Healthy Vegan Ice Cream Sandwiches (Paleo)

These healthy vegan ice cream sandwiches are out of control! Chocolate chip “nice cream” sandwiched between two raw chocolate cookies, dipped in chocolate? These healthy vegan ice cream sandwiches are basically about to be your breakfast, lunch, and dinner… If you’re looking for healthy paleo ice cream sandwiches, you’ve come to the right place, my friend!

Remember the paper-wrapped ice cream sandwiches of your childhood? They accompanied every field day or ice cream party at school, letting them melt a bit before ripping off the wrapper in strategic strips. You wanted the ice cream to be just melty enough, the cookie to be just soft enough, all held together with the zigzag-edge paper.

I equate ice cream sandwiches with the best part of summer: the leisure, the indulgences, the sticky weather forcing you to reach for the ice cream over and over and over. But since I’ve outgrown those elastic waist gym shorts of my youth, I decided it was time I outgrew the ice cream sandwiches that went along with them!

These healthy vegan ice cream sandwiches are the byproduct of a mad scientist moment, piecing together inspiration from recipe after recipe, pushing how delicious it could possibly sound to me. It went something like this…

Healthy vegan ice cream sandwiches? Yas. On it. Doing it rn.

Wait, healthy vegan ice cream sandwiches…. with chocolate chip ice cream? Ohhhh girl, you stop, you stop right now. No, don’t stop, make that shit right away.

SHOULD I DIP IT IN CHOCOLATE WAIT WHY AM I ASKING OF COURSE I SHOULD DIP IT IN CHOCOLATE MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAH

…or so an internal text message conversation would have gone. With myself, of course. With myself.

But the insanity? Worth it. These treats come together quickly using a food processor, relying on almost entirely healthy ingredients: dates, cacao or cocoa powder, bananas, almond flour, coconut oil, and a few others. What’s that you say? Health food?

I couldn’t have said it better myself.

Truly, though, I’ve been noshing on these little chocolate-dipped cubes of deliciousness for over a week now, and I can’t get over how the chocolate chip banana nice cream melts perfectly, just like the kitschy snack we craved as kids. The chocolate cookie is chewy but tender, and the chocolate shell is crunchy but so rich.

In short? They’re kind of perfect for warm weather, especially if you’re trying to rev up your summer bliss: indulging in things that make you feel good, not just things that taste good. They’re versatile, too: fill them with pretty much any nice cream recipe you’ve got, and you’re set! You could also dip the entire damn thing in chocolate, with little-to-no judgment from me. Or dip none of it in chocolate, with a lot of judgment from me.

Hey… if someone sanctions chocolate-dipping, you always dip. You heard me?! OK, now run along and make these.

To make these healthy vegan ice cream sandwiches, I used…

5 from 2 votes

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Healthy Vegan Ice Cream Sandwiches

These healthy vegan ice cream sandwiches are out of control! Chocolate chip "nice cream" sandwiched between two raw chocolate cookies, dipped in chocolate? These healthy vegan ice cream sandwiches are basically about to be your breakfast, lunch, and dinner... If you're looking for healthy paleo ice cream sandwiches, you've come to the right place, my friend!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 2 hours 45 minutes

Total Time 3 hours

Servings 8 servings

Ingredients

Cookie:

• 1 cup dates , pitted. Preferably Medjool
• 3/4 cup coconut flour
• 1/2 cup almond flour
• 1/4 cup dairy-free chocolate chips , like Enjoy Life, melted
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• Pinch salt
• 1 1/2+ tablespoons water , depending on how wet or dry your dates are

Chocolate Chip Nice Cream:

• 3 medium bananas , sliced and frozen
• 1/2 cup coconut cream , from a can
• 1-2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Chocolate Shell for Dipping:

• 1 cup dairy-free chocolate chips , like Enjoy Life
• 1/4 cup refined coconut oil
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Equipment Needed

• food processor
• parchment paper
• loaf pan
• baking sheet

Instructions

Chocolate Cookies

1. In the bowl of a food processor, add dates. Process until dates are smooth - they will form a ball. Add almond and coconut flours and process until mixture is uniform. Then add melted chocolate chips, cocoa powder, vanilla extract, and pinch of salt and process until well incorporated and uniform. Add about 1 1/2 tablespoons of water to moisten the mixture, if necessary; mixture should be moist and crumbly, resembling potting soil. You might need to add a bit less water or a bit more, all depending on how moist your dates are to start with.

2. When mixture is moist but still crumbly, turn out from bowl of food processor and divide into two even portions: about 250g (or about 1 cup) per portion. Press one half into bottom of parchment-lined loaf pan and freeze for 15 minutes. Keep other half of cookie mixture at room temperature.

Chocolate Chip Nice Cream

1. Place frozen banana slices, coconut cream, and maple syrup in clean bowl of food processor and process until very, very smooth (a high-speed blender also works). Scrape out of bowl or blender and stir in chocolate chips. Spoon on top of chilled cookie layer (in loaf pan) and return to freezer.

2. Freeze for 2 hours, stirring every half hour or so, to prevent ice forming.

3. Ice Cream Sandwiches

4. Once nice cream is totally frozen, press the remaining half of cookie mixture on top of frozen nice cream layer. Return to freezer and freeze until solid, about 30 minutes to an hour. 

Chocolate Shell for Dipping

1. In a medium microwave-safe bowl, combine chocolate chips, coconut oil, and vanilla extract. Microwave one minute, then stir very well. Continue microwaving in 30-second bursts, stirring very well in between bursts, until totally melted and smooth. Alternately, melt the chocolate shell ingredients over a simmering double boiler.

2. Pour melted chocolate mixture into a medium bowl that's not too wide, allowing the mixture to come up at least halfway. 

3. Once ice cream sandwiches are frozen, lift out using the parchment overhanging the sides of your loaf pan. Cut into about 8 equal cubes. Holding on corner, dip ice cream sandwich cubes into melted chocolate mixture, letting excess drip off. Place on parchment-lined baking sheet and repeat with remaining cubes. Once all cubes are dipped, return baking sheet to freezer to harden for about 10 minutes. 

Recipe Notes

These keep for quite a while in an airtight container in the freezer!

To make these raw vegan, simply substitute raw chocolate for the standard chocolate chips. You can make your own or order something like this.