Homemade Ice Cream Sandwiches

It seems like summer has just been whizzing by this year. At our house, we like to cook on the grill and enjoy lazy evenings listening to the crickets. One of our family's favorite Saturday afternoon treats is ice cream sandwiches. We whip up a batch of sugar cookies (not the Christmas kind), pull out our favorite ice cream and enjoy the sunny weather.

Sugar Cookies
1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sugar, for rolling cookies

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
In large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time then beat in vanilla extract.

Sift together the dry ingredients and add to the butter and egg mixture.

Form dough into about 1 inch balls and roll in granulated sugar. Place on a cookie sheet and bake until the edges are just slightly brown, about 10 minutes.

Remove from the oven and let cool, but not too much because the sandwich part is easier if they are still a little warm.

Now for the fun. . . . .
Turn one cookie upside down and put a scoop of your favorite ice cream on top. Enlist the help of a cute kid and smash another cookie on top.
There you have it. Yummy ice cream sandwiches. If you're not eating them right away, simply wrap and freeze. We only had chocolate ice cream today, but these are really really good with creamy sherbet (like orange). Think dreamsicles. Yum!