Earl Grey & Citrus Shortbread Ice Cream Sandwiches

Cooking and baking with tea helps to enrich the depth and flavour of food. These ice cream sandwiches are paired with Cream of Earl Grey tea to bring out the rich and buttery taste of these shortbread cookies. The hint of brewed tea with the freshness of lemon is an elegant accompaniment to any occasional summer dinner.

Tea Pairing: Cream of Earl Grey

Yields: Approximately 12 Ice Cream Sandwiches

What you Need:

1c unsalted butter

1/2 c granulated sugar

1 tsp. fresh lemon zest

1 tsp. fresh lemon rind

3 tsp. brewed Earl Grey tea

2 1/2  c sifted all purpose flour

2 c vanilla ice cream, softened

1/2 c fresh blackberries and blueberries

2 tbsp. granulated sugar for dusting

2 sheets of parchment paper

How to Make it Happen:

1. In a large bowl, beat unsalted butter with sugar until the batter is light and fluffy. Stir in lemon zest and rind.

2. Boil a kettle to make a pot of earl grey tea. Let the tea steep for 5-6 minutes. Once the tea is steeped, add three teaspoons of brewed tea to the batter.

3. Next, pour in the flour and stir until the batter is well combined. Divide the dough into two portions and cover separately with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for two hours.

4. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.

5. Place pieces of parchment on a clean working surface. Lightly sugar the surface and roll out shortbread dough to roughly 1/2 inch thickness and use a 1 1/2 inch cookie cutter (or glass cup) to cut out the cookies. The batter should yield 22-24 cookies.  

Roll out shortbread dough to roughly 1/2 inch thickness 

6. Place cookies 1 inch apart on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until cookies are golden brown. Cool completely on a wire rack. 

Use a 1 1/2 inch cookie cutter (or glass cup) to cut out the cookies

7. In a separate bowl, fold in blackberries and blueberries into the softened ice cream and stir until they are well incorporated.

Fold in blackberries & blueberries into the softened ice cream

8. When the cookies have completely cooled, take an ice cream scooper and place two tablespoons of ice cream and berries onto each of the 12 cookies. Place the other 12 cookies on top of the ice cream to complete each ice cream sandwich. If desired, place ice cream sandwiches on a lined baking tray and freeze for up to three hours to allow the ice cream to harden before serving.