Brownie Coconut Ice Cream Sandwiches

I made these last night and we finally got to eat them today, since they had to freeze overnight. And they were as good as they sound. They were a little time consuming, and waiting several hours for them to freeze took the patience of a saint, but they were worth it. A delicious summer treat.

BROWNIE COCONUT           ICE CREAM SANDWICHES

Ingredients

• 12 ounces raspberries
• 1 1/2 cups sugar, plus 2 tablespoons
• 1 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, broken into pieces
• 4 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup cream of coconut (not coconut milk)
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two 9- by 13-inch baking pans with nonstick foil, leaving a 3-inch overhang on two sides. In a large bowl, toss the berries with 2 tablespoons sugar. Let sit, tossing occasionally, for at least 30 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, place the butter and the chocolate in a medium saucepan and cook, stirring, over medium-low heat until melted. Remove from heat and whisk in the remaining 1 1/2 cups sugar, then the eggs. Add the flour and stir until smooth.
3. Divide the batter between the prepared baking pans. Bake until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out with moist crumbs attached, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool completely in the pan.
4. Using an electric mixer, beat the cream of coconut and cream in a large bowl until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the berries and their juices into the coconut-cream mixture; spoon the cream-berry mixture over one pan of brownies.
5. Use the foil overhangs to lift the remaining brownie layer out of the pan. Invert onto a cutting board and gently peel away the foil. Invert again onto a cookie sheet and gently slide on top of the cream-berry mixture. Cover and freeze for at least 6 hours or up to 2 days.
6. Use the foil overhangs to lift and transfer to a cutting board. Let sit for 5 minutes, then cut into bars.

A couple of notes:

1. You might even want to start out with more than 12 oz. of raspberries because we could not resist several taste tests once they were all sugared up. Or maybe they accounted for several snitches when they made the recipe, who knows? All I know is that they were fresh and sweet and delicious, and I ate several.

2. I made a valiant effort to whip the cream and cream of coconut, but it just didn't seem to want to whip. It's true that I didn't use heavy cream, but still. I swear I was at the mixer for like 15 minutes, but it just ended up being a thick creamy liquid. Even so, it was delicious and I had to test that several times as well.

3. Definitely wait the five minutes before you cut and eat the frozen sandwiches. We just couldn't wait to get our mits on them, after having to wait a whole day for our dessert, so we instantly chowed down. But biting into the crunchy frozen raspberries just about did me in. Another option we might try next time is to just add a layer of jam instead of the berries.