Today I wanted to share my easy recipe for making the perfect vegan banana ice cream. If you’ve never heard of it, search for the hashtag #nicecream on Instagram to know what I’m talking about! It’s also referred to as a smoothie bowl when there are toppings on it. Once you learn how to make it, you’ll honestly think it tastes exactly like ice cream, except it’s 100% healthy, light, AND dairy free. I eat this stuff for breakfast literally every day (check out my What I Eat In A Day post for even more healthy meal ideas!) and since it consists of nothing but fruit and a little bit of almond milk it is one of the healthiest things you could eat! You can expand uponthe two ingredient recipe below and make all kinds of different flavors with this base, like chocolate, raspberry, blueberry, mango, strawberry, etc!
I love this recipe because of how light it is. You know that feeling you get of being bloated and just so overly full after eating way too much? You definitely won’t be getting that from eating this stuff! It is still super filling and a great meal for kids and adults alike – and the more toppings you put like granola, almond butter, chia seeds, berries, coconut flakes, etc, the more filling and protein rich it will be! It’s really all about personal preference and over time you’ll discover your favorite toppings to go with this easy banana ice cream recipe.
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All you need for one easy serving of plain banana ice cream is:
A blender (this oneis the best one I’ve used so far)
4 regular size bananas
Half a cup of your favoriteunsweetened or vanilla plant milk (unsweetened almond milk is what I use)
Optional but highly recommended:
Any other frozen or fresh fruit if you want to make a fruit flavor other than banana. The basicbanana ice cream is still really delicious, but I find adding berries or mango makes it AMAZING. Or, you can buy low fat peanut butter like PB2 powder and mix that in for a peanut butter flavor. I personally buy these packages ofcacaopowder from the brand Navitas Naturals and I put in about two and a halftablespoons per five bananas – this makes the banana ice cream taste EXACTLY like chocolate soft serve ice cream and the powder is sugar free and vegan!
Start by un-peeling fourregular size bananas and then cut them up into pieces. Then put the pieces in a plastic storage container and freeze them for 5+ hours or overnight.
Once the bananas are frozen, take your half cup of plant milk and put it into the blender FIRST. If you froze the bananas overnight, you’ll want to leave them out to defrost for 15-20 minutes. This will make it easier on the blender, but you don’t want to thaw them too much to the point where they start to get mushy. It’s all about achieving the perfect consistency which you’ll learn after you’ve made this a few times!
Take a fork and start to pick apart the bananas. Take a couple small chunks at a time and put them in with the milk, then start blending. If you find that you need more milk, add it in a little at a time. The key is to not make it soupy because you don’t want your toppings to sink.
As the blender works its magic, add more and more banana chunks in until you’ve blended them all. When you’re done, it should have the consistency of soft serve ice cream and look like this:
Here’s an example of strawberry banana ice cream. I just take a handful of frozen strawberries and add them in two a time so the blender doesn’t have to work too hard:
Plant-based fats are the best way to thicken vegan ice cream. Coconut cream, full-fat coconut milk and coconut oil will give the creamiest and thickest results. Cornstarch and tapioca starch can also be used to thicken but the end result will be a little more icy and a little less creamy.
Place the frozen bananas and sugar in a processor.process until it starts to pulverise.Start adding the milk and process until smooth and ice cream like.serve.
They key to creamy ice cream, especially with vegan ice cream, is the addition of fat. Add richness to your vegan ice cream by incorporating healthy fats such as coconut oil and cashew butter, which not only enhance texture, but also contribute beneficial nutrients.
A common - and better - emulsifier for ice cream is soy lecithin, which can be derived from soybeans, sunflowers and rapeseed. Soy lecithin has a neutral taste, and also allows you to make egg-less ice cream.
As far as dairy-free ice cream goes, coconut ice cream is by far the best. Full-fat coconut milk adds enough richness to create a texture that is super creamy, smooth, and not at all icy. It's rich, decadent, and every bit as good as the real thing.
3. Puréeing the soft bananas and then trying to freeze it. The bananas for banana ice cream must be frozen — try puréeing bananas and then freezing them and you'll be disappointed with starchy, gooey icicles. Freeze the banana slices first and then process quickly for creamy, dreamy nice cream.
Arrange banana slices on paper and freeze until solid, 3 to 5 hours. Peel bananas from the parchment paper and place in the blender. Add milk and cream and blend until smooth; transfer to a sealable container and freeze until set, about 2 hours.
Once a Monkey allows you to approach, you'll have the chance to feed it. Now, while Monkeys will like any 3-star meal or above, their favorite food is the 5-star meal, Banana Split. To unlock a Monkey as a companion, you will need to feed them twice a day, across the span of three days.
Along with the coconut milk, we add a little cornstarch. You can also use arrowroot starch, if you prefer. Either way, you combine the starch with the coconut milk and a sweetener, and then cook it on the stovetop until it becomes thick and almost pudding-like.
An ingredient such as polysorbate 80 is an emulsifier that has no thickening power but will quickly emulsify the fats and liquids in a non-dairy ice cream. This is generally done by blending the ingredients together, whether it be in a blender prior to churning or during the churning process.
By far the closest substitute for heavy cream in the vegan world is coconut milk in a can. There are several varieties to choose from. Look for the one with the highest fat, but don't fret if you can't find anything labeled “full fat.” They are all rich in fats.
An ingredient such as polysorbate 80 is an emulsifier that has no thickening power but will quickly emulsify the fats and liquids in a non-dairy ice cream. This is generally done by blending the ingredients together, whether it be in a blender prior to churning or during the churning process.
Cornstarch: Often used in non-custard ice creams, cornstarch mixed with milk helps thicken the base and create a smooth mouthfeel. Gelatin: Adding a small amount of gelatin to the ice cream mixture improves texture by reducing ice crystal formation and creating a smoother consistency.
Also known as arrowroot starch, this substance is made from the root of the arrowroot plant. It can be used to thicken a variety of vegan dishes without changing the color or sheen of the dish. Therefore, it works especially well for thickening glossy vegan frostings and clear soups.
Adding 1/4 cup dairy-free milk powder or powdered cashews to this recipe will help thicken it further, but it won't be as fluffy and will slightly influence the consistency and taste. Soymilk powder works best, but coconut milk powder makes this a true coconut-flavored whip.
Introduction: My name is Nicola Considine CPA, I am a determined, witty, powerful, brainy, open, smiling, proud person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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