My friend Susan Kelleher, who owns a gelato emporium and candy shop called Seaside Sweets on Tybee Island, came up with the idea of making cookie-gelato sandwiches she called Sweetie Pies. She even named her gelato trailer Sweetie Pie. You need a sturdy but chewy cookie to withstand crumbling into the ice cream or gelato, and I had just the cookie recipe to do the trick. Think of this oatmeal-based cookie as the little black dress of desserts. You can make it with raisins—although my daughter Katie would object to that—or with chocolate chips, like I call for here. The first time I tested this recipe with Molly and Griffin, I only had butterscotch chips, and they were great. You could also use your favorite chopped-up candy bar. As for the ice cream filling—we show coffee here, but the sky’s the limit. Molly suggests that you do roll the ice-creamed edges of the finished sweetie pie in a shallow dish of sprinkles. Because sprinkles make everything better. Except maybe vodka.
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup old-fashioned oats
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. kosher salt
3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 qt. ice cream, softened
Sprinkles
1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Beat the butter and both sugars with an electric mixer until creamy. Add the egg and egg yolk and beat until combined. Beat in the vanilla.
2. Combine the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. Gradually add to the butter mixture, beating until combined. Stir in the chocolate chips. (The dough will be thick.)
3. Using a 2-tablespoon cookie scoop, scoop the dough into 24 balls and drop onto parchment paper–lined baking sheets, leaving about 1 ½ inches between the cookies.
4. Bake for 22 to 25 minutes, or until the cookies are lightly browned. Transfer to wire racks to cool.
5. Place a scoop of ice cream between two cookies and press to allow the ice cream to reach the cookie edges. Roll in your favorite sprinkles, wrap with plastic, and freeze until firm. Serve.