Nightingale Ice Cream Sandwiches, Ranked: A Tasting Table Review
Megan Hageman, a food critic for Tasting Table, embarks on a journey to explore the innovative world of Nightingale Ice Cream Sandwiches. With a mission to rewrite the traditional ice cream sandwich script, Nightingale offers a unique blend of Southern roots and European style, resulting in a range of unexpected flavors. Hageman's task is to taste and rank these sandwiches, evaluating their textures, flavors, and overall appeal.
Raspberry Croissant
- Nightingale's masterpiece combines the best of both worlds: buttery, golden-crusted brown sugar cookies and a creamy, raspberry-jam-infused ice cream with bits of croissant. The result is a sandwich that lands between a Southern-style cobbler and a European confection, offering a perfect balance of fruit and pastry.
- Hageman praises the genius of combining berries and pastries, drawing a comparison to Jeni's Brambleberry Crisp. The sandwich's creamy texture and buttery, lightly salty croissant flakes make it a standout.
Caramel Churro
- This sandwich is a churro lover's dream, featuring the same tender, buttery brown sugar cookies and a dulce de leche ice cream with real churro bits. The cookies are softer and doughier, resembling spiced snickerdoodles. The ice cream is light and creamy, with a few sweet churro crumbles.
- Hageman's only complaint is the subtle caramel flavor, which could have been more prominent. However, she notes that the sandwich is a signature Nightingale flavor, available year-round.
Banana Pudding
- A unique take on a classic Southern dessert, Nightingale's Banana Pudding sandwich uses real bananas and vanilla wafers, creating an authentic flavor. The brown sugar cookies add an extra layer of sweetness.
- Hageman suggests that the ice cream could have a more custard-like consistency to mimic the traditional dessert more closely. Nonetheless, she prefers this version over the Key Lime Pie sandwich.
Key Lime Pie
- Nightingale's twist on the summer pie features a graham cracker crust replaced by golden-crusted brown sugar cookies. The cookies offer richness, cutting through the sharp citrus notes of the key lime ice cream.
- The key lime ice cream is a standout, made with real Florida Keys lime juice, and has a unique texture, almost like a blend of custard and sorbet. Hageman praises the balance between sweet and tangy flavors.
The Classic
- Nightingale's take on a classic ice cream sandwich uses thick, chocolate brownie cookies and vanilla bean ice cream. The cookies are closer to a chocolate cookie, cake, and brownie, and the ice cream adds a premium taste.
- Hageman notes that the cookies could use more fudgy brownie flair, but the overall sandwich is soft, chewy, and sweet. It's a strong contender, offering a balanced and satisfying experience.
Birthday Cake
- This sandwich combines cookies, ice cream, and cake, resulting in a sugary, sweet treat. The soft, rich brown sugar cookies are stuffed with premium vanilla ice cream laced with rainbow sprinkles and yellow cake pieces.
- Hageman ranks it lower due to the sugary sweetness and the dominance of the cookies. She suggests a better balance between cookies and ice cream would enhance the experience.
Blueberry Lemon Pound Cake
- A limited-time flavor, this sandwich features brown sugar cookies, blueberry lemon ice cream, and pound cake crumble. The flavor is mostly sweet lemon, with the blueberry not standing out. The treat is likened to a lemon pie or lemon cookie, making it a good choice for warmer months.
- Hageman considers it a successful limited-time offering, praising its light and fruity appeal.
Mint Fudge Brownie
- This sandwich combines mint and chocolate, with chocolate brownie cookies and creme de menthe ice cream dotted with brownie pieces. The mint flavor is strong, and Hageman suggests a better balance of creme to menthe.
- The cookies don't quite nail the fudgy brownie essence, reminding Hageman of grocery store bakery packs. The sandwich is refreshing but could benefit from improvements.
Cookie Monster
- A popular flavor, Cookie Monster combines chocolate chip cookies and cookies and cream ice cream. The cookies are undercooked and dry, lacking the sweet butteriness of homemade cookies.
- Hageman finds the sandwich less chaotic than Brookie Dough but not entirely impressive. The cookie-crumb-infused ice cream has a faint Oreo-like flavor, but the crumbs don't add much texture.
Brookie Dough
- A unique mashup of brownie and cookie dough, Brookie Dough features two different types of cookies and a glob of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream. The result is too much indulgence and very little relief.
- Hageman finds the combination overwhelming, with oversized cookie dough chunks and very little fluffy vanilla ice cream. She expresses a strong desire for a swig of milk after just two bites.
Strawberry Shortcake
- Nightingale's Strawberry Shortcake sandwich uses compact, pink, strawberry jam-infused ice cream and brown sugar cookies. The ice cream is light in texture and flavor, lacking the presence of larger berry bits.
- Hageman finds it disappointing, as the cookies are plenty good, but the weak link is the strawberry jam-infused ice cream. She suggests it could be improved with larger berry bits.
Hageman's methodology involved sampling the bite-sized sandwiches straight from the freezer, evaluating the consistency and creaminess of the ice cream, and considering personal preferences. She emphasizes the importance of finding sandwiches that fit Nightingale's refined Southern-inspired approach to dessert.
