My husband and I have a nifty little tradition for whenever someone comes to stay in our tiny Jersey City apartment. We take them on the PATH train to World Trade Center, walk over to the Brooklyn Bridge, walk across said bridge, and then get in line at Juliana’s for the best pizza any of us have ever tasted. (I’m very passionate about this pizza, by the way. I once met someone who said she wasn’t a fan, and it was the worst first impression someone has ever made on me.) Then while we’re standing in line, a couple of us will venture over to the Brooklyn Bridge lookout and Water Street for some iconic photo ops.
If you’ve never done these things in this specific order, I highly recommend it. Call it touristy, passé, whatever — we love it.
All of that is to say that there’s another secret gem at Juliana’s you may not know about. It’s called the “Brookie Bridge.”
Let me explain: You know what a brookie is, right? You take chocolate chip cookie dough and brownie batter, mash them together, bake, and voilà — you have brownies/cookies, or “brookies.” Some brookies are more cookie-like, while others have more of a brownie-like consistency. A brookie might feature both doughs baked side by side so both are visible in the finished product, or it might feature a chocolate chip cookie dough enrobed in brownie batter for a surprise chocolate chip cookie center. However it’s done, you get the idea.
Now, pick up two brookies, and sandwich vanilla ice cream between them. This creates — you guessed it — a “Brookie Bridge.”
Truth be told, I’ve never officially seen a Brookie Bridge from Juliana’s. (I know; who am I?) When I heard what it was and that it was eight dollars, I immediately thought, “That’s something I can make myself.” And make it myself, I did. Since first hearing about the Brookie Bridge at Juliana’s, I’ve performed all kinds of baking experiments to create what I think is the best Brookie Bridge known to man. Here’s how to duplicate it:
The brookie
When I began perusing brookie recipes online, I knew I wanted something cookie-like that would showcase both the chocolate chip cookie and the brownie parts of the brookie beautifully. My long search ultimately brought me to the brookie recipe over at Mel’s Kitchen Cafe. It’s equal parts chocolate chip cookie and brownie, both parts delicious.
Get the recipe for perfect brookies
I did end up making a few modifications to the recipe:
- Reduce the salt in both recipes to ⅛ tsp.
- Nix the extra 2 TB of flour in the chocolate chip cookie dough.
- Go a little scant on the sugar if using a rich ice cream.
Also take note that these cookies don’t look golden brown when they’re ready. Take them out while they’re still on the soft side.
The ice cream
Choosing an ice cream for the middle of the Brookie Bridge was more of a science than I expected. Surprisingly, I ended up feeling that cheaper ice cream is best here. The reason? Fancier, creamier ice creams don’t seem to hold their shape as well as the cheaper types. Plus, a richer ice cream ends up competing with the decadent flavor of the brookie. My motto: let the brookie be the star here.
The assembly
First things first — freeze your brookies. Working with ice cream is precarious enough as it is, so you might as well make things a little easier for yourself. (Exception: if you know you will be eating these right away, by all means go with hot cookies and cold ice cream. That combo is like crack.)
As for sandwiching ice cream between two brookies, you have two options. 1) Use a spoon to apply thin layers of just-out-of-the-freezer ice cream to the back of one cookie; take another cookie; and smash. 2) Freeze the ice cream in a thin layer; cut out circles with a round cutter; and apply.
Option 1 is less time consuming, of course, and the result is a bit more undone looking. Honestly, I wouldn’t mind that; that’s how you know it’s homemade! But if you’re going for perfection — and aren’t so many of us bakers? — go with option 2. Ree Drummond describes that process over on her site, so I’ll leave all you option 2-ers to peruse that there.
See the process for assembling perfect ice cream sandwiches
And that’s it! If you’re crazy enough to pursue this endeavor yourself, let me know how it goes!
