“God, I hope you’re not turning into one of those reclusive cat freaks”, my older brother, Kyle, recently commented to me after I posted a picture of my cat Benny into an online photo album. This thought came back to me yesterday while vacuuming cat litter off of the floor. Then I remembered my lovestruck cooing over the kitten at Petsmart the day before. No…was I?

My fears were put to rest this morning in yoga class:

“We will begin with our three-part breath”, my instructor calmly said, “On your exhale, open your mouth to let out an ahhhh”.

I should have been relaxing, taking my mind off of job prospects and adult life. Yet I found myself merely going through the motions. Do you know why?

I was thinking about the ice cream sandwiches I am going to make today, which revealed to me that I am not a cat freak, but an obvious pastry freak!

For real.

These sandwiches have an intense chocolate flavor and the right amount of crunch to be the perfect counterpart to lusciously creamy ice cream. They’re a little time-consuming, especially if you decide to poke those ‘authentic’ ice cream sandwich cookie holes in each cookie, but pulling out a plate of these from the freezer to surprise guests makes quite an impression.

Here they are, from me to you. The obsession of my morning. Homemade ice cream sandwiches. You’re probably going to want to make them again! I ended up making vanilla ice cream to sandwich between my cookies, as a nod to the classic, but you can use any flavor you choose.

Ice Cream Sandwiches from Eating Outdoors by Country Living

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups confectioner’s sugar
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 quarts ice cream, slightly softened

Sift flour, cocoa, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside. With an electric mixer set on medium speed, beat the butter and confectioner’s sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks and vanilla to the butter mixture and beat until blended.

Reduce the mixer speed to low and slowly add the flour mixture, beating until a firm dough forms. Divide the dough in half and shape each half into a rectangle about 4 by 3 inches. Wrap in plastic and chill for 20 minutes.

Line a 13 x 9 inch baking pan with plastic wrap and spread the ice cream evenly in the pan. Cover with plastic wrap and refreeze.

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Roll one rectangle of dough to form a 1/4 inch thick 9 x 11 inch rectangle. Cut the dough into six 2.5 x 5 inch rectangles. Repeat with the remaining dough to form a total of 12 cookies.

Using the blunt end of a wooden skewer, poke holes into the cookies (5 rows with 3 holes in each row). Place the cookies about 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool in the pan 5 minutes. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack and let cool completely.

Assemble the sandwiches: Place half of the cookies face down on a clean work surface. Remove the ice cream from the baking pan and unwrap it. Using a sharp knife, cut 2.5 x 5 inch rectangles to fill the sandwiches with. Place on each of the cookies and top with the remaining halves. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and freeze until set- about 30 minutes.

Yield: 12 servings. You can pretty much make whatever sizes and shapes you want, so adjust to your liking!