Banana Faux Ice Cream - Recipe

I must share this recipe with you. It’s not really a “recipe” since it only has two base ingredients, and it’s not really mine. I got it from an acquaintance who is trying to eat healthier. I have no idea where this person got the idea from, but I'm going to guess somewhere online.

There are many different versions but this one is pretty bare bones and you can jazz it up to your heart’s content. It’s for a banana dessert that tastes and feels like banana soft serve! This is a great alternative to ice cream if you are lactose intolerant.

You don’t have to be a banana lover, but it helps.

You will need:
Overripe bananas
A liquid that pairs nicely with bananas
Vanilla (optional)
Food Processor
Rubber spatula

I always seem to have three overripe bananas attracting fruit flies on the counter at any one time. There’s only so much banana bread one can take.

Allocate approximately one banana per serving; the riper your bananas then the sweeter your ice cream.

You can use any kind of liquid really. For example, I’ve used Rice Dream, soy-milk, cream or milk with great results. I know some people have used water, but I find water a bit blech. I think I’ll use soy today.

First: Peel and slice bananas approximately 1cm in width. Or in a size that your processor can handle. Spread, one layer thick on a wax/parchment lined cookie sheet. Place in freezer. Wait impatiently.

Second: Put frozen bananas in your food processor. I know other people have used a high powered blender instead of a processor for this recipe, but I find that a food processor works best. I don’t fuss around with pulsing. I just let ‘er rip.

Third: When it’s whizzing around the processor, eventually the banana will start to mound up. Now is a good time to stop the machine and trickle in the liquid and a dash of vanilla. Only trickle in a little liquid at a time. You only want enough liquid to get the blades unstuck and moving again. For two or three bananas it may require only a tablespoon or so of soy-milk. If you put in too much liquid, the dessert will lose its thick "ice cream" texture. This is also a good time to go in with a rubber spatula and help distribute the banana more evenly around the bowl.

Fourth: Continue to whizz frozen fruit around. Soon the bananas will mound up again in a ball. Instead of adding more liquid, stop the processor and try to break the banana-ball up with your rubber spatula, while scraping the sides and re-distributing the frozen mass again.
Depending on how much "ice cream" you are making, this step may take a few minutes.

It will become lighter in colour and start to resemble soft serve. Whizz to your desired smoothness, while stopping and scraping periodically. Done!
Prepare to indulge yourself, impress the neighbours, and trick the kids.

Chocolate sauce is optional. You must eat this immediately. It does not keep well. They’re bananas afterall!

Tips:
You can drizzle some honey in with the liquid to help sweeten it, but I find the faux ice cream is sweet enough with very ripe bananas.

If you have lots of overripe bananas you can cut and freeze a large amount, and then divide the frozen cut fruit into convenient serving portions. Place in freezer bags. You now have lil' packs of potential “ice cream” at a moment’s notice!

You can use other frozen fruit to mix with the bananas for a change in flavour. The best fruit are ones that aren’t “juicy” and freeze well (eg: strawberries) I've noticed, through my recent ritual of almost daily faux ice-cream making, that it's important to keep frozen bananas as a base. Otherwise the ice-cream doesn't have that ice-creamy soft serve texture.

Here’s some avocado n’ banana soft serve I made a little later in the day:


Have you tried this banana faux ice-cream before? I've been eating it a lot lately. With the different fruits coming into season, I’ll continue to experiment with other flavour combinations throughout the summer. Let me know if this recipe works for you. So good! So exciting!

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Lvoe/Love of Eating British Columbia restaurants
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