ice cream for breakfast
Recipe: single-ingredient ice cream
Administrative news: The amount of spam accumulating in my filter is increasing and the amount of time I have to glance through and fish out the occasional legitimate comment is all but nil at this point. From now on, I’m deleting the hundreds of spam caught each day without a second glance. If you leave a comment and it does not show up immediately, you probably went the way of spam. Please feel free to email me and let me know so I can rescue you and keep you off the blacklist. Thanks!
I’ve been doing a massive purge of my second office, recycling old notes and literature that I no longer need. While doing so earlier this week I discovered a diagram that my favorite geomorphologist, Dr. Arthur Bloom, gave me in graduate school. Mineralogists will recognize this kind of diagram – except it doesn’t involve minerals. I thought this readership might get a kick out of it (at least I know Bridget will).
Needless to say, I kept that little gem.
Summer for some of my friends (those with school-age children) is coming to an end. They’ve been scrambling to squeeze the most out of the final days before school starts next week. But you know, learning does not have to be (and should not be) limited to the school year. The Perseids meteor shower is tonight and it’s a great opportunity to see Nature’s little light show if you can get yourselves to dark skies, away from city lights. I love me a meteor shower and the Perseids are my favorite – a solid and consistent performer if you get clear skies! Tonight and tomorrow night (Aug 12/13) should be at peak activity with approximately 50 meteors per hour. Start looking after dark (after the crescent moon sets) up until dawn. It’s fun to settle down in a lawn chair where you can find some good sky view (open sky with few obstructions), relax, and enjoy the show.
please please please clouds, take a break?
So what’s this ice cream for breakfast ridiculousness? Well, it’s true. I had ice cream for breakfast today. Actually, I had “ice cream”. I read about this one-ingredient ice cream on Apartment Therapy’s The Kitchn months ago and was intrigued. That single ingredient would be:
bananas
i prefer them just spotted
I try, I really try to love bananas. It’s not them, it’s me. I like fruit that is juicy and bananas are not juicy. But bananas are so very very good for you and that is why I buy them, in the hopes that I’ll guilt myself into eating them. What usually happens is they start to turn brown, I chuck them into the freezer, and wind up making chocolate chip banana bread to give away to my friends. Or I’ll peel one open and split it with Kaweah. That’s why anytime, anyone, anywhere peels a banana, she suddenly appears at your elbow.
and there she is
slice into 1/4 to 1/2-inch disks
This ice cream recipe is super simple. I recommend that you follow the instructions and slice up the bananas before freezing. It makes it far easier – nay, possible – to blend them up properly as opposed to trying to chop up the frozen whole bananas (uh, that didn’t really work for me). They freeze through in about an hour, depending on your freezer. Once they are ready, just plop all of them into a food processor. I had to pry a few off the plate with a knife.
sliced
frozen
This is where the fun begins. Start running the food processor. The banana disks will soon become frozen banana gravel. That’s fine. You’re not there yet. Keep running the processor. At some point, the blades will just spin around and nothing will move. Expect to stop and scrape down the sides of the work bowl several times. As the pieces get smaller and the surface area increases, the banana will begin to thaw just a touch and suddenly it all blends into this lovely whipped banana that has the texture of soft serve ice cream. Wow!
frozen banana gravel
whipped goodness (really, it’s good for you!)
The transformation was a surprise, but a nice one at that. It doesn’t have a strong banana taste, but it does have a banana taste. Still, for me – the girl with lukewarm feelings about bananas – I thought it was fantastic. I have done a couple of batches now: one plain and one with peanut butter and cocoa powder. My friends came over yesterday and gave me feedback on the two. Everyone preferred the peanut butter and cocoa flavor, but liked the plain (banana) as well. They were all surprised by the creamy texture. “This is just banana?”
a dollop of peanut butter
some dutch-process cocoa
eat it soft or freeze it for scooping
I want to try using coconut milk, fresh berry purée, caramel, and of course, some mix-ins. It’s a great ice cream alternative if you don’t mind the presence of a banana flavor (Jeremy DID mind it), are lactose intolerant, or want a vegan or lowfat or low sugar version of a creamy summer treat. Plus, it’s fun and quick to make. I don’t have to plan ahead of time and chuck my ice cream maker container into the freezer the day before or deal with separating eggs. So that’s what I had for breakfast this morning – bananas, but in this lovely banana ice cream form. Win-win!!
kaweah got a little bit of the bottom scoop
Single Ingredient Ice Cream
from The Kitchn
4 bananas, just slightly overripe (brown spots good, completely black not so good)
2 tbsps creamy peanut butter (optional – thus 2 ingredient ice cream)
2 tsps cocoa powder (Dutch process), (optional – thus 2 or 3 ingredient ice cream depending on peanut butter)
DO NOT FREEZE THE WHOLE BANANA, you’ll have a heck of a time blending that beast.
Peel the bananas and slice them up into 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick disks. Place the banana slices in the freezer for about an hour or until they are frozen solid. Put the frozen slices in a food processor and pulse. First they will start to resemble gravel, but keep going. The bananas will soon turn into a frozen mush – at this point, start scraping the sides down (you will do this a lot). Or you could add a dash of milk since the liquid will help the blending. I’m lactose-intolerant, so after a few minutes of stopping to scrape the sides down, the banana begins to blend into a creamy texture. When the bananas look like whipped ice cream, you can add your mix-ins like peanut butter and/or cocoa powder, chocolate chips, toffee, raspberries, anything goes! Straight out of the food processor, the ice cream is like soft serve. You can also freeze it for a firmer texture. I find it’s pretty hard (and therefore, brittle) when I scoop it immediately after removing it from the freezer. Just give it a minute or two to soften up. Makes a pint.
August 12th, 2010 at 1:23 pm
I LOVE this idea.
Says another banana… not hater… um, “meh”er?
“And there she is.” HEE. She never fails to make my day better. :)
August 12th, 2010 at 1:25 pm
Wow! This is brilliant, and I could even feed it to the baby and not feel bad about giving her “junk food”.
Also, our beagle Spike comes running at the sound of a banana peeling – he and I share a banana for breakfast every day since around 2004 :) Bananas are my favorite fruit so we always have them around :D
August 12th, 2010 at 1:27 pm
Awesome idea. I always used to cut up bananas and put them in the freezer. This is the perfect next step. And the peanut butter, mmmmexcellent.
August 12th, 2010 at 1:29 pm
Oh, for the lactose intolerant! I have a son who is… Wonder if he would like it!? I am not ‘wild’ about bananas, and generally do the same as you (chuck em in the freezer after they have ‘turned’). BUT, I will buy some bananas this weekend to do JUST THIS!
I will be mixing in mini choc chips when it is ready… yum
August 12th, 2010 at 1:37 pm
I tried this a while back too! (i think my bananas were a little toooo ripe so it was definitely a stronger taste) And I added the peanut butter as well.
I’m definitely going to add some cocoa next time, and since i’m obsessed with coconut, coconut milk sounds awesome!
August 12th, 2010 at 1:43 pm
Awesome…I’ve been eating frozen banana chunks drizzled with melted chocolate & pb all summer (pre-run fuel, you know). Last week I took the step to blend it all up and make popsicles – they turned out amazing – like cream fudgicles. I wrote about it over on my blog, too. Great minds think alike! http://thewholekitchen.wordpress.com/2010/08/09/vegan-banana-chocolate-peanut-butter-popsicles/
August 12th, 2010 at 2:22 pm
I can’t believe that pure frozen banana makes something that creamy. I want to try this… with peanut butter.
August 12th, 2010 at 2:39 pm
That is JUST banana!! Kidding?? How simply wonderfully delicious is that!!
August 12th, 2010 at 2:58 pm
Jen, I started making this style of ice cream when I bought my Thermomixer. It is delicious mixed with frozen white peach. I haven’t tried it with peanut butter, sounds interesting.
August 12th, 2010 at 3:29 pm
Love this idea!! Will definitely make a great treat for our five-month-old daughter when she’s a bit older, and I won’t have to feel bad about giving her “ice cream” at all :D
August 12th, 2010 at 3:31 pm
A funny thing, my wife just started making something almost identical (without the peanut butter) a few weeks ago. I have to say I had a taste for it at the start, but something about the texture later put me off. I reckon it would be far better with your addition of peanut butter however!
August 12th, 2010 at 3:35 pm
i do have right a couple of bananas in the fridge that look a little… uhm… a little too “tanned” :D they’re not really black yet, but they seem to have some dark spots :P so i think they’ll work perfectly :P
i’m trying this in a couple of days or so
i usually make my own pb, but i do not have any ready to use in my fridge
so i think i’ll just add a couple of table spoons of nutella to replace pb and cocoa :)
I’m sorry about the spam :(
but think about the huge amount of… people who love you and your amazing blog Jen :)
greetings from Italy
S.
August 12th, 2010 at 5:11 pm
Great for lactose-intolerant, not great for those of us with latex allergies/sensitivity! Bananas are latex-containing fruit and give me the worst heartburn in the world because of it…so that means I can just keep eating real ice cream, right? ;)
August 12th, 2010 at 5:27 pm
Yeah, it’s so amazing how creamy it is. I’ve been doing it for awhile. Though I have yet to add peanut butter…I know what’s next on my list.
August 12th, 2010 at 5:33 pm
it’s amazing! i love making banana soft serve. sometimes, i’ll take frozen fruit and then scoop in a dollop of vanilla yogurt and blend blend blend! then i end up having something crazy like.. mango-pineapple-vanilla “sorbet.”
August 12th, 2010 at 5:38 pm
I was just reading a similar recipe!! Got some frozen bananas and will be making this soon! Awesomeness!
August 12th, 2010 at 7:54 pm
I like making this with a little Bailey’s. Such a great dessert!
August 12th, 2010 at 8:48 pm
this is very cool! it’s almost like magic :-) I bet the coconut milk will be an awesome addition — I’m trying this!
August 12th, 2010 at 9:03 pm
Wow! I’ve got a freezer full of bananas right now (none of them sliced, sadly) and have been pondering what to do with them. This sounds perfect!
August 12th, 2010 at 9:39 pm
You just made my kids’ lives a whole lot happier!:)
August 12th, 2010 at 10:01 pm
Love the diagram. I majored in geology at UNM (just ask Uncle Bill!). The banana dessert sounds great, too. ;)
August 12th, 2010 at 10:02 pm
OMG! This is the most wonderful idea and it seems like the perfect way to have dessert without all the guilt. I’m printing the recipe now so I can wake up and make it in the morning! Thanks for the great idea!
August 13th, 2010 at 12:04 am
This is so cool and healthy! I love ice cream (and anything sweet) and currently on a special diet to shed some pounds. Thanks for the good idea! :) I definitely will try that for breakfast tomorrow!
August 13th, 2010 at 12:54 am
A lovely ice cream! Those clouds are splendid and so dramatic!
Cheers,
Rosa
August 13th, 2010 at 1:38 am
This was my dinner yesterday lol!
August 13th, 2010 at 2:12 am
YES! I’ve made this, too! It’s really hard making it with just one banana, by the way. I really don’t like the texture of raw bananas but I don’t mind the flavour. And try this: melt a little peanut butter with a drizzle of milk in the microwave to make a sort of sauce. Drizzle it on top while it’s hot, and the coldness of the ice cream will (hopefully) harden the sauce! Awesome! :D
Wei-Wei
August 13th, 2010 at 5:45 am
Love it! Have a bunch of frozen bananas in the freezer (bummer that they are whole — wonder if I could chop them up a but with my mongo chef’s knife?). Giving this a try! Thanks Jen!
August 13th, 2010 at 5:47 am
Love the graph! LOL
I saw this ice cream too, but had some major doubts about it. You’ve totally talked me into it and I’m picking up a giant bunch of bananas the next time I hit the grocery store. I especially love the pb/choc version. Yummy.
August 13th, 2010 at 6:09 am
Hmmm, may have to try this for my banana loving son. The cloud shot is so beautiful…makes me think I’m camping & watching the embers as a fire dies down. WISH I was camping somewhere where the nights are cool & I could hike.
August 13th, 2010 at 7:11 am
This looks like a crazy easy way to get my ice cream fix. Food processor ice cream…go figure.
August 13th, 2010 at 7:32 am
Jen,
I do the same but instead of peanut butter I add dulce de leche.
Oh, you can do this kind of “ice cream” with strawberries too.
Cheers
August 13th, 2010 at 8:05 am
Whoa, a new texture triangle!! Awesome. Many thanks from a soil scientist with an improved outlook on food texture, especially in preparing for the west virginia state fair – starts tonight! :) Also great call on the easy frozen banana treat, can’t wait to try it.
August 13th, 2010 at 9:08 am
Would Kill, Kill, Kill for such a simplistic yet elegant treat.
August 13th, 2010 at 9:47 am
I MUST ask my sister to make this…….it looks marvelous!
August 13th, 2010 at 11:40 am
Wonderful post. I am going to use it at the Puyullap Fair in Washington to show a dairy free, healthy, easy and delicious ice cream alternative. Thanks. Your photos are always so lovely to look at.
August 13th, 2010 at 11:54 am
After seeing your images, I’m craving ice cream now. Great recipe.
August 13th, 2010 at 2:26 pm
Wow! My hubby will love this idea and be totally amazed. He loves bananas and peanut butter almost more than any other food, except for cheese. I will try it tonight and surprise him.
August 13th, 2010 at 4:34 pm
What a perfect ice cream! I will sure make some very soon. By the way, my entire family thought your dog was our dog. We have a black lab and they look literally identical:) labs are crazy about food…aren’t they?
August 13th, 2010 at 10:41 pm
One of these days I will try this… I keep meaning to. My dogs come when they smell a banana too. They both love fruit of any kind.
August 14th, 2010 at 12:18 am
OMG, look at the ickle puppy… God, your dog is beyond adorable. What a sweetie! Just one photo makes me want to totally cuddle her and give her skritches, and I’m not even a dog person.
August 14th, 2010 at 7:52 am
An interesting post from start to end! I couldn’t believe that creamy stuff in the food processor is pure BANANAS! Way cool! Lovely shot of the clouds!
August 14th, 2010 at 11:22 am
Hi Jen
August 14th, 2010 at 3:12 pm
Now this may sound strange, but I actually have a question for you concerning soybean sprouts. I bought some having never tried them before (OK I thought they were mung bean sprouts, but anyway) and when I tried one raw I could hardly handle the taste. I now realize you cook them, but are they supposed to taste like paint if you don’t or did I get bad sprouts? They look fine. I think. I’d really appreciate your input if you have a sec. Thanks! Ice cream looks great!
August 14th, 2010 at 8:35 pm
It’s gone viral! I just tried this for the first time on Tuesday just before you posted it and I am in LOVVVVVVVVVVVVVE. It is delicious, and I cannot get OVER how it’s only banana???? It’s my new go to treat!
August 15th, 2010 at 9:23 am
Ok, so I’ve seen this concept several times over the past few months (on various blogs through Foodgawker), but had yet to try it because of my skepticism – and the fact that no one provided photos of the process to actually prove that it works… until you came along. :) You see, I’m a missionary in an Asian country where dairy is a bit expensive, and as a lover of ice cream, it’s been a bit of a drag – until now! Thank you so much for not only posting this recipe, but for your photo-documentation of it as well. I just made a batch this evening with a scoop of Nutella, and it was divine. Thankfully, bananas are more than plentiful here, so I’m pretty sure I’ll be eating this quite often.
August 15th, 2010 at 6:30 pm
Whoa, Jen…I just made this with cocoa powder as you suggested, and it was sooooooooo good!
August 15th, 2010 at 7:16 pm
Hello, this is just such a genius idea. I thought my readers might like it, too, so I mentioned you in my weekly links round-up. Thanks for the inspiration.
August 16th, 2010 at 9:17 am
Thanks, Jen! This recipe is delicious AND healthy! My 3- and 5-year old boys loved it.
August 16th, 2010 at 12:26 pm
Wendi @ Bon Appetit Hon pointed me in your direction during my quest for a banana treat. Brilliant. I’m going to try this out tonight. My Monday suddenly got a whole lot cooler. And banana-y-er.
August 18th, 2010 at 7:40 am
I executed Operation Nicecream last night. Big winner. I can see this becoming a regular treat at the BAH house.
August 18th, 2010 at 11:11 am
Yay, ternary diagrams! And that one illustrates exactly why pie is so perfect – an even combination of starch, sugar, and fat (which sounds so much better than ‘grease’, doesn’t it?). Although iced tea seems a little misplaced – more sugary than candy? And I think funnel cake is fattier than pie. Maybe I need to stop overthinking this.
Someone had just told me about this ice cream idea. It didn’t sound all that good to me, because, gah, so much banana. But if you say it isn’t all that banana-y, and I could add cocoa…now that’s something I can get behind.
I was actually on vacation at the beach last week (which is why I’m very delayed in commenting). My family was sitting outside at night and we were seeing so many shooting stars! I thought it was just because there wasn’t any competing light from cities, but later I found out about the Perseids. Dur.
August 18th, 2010 at 12:46 pm
I was as surprised as the rest of you! But really, it’s quite amazing, and I like it (and it’s okay for me to eat!) YAY!!!
Melissa – she certainly brightens up the day when that little face shows up :)
Barbara – I’m so intrigued by your thermomixer, it sounds like it does everything but the grocery shopping!! :)
Matt – yes, I don’t think I could eat it too often or else I might start hating it too. Bananas… a fine line between love and hate there ;)
Serena – you’re so sweet, thank you!
Maggi – ugh, you’re right. That just means you get the real deal!
Peabody – me thinks salted caramel… hee hee.
Judy – ha ha, I should send it to Uncle Bill as well since he’s a geologist and a baker!
Sil – OMG! Dulce de leche! Genius. Wow. Must do this.
Jason, Jason, Jason – JACK! Quit creeping around my blog!!! :)
Bangsil – they sure are!
Renee – my dog loves food of any kind – even stuff you can’t eat!
Elizabeth – thanks, she’s a total screwball.
Jane – My mom says they taste horrible raw, so yeah, you didn’t get bad sprouts.
Sara – I hope you like it!
Sarah – you’re welcome! Thanks for the link love.
Bridget – I thought the iced tea was in the wrong place too, but southern sweet tea fits right about there (I don’t know what Pennsylvania Dutch cooking is truly like, but I have a guess).
August 19th, 2010 at 12:24 pm
I’m generally lukewarm on bananas, unless they’re smeared with peanut butter or Nutella. But really, what doesn’t get better with PB or Nutella? But that diagram up top? #1 AWESOME. And #2 I’m with Bridget – fat sounds way better than grease :)
August 19th, 2010 at 10:35 pm
This is fabulous! I borrowed your idea and went ahead and made a batch with some coconut milk. Somehow it didn’t incorporate completely and I was left with smooth banana ice cream with frozen flecks of coconut milk, really, really delicious. I also added a tablespoon of nutella to another batch at the very end and it was oh-so decadent. Thanks for this :)
August 21st, 2010 at 1:29 pm
[...] 45. make banana ice cream [...]
August 30th, 2010 at 5:42 am
[...] Source: single ingredient ice cream – use real butter [...]
September 29th, 2010 at 6:04 am
[...] failure in my quest to be one of the hip kidz, you might want to click on over here, and here, and here to see what all the dang fuss is [...]
January 14th, 2011 at 7:45 pm
Hi Jen, came here via Manisha’s post on FB..love the PB variation and although i have made this before, i am LOVING the idea of having this for breakfast! Thank you, thank you! Not just for the post, but for the super-eloquent pictures!
January 27th, 2011 at 7:18 am
I love the idea of dairy-less ice cream! I have problems with lactose but I really enjoy ice cream and now i think I’ve found the solution thanks so much! Plus I love bananas
January 28th, 2011 at 7:06 pm
This is the second time I’ve made banana ice cream. However, both times my banana ice cream had a bitter aftertaste to it. ): What could be the problem?
January 31st, 2011 at 11:27 am
Cheryl – are the bananas ripe? They should be just overripe.
March 29th, 2011 at 3:50 pm
Is there a way to make it into vanilla ice cream not fond of the banana flavor any help would be great thanks!! :)
April 4th, 2011 at 12:20 pm
K – I’m sorry, I haven’t found a way to remove the banana flavor (my hubz doesn’t like it either).
April 23rd, 2011 at 10:06 pm
Shut up, Jen. This is way too good to be true. I will try this for sure.
I can’t believe this. Honestly.
April 23rd, 2011 at 10:12 pm
You are truly a beautiful woman for blogging this recipe…:)
April 26th, 2011 at 3:05 pm
this was truly delicious. I added some frozen blueberries…unfortunately they stayed frozen! :-) going to do some new flavors next!
June 24th, 2011 at 7:25 am
This is EPIC.
June 29th, 2011 at 5:04 pm
[...] little later, I saw that Jen Yu from userealbutter made it. Her photos were so gorgeous, and the ice cream looked so creamy, that I had to try it for [...]
June 30th, 2011 at 8:37 pm
[...] found out about this “ice cream” from the blog Use Real Butter, who learned about it from The Kitchn (both blogs have equally good instructions/pics, so choose [...]
July 14th, 2011 at 9:01 am
I make this all the time. The only difference is I use a whole frozen banana and some fat free milk and mix everything in my blender (so that it is more of a smoothie texture)
If I’m feeling up to it, I even add a shot of espresso for a little morning kick!
July 25th, 2011 at 10:47 am
[...] This is a type of ice cream that most people can have! Provided that they are not allergic to bananas, but there’s NO other allergens in it! And this is probably ideal for diabetes. I’ll try it again with cocoa powder or a bit of peanut butter as the link suggests! Check it out at http://userealbutter.com/2010/08/12/single-ingredient-ice-cream-recipe/ [...]
July 28th, 2011 at 7:34 pm
[...] Until then take a look at the pictorial of this treat on Use Real Butter! [...]
August 2nd, 2011 at 10:58 am
[...] friend, Hannah, posted this on facebook. She got the recipe from Use Real Butter, who contributed the comments in parenthesis; great pics of the recipe on her site, btw. She [...]
August 3rd, 2011 at 3:42 pm
[...] you can make banana bread with old bananas, so I was super excited when I found this recipe for single ingredient ice cream, made purely of bananas. And I’m telling you, it tastes amazing, well unless, of course, you [...]
August 4th, 2011 at 9:57 pm
*whimper*
be still my heart! pretty much everything i love in one hit!
August 11th, 2011 at 8:31 pm
I’m thinking, a dollop of nutella, instead of peanut butter. I know it adds more sugar, but everything is better with Nutella.
August 23rd, 2011 at 1:58 pm
If you fry the bananas up a little and then freeze it tastes like banana nut bread!!
August 23rd, 2011 at 1:59 pm
Mel – oh wow!!! I’ll try that :)
September 9th, 2011 at 3:59 pm
im dying to try this, but im in australia and would you believe it we have a banana shortage at the moment due to flooding in the areas where bananas are grown! they are so expensive at the moment – AUD$3 per banana!!!
will have to wait till they come down in price….
September 12th, 2011 at 9:44 pm
[...] down a recipes for green tea and lavender ice cream, as well as this innovative take on peanut butter ice cream. (All of which they tooootally forgot about at Baskin Robbins, by the way. Too bad for [...]
September 14th, 2011 at 12:30 pm
Yummy! My kids love frozen bananas. We freeze overly ripe bananas to cut up and put in cereal as well as make chocolate covered bananas from time to time. But after finding your recipe I made this today and with the peanut butter and cocoa powder (adding a tsp of sugar as well) it was super yummy, creamy and just what we were craving for a healthy treat. Thanks for sharing. Cant wait to make it again.
September 17th, 2011 at 9:34 pm
thanks for sharing this! I bet it is yum and I hope to try it soon.
September 19th, 2011 at 4:35 pm
I made this, this morning for my kids to enjoy as an after school snack. Wow, I am amazed! I even thought it was a really delicious ice cream, and I LOVE ice cream. My kids kept asking for more too. I think I’m going to go get some more bananas tonight so I can start stocking this in my freezer for those nights when I just need something sweet. Thanks for the wonderful idea!
September 27th, 2011 at 1:03 am
One of my good friends is lactose intolerant and always has to go to a frozen yogurt place to get ice cream. When I told him I knew how to make lactose free ice cream his first response was “eww thats gross” but then I told him that it wasnt because it was made of bananas and had peanut butter and chocolate in it. Now he wants me to bring it to him all the time.
September 28th, 2011 at 10:45 pm
Love this recipe! I posted it on my community foodie blog; hope you can come check it out. http://www.facebook.com/thefrenchiefoodie
C
October 7th, 2011 at 9:33 am
Just heard about how you could make ice cream out of frozen bananas and hadn’t gotten around to looking for the recipe yet when it showed up on Pinterest. Made it immediately for my husband and he LOVED it. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.
October 18th, 2011 at 4:05 pm
Wow, what a perfect time to read this post! My 4 year old is feeling under the weather and I think chocolate ice-cream for dinner is just what the doctor ordered! Thanks so much for sharing – I’ll be sure to blog and link back to you :)
November 1st, 2011 at 2:10 pm
Oh, I’ll have to try this sometime, as I love bananas!
I would use almond butter instead though. It is so much healthier. :)
November 2nd, 2011 at 11:02 pm
Wow, just saw this on pinterest and it looks delicious! Thanks for sharing.
November 3rd, 2011 at 9:11 am
They now have a machine that can help you create this wonderful treat easily. It is called a Yonana. They sell it at Bed, Bath, and Beyond and it is a very reasonable price for how much I use it. Check out the link below.
http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?SKU=18484749
I have used strawberries, raspberries, mangos, pineapple, and cherries. They have all been delicious. Now I must try your peanut butter chocolate recipe. Thank you so much for sharing it with us.
November 9th, 2011 at 4:41 am
Can’t wait to try this. I have fozen a whole banana popped in the microwave for a few seconds and it is still cold enough but easy to puree or whip. Try one banana a few strawberries and blackberries. An amazing smoothie, non dairy and so good for you. I am super excited about trying chocolate and peanut butter with it.
November 11th, 2011 at 11:54 am
[...] Single (or two or three) Ingredient Ice Cream (Recipe found here) [...]
November 12th, 2011 at 1:40 pm
I used blueberries and raspberries in mine. It cut down the taste of banana a bit. All the kids in the house love it and its a great healthy snack for them.
November 14th, 2011 at 11:48 pm
I love this recipe and blog…I posted it on my community foodie blog. Hope you can come check it out http://www.facebook.com/thefrenchiefoodie
Also, feel free to post you’re recipes or you’re favourite foodie tips on it whenever you like!
December 1st, 2011 at 6:40 pm
this is great, thnx!
December 16th, 2011 at 12:11 pm
As a soil scientist and enthusiastic cook / baker, I WANT your ‘mineral’ diagram!! LOVE IT!!!
December 18th, 2011 at 4:05 pm
I pinned this on pinterest last week. I decided to try it tonight – talk about amazing!! I am following the paleo diet and am always looking for something to satisfy my sweet tooth since I eliminated most sugars. I love bananas and peanut butter. Thanks for this recipe!!
January 11th, 2012 at 8:34 am
Awesome. Cannot wait to try this!! Pure, whole foods are so much better for us. Always thought I had to cut ice cream out when I decided to cut out animal products. But not anymore. Thanks!!!
January 18th, 2012 at 9:08 pm
Can’t wait to try this. Amazing how much traffic this is still getting after all this time! Do you still enjoy this dish as much as you did back in 2010?
January 19th, 2012 at 8:32 am
Jason – I do, although I’m not much of a sweets person in general :)
January 22nd, 2012 at 1:04 pm
[...] plus I can’t eat sugar because of the January Challenge. I’d seen a recipe like this on Pinterest and wanted to give it a shot plus I wanted to try out my new powdered peanut [...]
January 22nd, 2012 at 2:36 pm
This changed my life! Thank you so much :) My roommates are just as obsessed as I am.
January 23rd, 2012 at 12:30 pm
what a cute adorable sweet dog!!! oh yeah, excellent treat for a poor university student in search of a snack….
January 24th, 2012 at 12:45 pm
Can you use a blender instead of a food processor if I use the lowest speed setting?
January 24th, 2012 at 8:02 pm
kim – it depends. My blender is pretty crappy – it would never work. But perhaps if you have a really heavy duty blender, you could do it?
January 28th, 2012 at 1:06 pm
I am the oposite here. I am not an ice cream lover, but I am a banana lover. I plan to try this next week.
January 31st, 2012 at 2:49 pm
We actually made this a couple of weeks ago, but without adding anything (so just banana). It was hard to make and I’m sure it was because we froze the bananas whole! I’ll cut them up next time- thanks for the tip!! Can’t wait to try it with peanut butter and cocoa too!
And for spam, if you’re on self-hosted WordPress, you can download a plugin called Growmap Anti Spambot Plugin. It requires that each commenter physically a box (bots can’t do it) when they comment. It cut my blog spam folder down from 500 a day to maybe 5 a WEEK! :) You wouldn’t need the Captcha code you’re using now either (which some people have trouble with anyway).
January 31st, 2012 at 6:37 pm
I made this many times, and it is delicious! I was wondering if you could do this with other fruits, like frozen strawberries or mangos. Would it have the same creamy result?
February 1st, 2012 at 1:28 am
jbg216 – doubtful… I think the texture of the banana is what creates the similarity to ice cream. Strawberries and mangoes aren’t gooey in the same way as bananas and so you’d end up with something more like sorbet.
February 1st, 2012 at 1:29 am
dawn – thanks for the tips. i’ll have to give it a try as i was getting up to 10,000 spam a day :\
February 1st, 2012 at 6:27 am
Jen, I can’t thank you enough. I made it just now, and I simply couldn’t get enough of it! I’m an American living in China, so it’s VERY hard to comeby ingredients for most recipes. Plus, I have a husband who has to strictly watch his fat and sugar intake cause he ended up with pancreatitis this summer from high triglycerides. This will dramatically improve our dessert options. And btw, this worked perfectly in our blender, and since I can’t buy cocoa here, I used 2 tsp of hot chocolate powder. Thank you, thank you.
February 1st, 2012 at 6:51 am
wonderful directions, this may help my diet as I am an ice cream addict. thank you
February 3rd, 2012 at 5:42 pm
I’ve been making smoothies this way for years. My teenager loves them! I hadn’t thought about making popsicles with the frozen concoction….great idea! I’m going to go do it now.
February 5th, 2012 at 7:04 am
Spray the container you’re going to freeze the bananas in with cooking spray. Then I use wax paper in between the layers. Makes it MUCH easier! :)
February 5th, 2012 at 4:59 pm
I just made this in my glass-jar, 7-year old Oster BLENDER and it worked perfectly! I was skeptical but it came out super creamy. The blade did get stuck a bunch of times and I had to use a spatula to move things around a bit but it got to the whipped state in under 5 minutes.
Now, the motor did sound unhappy but I just kept moving things around so it was free to spin and it survived. The only difficulty is that after scooping it out a bunch of the ice cream remained stuck underneath and around the blade. I used a small spatula and my finger (carefully) to pry away everything I could, but there was still more leftover banana down there than I was comfortable wasting (I hate wasting any food). SOLUTION: Poured 2/3c of cold milk in the blender, added 1 teaspoon of cocoa, and made delicious chocolate banana milk.
February 7th, 2012 at 9:39 am
Love this! Easy and tastes great!
February 11th, 2012 at 5:23 pm
Thank you!! I’m having this right now with just the cocoa and it’s FANTASTIC!! Making it was fun too. :)
February 12th, 2012 at 7:09 pm
Seriously this was absolutely delicious. I added a spoonful of peanut butter and it was better than regular peanut butter ice cream. Cannot believe how creamy and thick it was. Tasted like premium ice cream
February 15th, 2012 at 1:04 pm
Does anyone know if you can use a blender for this instead? And how about less bananas, I have 2? Someone please let me know because I’m so anxious to make this for dessert tonight. Thanks!
February 15th, 2012 at 1:52 pm
Tonya – shefeline was able to use a blender, although read her caveats. i think 2 bananas should be fine too.
February 20th, 2012 at 7:50 pm
Wow, I can’t wait to try this!
And I’m now kind of obsessed with your pup. She’s beautiful!
March 2nd, 2012 at 7:01 am
[...] Banana Ice Cream (From Use Real Butter) >> Click here for printable [...]
March 9th, 2012 at 7:19 am
This is wonderful. I love your chocolate version. I do something similar only I make a sherbet. I used a 10 oz. bag of frozen fruit (my favs are mango or sweet cherries), two frozen slices bananas, and enough fruit juice to make it whirl, about a half cup. With mango I use pineapple juice. With sweet cherries I use cranberry juice. The texture comes out amazing because of the bananas, and what a flavorful healthy snack or addition to a meal this makes. I don’t even have to add sugar with these two flavors.
March 11th, 2012 at 1:51 pm
Just made this today – amazing! Thank you!
March 14th, 2012 at 1:38 pm
I just whipped up a batch this morning! I incorporated some summer strawberries that I had left over form last years harvest (I go picking every year, and I always end up with loads in my freezer and no idea what to do with them). It’s totally delish! I got little pieces of strawberry floating in every bite. I’m pregnant and trying hard to stay healthy; recipies like this make it sooo easy! I’m trying the cocoa-peanut butter version next!
March 16th, 2012 at 2:08 pm
I made this using ONE banana and a spoon of Nutella.. For those wondering about a blender.. I made mine using the inexpensive MAGIC BULLET.. I used the small cup.. I sliced the frozen banana into smaller sections and PULSED the ingredients until smooth… worked great.. and it was still nice and COLD and just “hit the spot”
March 25th, 2012 at 10:32 pm
Good think I love bannanas, this might be a way to convince my husband I can have ice cream for breakfast :) Thank you!
March 28th, 2012 at 1:40 pm
[...] And BTW, I’m not the only one who uses bananas to make ice cream. [...]
March 28th, 2012 at 11:18 pm
Have you tired adding almond butter or cashew butter? holy moly!
April 1st, 2012 at 11:26 am
[...] Source: Use Real Butter [...]
April 6th, 2012 at 11:08 am
can i ask what kind of food processor/blender you use… i desperately need a new one and i desperately need to make this recipe… looks beyond amazing!
April 7th, 2012 at 12:09 am
Holly – I have an old Cuisinart Food Processor. Seems like folks have had success with blenders too (just add some liquid like milk or almond milk or…)
April 19th, 2012 at 2:31 pm
Does anyone know the calories on this awesome treat ?
April 19th, 2012 at 4:06 pm
LadyJ – 1 large banana = 120 calories, 2 tbsps peanut butter = 188 calories, 2 tsps cocoa powder = 8 calories. as there are 4 bananas: 480 + 188 + 8 = 676 calories per pint (approximately). consider a single serving to be 1/2 cup (which is 1/4 of a pint): 676/4 = 169 calories per serving.
April 19th, 2012 at 7:16 pm
Thank you so much,,, and that’s not bad at all , just took out of freezer so yummy
May 3rd, 2012 at 5:07 pm
I don’t have a food processor. Would a blender work just as good?
May 4th, 2012 at 4:01 am
[...] found the original recipe here on this blog. I decided to add some protein powder to it so I could have it before I go to bed. I [...]
May 4th, 2012 at 9:17 am
Shon – a powerful blender like a blendtec or a vitamix? probably. a standard blender like my old crappy one? you may need to add some liquid like milk or soy milk or almond milk?
May 4th, 2012 at 6:56 pm
There is a great ice cream place in Columbus, Ohio called Jeni’s Ice Cream and they have a delicious flavor called Bananas and Honey. I bet a little bit of honey would be yummy in the plain banana flavor. I’m giving it a try! Thanks for the great recipe!
May 5th, 2012 at 1:53 pm
You’re making banana sorbet! Check out the food network recipe! http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/frozen-banana-sorbet-recipe/index.html
May 6th, 2012 at 9:44 pm
I made this today and It was so good. I never knew frozen bananas can turn creamy. Also, I used a hand mixer instead and the banana ice cream came out great.
May 7th, 2012 at 3:53 pm
Made this today and it’s amazing! My daughter loves it! So nice that she thinks it’s ice crem but it totally healthy! Thanks for posting
May 8th, 2012 at 12:03 pm
WoW is all i can say!!!! I just made this for my kids and I and it was AMAZING!!!! I am a huge chocolate lover as well as ice cream and will never buy either again after having this. It took all the cravings for both away and was sweet and tasted like real ice cream! we added a tiny bit of vanilla soya milk to ours because my bananas we frozen whole and not chopped so was hard getting them blended but i was shocked and my kids actually loved it and was fully after one serving :) I’m in love!!! thanks so much for posting this!!!!!!
May 8th, 2012 at 7:06 pm
This recipe looks great, and your dog is toooo adorable!!
May 9th, 2012 at 8:26 pm
[...] Recipe Source: Use Real Butter [...]
May 12th, 2012 at 8:01 am
Did someone say “Nutella”? YUMM-O. Or Nilla Wafers and Cool Whip for “Bannana Pudding” Love this way to use banana’s. Thank You.
May 12th, 2012 at 1:58 pm
[...] GET THE RECIPE [...]
May 18th, 2012 at 12:05 pm
OK, so I’ve got sliced bananas (which were ripe to the point of some brown spots) in the freezer, lined up neatly on a wax paper-lined cookie sheet (because I am anally retentive…), now I’m just wondering, which attachment do I use? I have a 9-cup Cuisinart Food Processor I’ll be using for the very first time (got it for Mother’s Day, thanks James), and I’m a little nervous about wasting 4 perfectly good bananas. I plan on adding 1tsp vanilla and 1tbs Dutch process cocoa. Thanks so much!
May 19th, 2012 at 12:43 am
Carmen – use the metal blade attachment. Enjoy!
May 19th, 2012 at 7:04 pm
I just made this tonight and my family LOVED it so much! The only problem I need to fix is that it has a bad aftertaste that’s a little bitter. I realize this happens when I make banana smoothies too. Usually I overcome it in the smoothies by adding less bananas and more other fruit, to have balance. But, that’s not possible with the “one ingredient” banana ice cream :) Any ideas out there on what to add? And yes, I used very ripe bananas!
May 19th, 2012 at 10:47 pm
Ellen – hrrmmm, not sure? Perhaps you could add milk or almond milk or something that’s relatively healthy? And there is nothing wrong with adding other fruits (think of your smoothies in frozen form?). That might fix the bitter aftertaste?
May 21st, 2012 at 7:38 pm
Thanks for the reminder. One ingredient ice cream and all the variations are fabulous … specially for those of us who don’t do well with dairy….and who, like you, can’t keep a banana at the right ripeness for more than a day. BTW…I read that ripe bananas are great cancer fighters!
May 23rd, 2012 at 4:16 pm
I am excited to try this version. I’ve tried it in the blender with milk and add-ins, but just plain and with cocoa/peanut butter is fabulous. My favorite I’ve tried is with spinach (yes, I promise it doesn’t add any flavor–1 or 2 good sized handfuls) and mint extract (be careful to not get too much) and chocolate chips– Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream! It’s fabulous!!! And even healthier with green veggies…
May 24th, 2012 at 7:15 pm
Hi,
This is just awesome!!! I cannot believe that I am in love with bananas!! I wasn’t expecting that it will turn out to be so good, but yeah, it did. I used Vitamix to blend it and it turned out so great. Thank u so much for an awesome recipe. I can’t wait to blog about my experience and share it with my friends.
Cheers,
Vishu
May 24th, 2012 at 9:50 pm
I just got a Yonana machine today, so tried it this evening. I have used frozen bananas in my smoothies for years now. I freeze them with the peeling on and when I take out of freezer I run hot water over them and peel. Sometimes it just pulls right off, if not a use a paring knife to peel them. Then I let them sit for a little bit, so I can slice them with a butcher knife on a cutting board. My friend made the Yonana for me using strawberries & bananas…had to be thawed some or it comes out icey. We also tried cherries…just a bit tart, so may have to add a bit of sugar. I used too much strawberry in my Yonana this evening and the banana had thawed too much, so will have to get some experience in getting the fruit thawed just right.