10 Reasons an Ice Cream Sandwich Is Truly the Greatest Summer Treat (And Which Ones to Buy)
Today is National Ice Cream Sandwich Day! I am a huge fan of all kinds of ice cream. I’m not a snob at all, I’ll eat soft-serve from a truck as fast as I’ll eat artisanal gelato. But when I have young kids along on an ice-cream run, I know I’m pretty much looking at a clothing change for them and a lot of wiping if not a bath when we get home. Witness my niece enjoying a sundae stop with me a few years ago:
If you are an aunt, you can not hide an ice-cream run from your niece’s parents. Which is why I now sing the praises of what I think is the best form of ice cream: the ice cream sandwich. There are low versions like the DQ Sandwich, which is two generic chocolate cookies with vanilla soft-serve in between. But there are also high-end ice cream sandwiches, like the Jacques Torres Chocolate version. (Mostly an excuse to eat two very large cookies.)
Is it ridiculous to write a list of reasons to love an ice-cream sandwich? Yes, but here I go:
They’re single-serving.
This helps when you’re doling out treats to kids but also helps when you need to slow yourself down. I’ll eat an entire pint of Ben and Jerry’s…or one Chipwich.
Buy: Nestle Tollhouse Ice Cream Sandwich, $10.79 for seven at Amazon
They’re a million times yummier than a popsicle.
I know popsicles are lower-calorie and homemade ones might be made with fruit juice but come on, an ice cream sandwich is the bigger treat.
The nostalgia factor is high.
In the 80s I think you could get an ice-cream sandwich in my school cafeteria for a quarter, so when Mom gave me that extra coin and I could get one, that was a thrill.
Good dairy-free versions abound.
My favorite are Tofutti Cuties, which are plant-based and perfectly sized for little kids. These were our go-to summer dessert for years! So Delicious is also good (and cheap), made with coconut milk.
Buy: So Delicious Dairy Free Dessert Sandwich, $6.29 for eight at Amazon
There are also organic versions.
They’re for your picky friends who want their kids to eat “healthy” treats on a playdate at your house. I love the Alden’s Organic because the ice cream is so excellent.
Buy: Alden’s Organic Old School Vanilla, $7.99 for six at Amazon
You can make them yourself.
I am not super into cooking with kids but I am totally down with having them spoon ice cream onto a homemade, or store-bought, cookie. It’s a low-lift edible craft project. If you want a good vanilla ice cream to use, we recently tested 11 vanilla ice creams and have opinions on them.
Roll the sides in sprinkles or chocolate chips and it’s a party.
And you can serve ice cream sandwiches at a kid party and have it be a zillion times easier than cutting and serving an ice-cream cake.
You can also get very gourmet.
The Nightingale brand is so good, and it’s sold in grocery stores. They get sophisticated, like with their chocolate French roast flavor. I usually have a single one of these hidden somewhere in the freezer, just for me.
Buy: Nightingale’s The Everything Box, $85 for ten at the brand’s site
People don’t generally horn in on your ice cream sandwich.
I don’t know when it became acceptable to “taste” someone else’s ice cream in a cone but it’s gross. If you’re clutching an ice cream sandwich in your hands, however, people generally leave you alone.
An ice cream sandwich is all-American.
It was invented here (in Pittsburgh or New York City, depending on which historical account you believe was truly first) and we have a National Ice Cream Sandwich Day, August 2. Americans invented the ice cream cone, then we corrected ourselves with the ice cream sandwich.