I am aware that perhaps I celebrate too often – that I reward myself for minor (er…very minor) accomplishments.

Case in point: more often than not (weather permitting) I will take a Citi Bike from my perch in Dumbo to Baked in Red Hook (well, as close as I can get to Red Hook with the Citi Bike) and back. I am lucky. My bike ride is beautiful. I ride through the ever-evolving Brooklyn Bridge Park – gorgeous, iconic Manhattan views as my backdrop. And though the ride is not long or arduous (the terrain is about as flat as pancake with one or two hills which could be classified as bumps), I pride myself on expending all this energy. In my head, I am consuming Tour de France type calories. It is at this point, that I have convinced myself that I can safely consume an ice cream cone to replace these spent calories. It is my reward for what I deem a proper workout.

Thankfully, Ample Hill Creamery has a stand within Brooklyn Bridge Park. It is halfway between my apartment and Baked, and I pass it to and fro. I always stop and buy a cone. I can’t avoid it. I have eaten my way through their ever-changing flavor board – from Salted Crack Caramel to The Munchies (pretzel infused ice cream…c’mon) to Cotton Candy and, well, Sweet Cream n’ Cookies. I am never disappointed.

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Ample Hills recently published a book (a very cute book, I might add) of several of their well-known recipes. It is a fun and funky collection (Breakfast Trash Ice Cream is a standout). I like to make ice cream as much as I like to eat ice cream so I gave their Chocolate Milk and Cookies recipe a whirl. The result: it is pretty darn delicious. Chocolate-y without being too sweet and creamy without being too rich. I will slowly make my way through their book this summer. And it will undoubtedly become a permanent part of my “ice cream book shelf” alongside my dog-eared favorites: The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz and Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams at Home by Jeni Britton Bauer.

A few notes about making Chocolate Milk and Cookies ice cream

Ample Hills uses skim milk powder for a majority of their ice cream bases. I couldn’t find a product on store shelves labeled “skim milk powder”, so I used Organic Valley’s nonfat milk powder in its place. It was perfect.

There are A LOT of cookies in this recipe. DO NOT attempt to add the cookies as you would normally add mix-ins to your ice-cream maker. It will most likely overflow. Instead, scoop a portion of the churned ice-cream base into your serving container, layer with the cookies, alternating until finished. Use a spatula to fold everything together.

As mentioned, this makes a lot of ice cream. You will probably need two pint containers for storage. This is a good thing.

Chocolate Milk and Cookies recipe from Ample Hills Creamery

For the chocolate milk and cookies addition

25 sandwich cookies (I used the Whole Foods store brand)
¼ cup organic cane sugar
⅓ cup cocoa powder
2 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped

Place 6 cookies in the freezer for one hour. Transfer the 6 frozen cookies to a food processor and process them into crumbs. Set aside the “cookie powder”. Break the remaining cookies into rough quarters.

In a small saucepan, bring ⅓ cup of water to a boil over high heat. Remove the pan from the heat and add the sugar and cocoa powder, whisking vigorously to combine. Add the chocolate and whisk until melted. Set aside to cool while you make the base.

For the ice cream base

¾ organic cane sugar
½ cup skim milk powder
1 ⅔ cup whole milk
1 ⅔ cup heavy cream
3 large egg yolks
Prepare an ice bath in your sink or in a large heatproof bowl.

In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, skim milk powder, and milk. Whisk until smooth. Make sure the skim milk powder is wholly dissolved into the mixture and that no lumps remain (any remaining sugar granules will dissolve over the heat). Stir in the cream.

Clip a candy thermometer to the saucepan and set the pan over medium heat. Cook, stirring often with a rubber spatula and scraping the bottom of the pan to prevent sticking and burning, until the mixture reaches 110ºF, 5 to 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat.

Place the egg yolks in a medium bowl. While whisking, slowly pour in ½ cup of the hot milk mixture to temper the egg yolks. Continue to whisk slowly until the mixture is an even color and consistency, then whisk the egg-yolk mixture back into the remaining milk mixture.

Return the pan to the stovetop over medium heat and continue cooking the mixture, stirring often, until it reaches 165ºF, 5 to 10 minutes more. Whisk in the cooled chocolate mixture. Transfer the pan to the prepared ice bath and let cool for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Pour the ice cream base through a wire-mesh strainer into a storage container and place in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 hours, or until completely cool.

Transfer the cooled base to an ice cream maker and stir in the cookie powder. Churn the ice cream according to manufacturer’s instructions.

Transfer the ice cream to a storage container, folding in the cookie pieces as you do so. Allow the mixture to harden in your freezer for about 8 hours before serving.