These vegan ice cream sandwiches are the perfect indulgent dessert that are also healthy and packed with superfoods. Raw and gluten free too.
Looking for an indulgent dessert that's also surprisingly good for you? You've come to the right place.
These INSANE homemade vegan ice cream sandwiches were made in honour of the incredible raw ones that used to be served by Eternal Abundance in Vancouver, BC.
Although this cute vegan cafe is still very much open, I haven't seen these treats in so long that I just had to make my own version!
Sandwiched between raw vegan chocolate cookies, you'll find dairy-free peppermint ice cream that's made from creamy cashews, coconut milk, a dash of maple syrup, peppermint oil and a little spirulina for colour.
These goodies will have you coming back for more, trust me.
HEALTHY VEGAN ICE CREAM SANDWICHES - RECIPE NOTES
Be patient - As with many raw desserts, these Mint Choc Chip Ice Cream Sandwiches do take a little more effort to prepare. Whilst essentially pretty easy to make, they do take time to come together due to the freezing and stirring needed for the ice cream.
For this reason I recommend setting aside an afternoon to make them, as you'll need to stir the ice cream in the freezer every 20 minutes or so for about 2 hours.
Indulgent treat - I'd also class this as a bit of a special occasion dessert, due to the time it takes and the heavy use of nuts (which aren't the cheapest ingredients right now).
Peppermint flavour - If you're not a mint fan, feel free to simply omit the peppermint oil and spirulina from this recipe for a regular chocolate flavour. Or you could try adding another oil, like orange or rose. Get creative!
MORE NO-BAKE VEGAN DESSERTS
Healthy Vegan Ice Cream Sandwiches (Mint Choc Chip)
Ingredients
Mint Ice Cream
- 1 cup cashews, soaked overnight and drained
- 1 400ml can coconut milk - refrigerated overnight, then just the hardened part used (the water can be poured off and reserved for smoothies, you don't need it)
- 3 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1¼ teaspoon peppermint oil
- ½ teaspoon spirulina (for colour)
Raw Cookies
- 1 cup almonds
- ⅓ cup dates (tightly packed)
- ¼ cup cacao
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- ½ teaspoon peppermint oil
- Pinch salt
To Decorate
- ¼ cup cacao nibs
Instructions
To Make the Ice Cream
- Add all ice cream ingredients to a high speed blender and blend for approximately 1 minute until the mixture is really smooth. If needed, scrape the sides of the blender down midway through.
- Pour the ice cream into a freezer-proof container, and place in the freezer for approximately 2 hours, taking it out and stirring it vigorously about every 20 minutes. (The ice cream will gradually thicken and you need to keep stirring it to stop it getting icy.)
- Store in the freezer until the raw cookies are ready.
To Make the Raw Cookies
- Add all cookie ingredients to a food processor and pulse until the mixture comes together.
- Knead it into a ball, and roll the dough out between two sheets of parchment paper using a rolling pin.
- When it is about 5mm thick, use a circular cookie cutter about 7.5cm wide to cut 14 circles.
- Very gently lay the circles on a flat baking tray or chopping board and place in the freezer for 15 minutes to firm up.
To Assemble
- Sandwich a thick layer of the ice cream between two cookies, and gently press cacao nibs into the outside of the ice cream.
- Repeat until you run out of cookies and ice cream! (Recipe usually makes about 7.)
- Store in the freezer until ready to eat. (The cookies themselves can be a little soft - like energy ball consistency - so storing them in the freezer is important as they will soften quite quickly at room temperature!)
- (Note: these will firm up the longer they're frozen and the ice cream can become a little more icy after several hours, so leave to thaw a few minutes before eating.)
Notes
If you’ve tried these vegan ice cream sandwiches, please leave a comment or tip for others below. I'd love to know how you’ve made it your own!
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Bethy Mercer
Just made these. These were absolutely delicious. The ice cream consistency was thick and creamy- perfect. I added chocolate chips to the ice cream. So amazing! The cookies turned out sticky because I think I added too many dates. They weren't very cookie like consistency but worked. I used Moringa powder for green instead and it didn't work.
Elizabeth
Hi Bethy - that's so great to hear! So glad you loved them. Yes, spirulina really is the best colouring to use for these, and the cookies can get a little sticky if too many dates are used (they can also soften up a bit too much if left out of the freezer too long, which is good to note!) Thanks so much for the lovely feedback. 🙂