CHIPWICH: History and Recipe -- ICE CREAM SANDWICH DAY!

Today is National Ice Cream Sandwich Day! The perfect holiday for these hot summer days. There's something about an ice cream sandwich that always appeals to me. I think it's because the ice-cream is 'contained'. I'm not big on gooey hands. So in honor of the day, here's a nod to and history of the 'original Chipwich, along with a recipe to make the Chipwich at home.

The Chipwich was 'invented' by Richard LaMotta who turned his childhood passion for dunking cookies in milk into the Chipwich — two chocolate chip cookies embracing a chunk of vanilla ice cream dotted with chocolate chips. On May 1, 1982, Mr. LaMotta dispatched 60 street-cart vendors, each wearing pith helmets and khakis, to the streets of Manhattan to begin selling his 4 1/2-ounce concoction (including 3 1/2 ounces of ice cream) for what at the time was a pricey $1 each. A few hours later, all 25,000 Chipwiches had been gobbled — the start of something big. Within two weeks, Mr. LaMotta was selling 40,000 a day, and by the middle of that summer, the Chipwich plants in Queens, N.Y., and Lodi, N.J., were turning out 200,000 a day.

Want to make your own Chipwich at Home?

Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Sandwich

Chocolate Chip Cookies:  I use Tates Chocolate Chip Cookies (or make your own)
Vanilla Ice Cream I like Ben & Jerry's (softened)
Mini-chocolate chips I use Guittard Semisweet Chocolate Mini Chips

Soften ice cream for 10 minutes before making sandwiches.
Place scoop of ice cream on flat side of 1 cookie.
Place second cookie flat side down and carefully press together until ice cream reaches edge of cookies.
Roll edges in Mini-Chocolate Chips.
Freeze for 15 minutes and serve.

Lots of variations, of course, but this recipe is fairly close to the original Chipwich.

And here's a retro commercial for the Chipwich!