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1
In a large mixing bowl, beat together shortening, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, and brown sugar until fluffy and blended. Beat in egg and molasses.
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2
In a separate bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients. Stir with a whisk. Slowly stir the dry mixture into the molasses mixture just until dough forms. Cover and chill the dough for 2 hours.
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3
Preheat the oven to 375u00b0F. Roll dough into 1-tablespoon-sized balls. Rolls the balls into the remaining sugar, and place them 2 inches apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake 9-11 minutes. Makes approximately two dozen cookies.
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4
Cool the cookies on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
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5
For the ice cream:
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6
Peel pears, core them, and dice into small cubes. In a cast-iron pan (or another solid pan), heat sugar. Wait for it liquefy, not stirring at first, only when you see patches of liquid sugar. Stir until smooth and amber-colored. This should just take a few minutes.
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7
Add the pears. The caramel will seize up and solidify, but keep on stirring and boiling the mixture. Try to dissolve and clumps. this will take around 10 minutes.
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8
Remove from heat. Add milk, lemon juice and salt. Stir in the cream. Blend in a food processor, until smooth. Chill, then churn in your ice cream maker according to your manufacturer's instructions. (Makes approximately 1 quart of ice cream.) Wait 4-6 hours before serving.
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9
To assemble, thaw ice cream slightly to ensure it's easy to scoop. Take two cooled cookies and place a generous scoop of ice cream between. Press slightly until the ice cream extends just a bit over the edge of the cookie. Roll in crushed pistachios or dip in white chocolate and freeze again 1/2 hour to 1 hour before serving.
