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Peanut Butter and Jelly Ice Cream Sandwiches

Peanut butter jelly ice cream sandwich cookies are layered with jam-swirled vanilla ice cream and frozen into a hand-held nostalgic treat. Thick peanut butter cookie rounds sandwich strawberry or grape jam swirled through softened vanilla ice cream, then get rolled in crushed peanuts for extra crunch.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
freezing 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 32 minutes
Servings: 10 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 520
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Peanut butter cookies
  • 1.75 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 0.25 tsp salt
  • 2 lb unsalted butter softened, as listed (2 sticks)
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup brown sugar packed
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup creamy peanut butter
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
Ice cream filling and assembly
  • 0.5 gallon vanilla ice cream softened
  • 0.5 cup strawberry or grape jam
  • 1 crushed salted peanuts for rolling edges

Equipment

  • 1 sheet pan

Method
 

Make the peanut butter cookie rounds
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F, then whisk all-purpose flour, baking soda, and salt together in a bowl until evenly combined. This sets up a uniform dough base.
  2. In a mixing bowl, beat unsalted butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and creamy peanut butter until fluffy and lighter in color. Add eggs and vanilla extract and beat again until smooth.
  3. Stir the flour mixture into the peanut butter mixture just until no dry streaks remain. Keep the dough cohesive for thick rounds.
  4. Scoop dough into large rounds onto a sheet pan and press a crosshatch on top with a fork. Bake for 10–12 minutes, then cool completely before assembling.
Swirl jam into the vanilla ice cream and sandwich
  1. Spoon vanilla ice cream into a bowl and swirl in strawberry or grape jam until you see visible pink or purple ribboned streaks. Avoid overmixing so the jam stays swirled.
  2. Sandwich the jam-swirled vanilla ice cream between two cooled peanut butter cookies, pressing gently to form an even edge. Keep the filling from squeezing out.
  3. Roll the sandwich edges in crushed salted peanuts to coat the sides. The peanut layer should adhere to the softened ice cream.
  4. Freeze the sandwiches for at least 1 hour until firm enough to slice or hold without melting. Serve straight from the freezer for clean edges.

Notes

Pro tip: fully cool the cookies before assembling so the filling doesn’t melt or leak. Store frozen sandwiches in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks (best quality). Freezing is yes—freeze solid, then keep wrapped to prevent freezer burn. Dietary swap: use dairy-free vanilla ice cream and dairy-free butter (cookies) to make a non-dairy version with a similar texture.