Mini Thin Mint Ice Cream Sandwiches

One crucial aspect of food photography is that it must be done in natural light. There are a few times when the light is best for this, depending on the angle of the window where the light enters. For me, those times are mostly in the morning.And this sometimes poses an issue for me; the thing about food photography is that it often involves food consumption. There’s only so long I can stare at a baked good before it inevitably makes its way into my face.

When I made zucchini muffins, morning photography was great. Muffins are totally a morning food, so I happily tasted one after its photoshoot. But today, I was shooting ice cream sandwiches. At 10 in the morning.

Oh! The fresh creaminess of homemade mint chip ice cream, and the crunch of homemade thin mints. It’s totally a thing, homemade ice cream — it’s totally worth it. The flavors are fresh and clean, and there’s no gummy aftertaste. It’s delicious, even at 10 in the morning. Because I wanted to take a picture of a bitten sandwich, because that’s also a thing (seriously, look at food blogs — evidence of nibbles all up in dem posts), and I was FORCED to take a bite.

But the picture’s cute, isn’t it?

Homemade thin mints — stupid, stupid easy. Seriously worth it, when Girl Scouts aren’t in season.

And now I’m going to go soak up those calories with some Brussels sprouts. Because that’s how vegetables work. Trust me. I’m a Biology major.

Mini Thin Mint Ice Cream Sandwiches

Mint Chip Ice Cream

makes 1 pint

1/2 cup whole milk

1 cup heavy cream

1/3 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla

3/4 tsp peppermint extract

1/3 cup mini chocolate chips

In a medium bowl, whisk together the cream and sugar until dissolved. Whisk in the milk, vanilla and peppermint. Let chill for at least an hour. Pour into an ice cream maker and proceed according to manufacturer’s directions. 5 minutes before ice cream is finished, add chocolate chips.

Thin Mints

Makes 16 cookies

16 Ritz crackers

8 oz dipping chocolate, melted

1/2 – 1 tsp peppermint extract

After chocolate is melted, pour into a small bowl stir in 1/2 tsp peppermint extract. If not minty enough, add up to 1/2 tsp more. Using a fork, dip crackers into mint chocolate. Tap against side of bowl to remove extra chocolate. Place on parchment-covered baking sheet. Repeat with remaining crackers. Chill until chocolate is set.