Gingerbread Cookies and Cream Popsicles

I knew I wanted to make healthy, gluten free gingerbread for Christmas and I also wanted to make cookies and cream ice-cream, and then it dawned on me…why not combine the two and use the gingerbread as the cookie part of the cookies and cream! These popsicles are divine and a perfect way to enjoy the festive flavours during a hot Australian Christmas. If you have your own left over gingerbread from Christmas Day, these would be a perfect way to use it up! They are perfectly creamy, gently spiced and only sweetened with banana and small amount of raw honey or pure maple syrup.

Makes 6 popsicles (dependent on size of moulds)

You will need popsicle moulds and paddle pop sticks for this recipe.

Gingerbread:

1 flax egg (1 heaped tbsp. ground flaxseed/chia + 3 tbsps. water leave 5-10 mins to thicken)

1 cup almond meal

½ cup brown rice flour

¼ tsp. sea salt

¼ tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. ginger

½ tsp. cinnamon

¼ tsp. nutmeg

1/8 tsp. cloves

2 ½ tbsps. coconut oil (melted)

2 ½ tbsps. raw honey/pure maple syrup

Ice Cream:

1 tin coconut milk/cream

1 large, ripe banana

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. ginger

½ tsp. cinnamon

¼ tsp. nutmeg

1/8 tsp. cloves

¼ tsp. sea salt

1 tbsp. raw honey/pure maple syrup

For the gingerbread:

1. Preheat the oven to 170C and line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper.

2. Combine the flax or chia with the water and set aside for approximately 10 minutes to thicken.

3. Add all dry ingredients to a medium bowl and stir to combine. Add the coconut oil, honey/maple and flax egg and stir again until well combined.

4. Roll half of the mixture between two pieces of baking paper until about 1.5cm thick. Use a gingerbread man cookie cutter to cut out the biscuits and place them onto the baking tray. Simply roll the rest into small balls and flatten into cookies before baking (the shape doesn’t matter too much as they will be crushed up for the ice cream).

5. Place the cookies in the oven for 10-15 minutes or until golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool and harden.

For the ice cream:

1. Place all ingredients into a blender and process until smooth and well combined.

2. Pour into ice cream moulds, leaving about 2cm at the top of each so that you have room to add the cookies in.

3. Place into the freezer for about 2 hours. Meanwhile, roughly chop about 150g of gingerbread cookies.

4. After the 2 hours, evenly distribute the crushed cookies between the popsicle moulds, pushing it down and around in each mould with a teaspoon.

5. Add a paddle pop stick to each one and then return to the freezer for at least 3 hours or overnight. Enjoy on a warm summer’s day!