Homemade Deep-Fried Ice Cream Sandwich Recipe

It might sound like a contradiction in terms, but fried ice cream is very much a thing, and it is probably more common than you might think.

Far from being a dish that can track its roots back to the country fair circuit — the same one that gave rise to indulgent comfort foods including the deep-fried Twinkie (via CNN), deep-fried cheesecake bites, and  golden funnel cake – fried ice cream could have actually appeared more than a century ago at the Chicago World's Fair in 1893. Others say it began much later, in the 1960s, as Japanese restaurants began blanketing ice cream balls with tempura batter and freezing them before blast-frying them. Fried ice cream has even made an appearance in Mexican restaurants. 

Recipe developer Jennine Bryant's version of fried ice cream isn't just ice cream — it's actually a delectable ice cream sandwich, which sees vanilla ice cream sandwiched between two thin slivers of indulgent chocolate brownie. We think the recipe is fairly foolproof — and if the thought of moving fast enough to fry the ice cream without melting it sounds intimidating, this recipe allows you to make and then serve the ice cream sandwiches without the batter around it. It's ok. We won't tell.

You may need to make an extra run to the grocery store to prep for this dessert, but we think it's worth your while. In order to make your own deep-fried ice cream sandwiches, you'll need butter, light brown sugar, large eggs, vanilla extract,  flour, cocoa powder, milk chocolate chips, vanilla ice cream, baking powder, and whole milk. Depending on how you might want to serve these delightful hot-and-cold sweet treats, you might also want to have powdered sugar or whipped cream handy so you can dress them up before they are ready to go.

To make the brownie layer, first preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, then line a 15x12-inch baking tray or a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Set it aside and make the batter by combining the melted, cooled butter with brown sugar in a mixing bowl or stand mixer, then adding 3 large eggs and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Add 3/4 cup of the flour with the cocoa powder to the mixture and gently mix until just combined. Add the chocolate chips, but be gentle and try not to overmix. Spread the batter in your prepared baking pan — you're looking for a thin layer of batter at the bottom. Bake for between 13 to 15 minutes until cooked through.

Let your brownie base cool completely and prep it for the next step by leaving it in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. When the base is sufficiently chilled, divide into halves, making sure you trim uneven edges so they are roughly the same size. It may be a good idea put the brownie back into the fridge, particularly if your kitchen or work area is warm, or it could make handling during the next step a challenge.

To get your vanilla ice cream filling ready, scoop the ice cream into a clean, chilled stand mixer and beat on low with chilled beaters for 15 to 20 seconds until it is softened and spreadable. Working fast so that it doesn't melt, spread the ice cream over half of the brownie sandwich, and then place the other half of the sandwich on top. The ice cream sandwich slab now needs to go into the freezer for at least 2 hours. After that, divide the slab into 14 servings and return to the freezer.

Just before serving your ice cream sandwiches, preheat a deep-fat fryer filled with canola oil to about 355 degrees Fahrenheit. If you don't have a deep-fat fryer, Bryant tells us you can also fill a large pot with oil, saying "I'd recommend a depth of at least 4 inches of oil to give the battered sandwiches room."

While the oil is heating up, combine the remaining 1½ cups of the flour, the baking powder, the remaining 2 eggs, and the milk to create a batter. Mix thoroughly.

To coat your ice cream sandwiches, work quickly by taking one or two ice cream sandwiches from the freezer at a time, dipping each ice cream sandwich into the batter. Make sure it is nicely covered, and then gently lower it into the deep-fat fryer and fry until it is golden brown; this should take no more than a minute.  

Adding the ice cream sandwiches to the hot oil will make it cool down a little bit, so you don't want to over fill the deep-fat fryer else the oil will not be hot enough to properly fry the batter.

Use a slotted wooden spoon to gently turn the sandwich while it is frying. Remove the fried ice cream sandwich, place it on an absorbent towel for a few seconds and then serve quickly before the ice cream melts!

You can drizzle these with chocolate or powdered sugar, or top them with whipped cream to serve. And imagine you're having a wonderful day at the county fair!