any flavour. Straight flavours or those with finer chopped mix-ins are the best. We used Roasted Marshmallow and Mint with fine chips.

SSJ's Best Oatmeal Cookies [the half recipe]

Makes 20-22 You will 18-20 for the recipe
1/2 cup butter softened
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/16 tsp cloves
1/16 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups quick-cooking oats or rolled oats [but not minute oats]

Gourmet Chocolate Shell

8 oz [225 grams] semi-sweet or dark chocolate
6 tbs [100 grams] coconut oil
1-2 generous pinches Maldon flake or other sea salt [OPTIONAL]
2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Preparation Essentials

9x13x2 Glass or Metal Baking Pan
Plastic Wrap
3 inch Biscuit Cutter
Wire Racks

Instructions

Prep and Portion the Ice Cream

Allow ice cream to soften in its container on the counter for 20-30 minutes until it is soft enough to push with a spreader.
Line the tin/baking pan with plastic wrap.
Spread ice cream to 1 or 1 ¼ inch height across the baking sheet.
Freeze for 1-2 hours.
Cut 8 circlets with the 3-inch biscuit cutter.
Rewrap each circlet in plastic.
Freeze for at least 2 hours.

Make the Cookies

Preheat oven to 350°F.
In a stand mixer or large bowl beat butter on medium to high until softened.
Add brown sugar, baking soda, spices, and salt and beat until combined.
Beat in eggs and vanilla, scraping the sides of the bowl if necessary.
Beat in the flour.
Beat in the oats.
Drop dough onto parchment-lined cookie sheets by proper tablespoonfuls (not rounded) 2 to 3 inches apart.
Bake until lightly browned at edges and set in the centres, approximately 10 minutes.
[If cookies are larger than 3 inches, trim with a biscuit cutter while still warm]
Cool on cookie sheets for 2 minutes.
Transfer to a wire rack & cool completely.

Make the Chocolate Shell

Over a double-boiler or in 20 second medium-power bursts in the microwave, melt the chocolate and the oil.
Add the salt and vanilla and stir to combine.

Assemble the Sandwiches

Place 8 cookies down on wire rack.
Place a circlet og ice cream over the top so that it extends evenly over the edges of the cookie.
Place a second cookie on top of the ice cream circlet.
Pour the chocolate shell over the tops of the ice cream sandwiches.
Dunk the bases of the cookies in a bowl of the magic shell, or flip and pour again.
Return to freezer to harden completely, 15 minutes to an hour.

Notes

For best results, enjoy the assembled sandwiches the day of….
If you need to prep ahead of time, allow the sandwiches to thaw for 10-15 minutes or more so that cookies aren’t rock solid when you bite into them.

Enjoy!