Strawberry and Thyme Ice Cream Sandwich

Ingredients for the shortbread:

• 100 g unsalted butter softened
• 40 g golden caster sugar
• 100 g plain flour
• 45 g rice flour
• pinch of salt
• 1 tbsp icing sugar

Ingredients for the filling:

• 1 x 500 ml round carton of vanilla ice cream
• 4 large strawberries, chopped into small pieces
• 4 tsp strawberry jam
• 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves

Allergens highlighted in bold

Preparation:

Line two baking trays with baking parchment or silicone mats.

Using a stand mixer, mix the butter and sugar until pale and creamy. Add the two flours and salt and mix again until just incorporated (do not overmix as it will make your cookies tough). Form the dough into a ball and place it onto a lightly floured surface. Roll out to approx. 5 mm thick. The dough is quite delicate and is likely to crumble in places. Just push it back together if it crumbles.

Using a round, 8cm diameter cookie cutter, cut 8 circles out of the dough. Dip the cookie cutter in flour first to prevent it sticking to the dough. You can re-roll the dough as necessary but try not to re-roll more than a few times as this will result in tough cookies. Place the cookies on the two prepared baking trays. Cover each of the trays with cling film and place in the fridge for at least 30 mins (up to overnight). The chilling time helps to develop the flavour of the shortbread and will ensure a ‘sharper’ shape.

When you are ready to bake, preheat the oven to CircoTherm 170C.

Take the shortbread out of the fridge and take off the cling film. Sift the icing sugar over the cookies, and cook in the oven for 8-10 minutes, until the edges start to turn slightly golden. Take out of the oven and leave to cool for 5 minutes, then remove from the tray with a palette knife and place on cooling rack to cool completely. Take the ice cream carton and place on its side. Use a sharp knife to cut the carton into 4 thick slices. Place a slice on top of each of the pieces of shortbread. Scoop a teaspoon of ice cream out of the centre of each of the ice cream discs and replace with a teaspoon of strawberry jam. Peel off the cardboard surrounding the ice cream discs and top each disc with a teaspoon of strawberry pieces and a few fresh thyme leaves. Place a shortbread cookie on top of each stack to make sandwiches. Serve immediately.

Tip 1 – You can wrap the sandwiches individually in cling film and freeze, then take out of the freezer and allow to soften for 5 minutes be#fore serving.

Tip 2 – You can top the ice cream sandwiches with a further spoonful of ice cream, a halved strawberry and a few thyme leaves for extra decoration if you wish.