Vegan Strawberry Nice-Cream Sandwich

If our kids had to choose their favourite foods, biscuits and ice cream would almost certainly be at the top of that list. That's why these vegan strawberry nice-cream sandwiches are always such a hit.

This recipe is perfect for folks who can't eat eggs or dairy, and it's simple to whip up. 

For the oat cookies:

(Makes 14)

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup (75g / 2.6oz) coconut oil, melted
• 1/2 cup (125ml / 4.2 fl oz) maple syrup
• 1 tsp (5ml / 0.17 fl oz) vanilla paste
• 1 cup (125g / 4.4oz) spelt flour
• 1 cup (110g / 3.9oz) rolled oats
• 1/3 cup (25g / 0.9oz) shredded coconut
• 1/2 tsp (2.5ml / 0.08 fl oz) baking powder
• 1 tsp (5ml / 0.17 fl oz) ground cinnamon
• pinch of fine salt

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 190°C / 375°F / Gas Mark 5. Line two baking trays with baking paper.
2. In a medium-sized bowl, stir together the melted coconut oil, maple syrup and vanilla paste.
3. Add in the flour, oats, coconut, baking powder, cinnamon and salt, and stir until well combined.
4. Place the bowl in the fridge for 10 minutes to let the mixture firm up a little.
5. Using a tablespoon, scoop heaped tablespoons of mixture onto the prepared trays, leaving a little room between each cookie.
6. Bake for around 10–14 minutes, or until the cookies are golden.
7. Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool on the trays.

For the strawberry nice-cream:

(Makes 3/4 litre)

Ingredients:

• 4 frozen, ripe bananas
• 1 tsp (5ml / 0.17 fl oz) vanilla paste
• 1 cup (150g / 5.3oz) frozen strawberries
• 1/4 cup – 1/2 cup (60–125ml / 2–4 fl oz) coconut milk, or milk of your choice

Method:

1. Place the banana, vanilla paste, strawberries and 1/4 cup of the milk into a blender or food processor and blend until you have a smooth, whipped nice-cream. If the nice-cream isn’t coming together or is still looking a little lumpy, add a little more milk, a tablespoon at a time, and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula before blending again. Keep blending and adding more milk, a little at a time, until the nice-cream becomes silky smooth.

To make your vegan ice-cream sandwich:

To assemble nice-cream sandwiches, scoop the softly whipped nice-cream straight from the blender and sandwich it between two cookies. For a firmer scoop, pour the nice-cream into a container after blending and freeze it for half an hour.

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Vegan Strawberry Nice-Cream Sandwich recipe by Amber Rossouw. Photography and styling by Jacinta Moore for Lunch Lady Magazine Issue 13.