The secret to making an Augusta National-grade peach ice-cream sandwich

Hello, friends. The beloved peach ice-cream sandwich will not be served at the Masters this year. For sweet-toothed ticket-holders, this is devastating news, and my heart goes out to them. But there’s no need for the rest of us to feel deprived. We can prepare our own versions of this Southern classic at home

I’m a professional trained chef, and now the general manager at Old Westbury Golf & Country Club, on Long Island, where we will be serving a full menu of Masters favorites at our viewing party.

I’m sharing my peach ice-cream sandwich recipe below, along with a couple of suggested cocktail pairings.

Of course, there is no shame in assembling ice-cream sandwiches from store-bought ingredients. If you go that route, though, do yourself a favor and buy high-quality ice cream, preferably peach or vanilla, and soft sugar cookies from your favorite bakery.

Food

I also urge you to marinate some fresh peaches in amaretto (you’ll see instructions for this below) and fold them into your ice cream. It’s a small extra step and well worth the effort.

Another pro tip: Before assembling the sandwiches, let the ice cream soften a bit and shape over parchment paper. This will make it easier to build your sandwiches without breaking the cookies. Also, be sure to use pure vanilla extract.

Now, here’s how to do it all from scratch.

Homemade peach ice cream

Ingredients:

2 pounds peaches

1/2 cup amaretto

5 ounces granulated sugar

10 egg yolks

1 quart half-and-half

2 1/2 cups heavy simple syrup

1 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (the real stuff, please, not the imitation extract)

Method

Wash the peaches and remove the pits. Cut into chunks and marinate half of them amaretto in a coverage jar or bowl for a few hours or overnight. Poach the other half of the peaches in heavy simple syrup. Let cool then purée.

Food

In a electric mixer, place egg yolks and sugar and whip until foamy and thick. We call this the ribbon stage because when you lift the whisk from the egg mixture it leaves a thick ribbon. Bring half-and-half up to a simmer and add slowly to your egg mixture. Pour this entire mixture into a sauce pan and gently cook it on the stovetop, stirring with rubber spatula until it is thick enough to coat a spoon. Stir in the vanilla extract and peach purée then chill. Churn the entire chilled mixture in an ice cream maker. When it is nearly finished, add your marinated peach chunks, reserving the amaretto for use in a cocktail. Refreeze until you are ready to use.

Sugar cookies

Ingredients:

2 3/4 cup all-purpose flour

2 cups granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 1/4 cup unsalted butter

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

With a paddle in your eclectic mixture, cream the butter and sugar together until they are quite smooth. Add eggs in gradually, then the vanilla. In a separate bowl combine flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder. Add to your mixer with sugar/egg mix and gently mix until incorporated. Scoop your cookie dough into 20 balls and freeze. Once frozen, place on sheet pen with parchment paper that has been greased and bake at 350 degrees for seven minutes. Don’t let the cookies brown. Remove from oven and let cool. Assemble your ice cream sandwiches and store them in the freezer until you’re ready to serve. 

Suggested cocktail pairings

Azaleas & Amens 

2 ounces vodka

2 ounces peach purée

1/2-ounce grapefruit juice, preferably ruby red

1/4-ounce simple syrup

Combine all in a shaker with ice and mint. Shake for 12 seconds and strain into a Collins glass with mint and ice.

The Green Jacket

1 1/2 ounces bourbon

¾-ounce green chartreuse

3/4-ounce Maraschino Liqueur

Shake and strain into a Collins with ice and fresh thyme