Did that title pique your interest?
It did mine when I first saw it on the internet. In fact, this little phenomenon has been popping up on food blogs all over the place lately. Maybe you’ve heard of it referred to as “Nice Cream?” If you’re like me you’re probably wondering what could possibly possess all of the properties necessary so that just the item itself could be enough to magically transform into ice cream. Right? Apparently bananas.
I’ll admit I was very skeptical. When I think of banana ice cream, I think of something more like THIS. And obviously a frozen banana isn’t going to compare. But I have to say I was very surprised and very pleased with the results. Somehow whipping up frozen banana chunks creates some magical reaction and really does turn it into a creamy-smooth ice cream-like substance. Wanna see how?
Ingredient & Equipment Notes
- Food processor or blender – This recipe will work in pretty much any food processor. A high powered blender (Blendtec, Vitamix, Ninja Pro, etc.) will work as well.
- Add-ins – If you’d like, feel free to blend in a little peanut butter, Nutella, or cinnamon-sugar. You can also blend in a few frozen raspberries or blueberries for a fruity twist.
- Bananas – Bananas can tend to get a bitter taste to them after freezing and it’s intensified if they’re under-ripe So definitely use very ripe bananas for this. They shouldn’t be brown-mushy-banana-bread-ripe, but ripe. I found the best ones to be like the ones below, where the outsides were spotty but the insides weren’t brown yet at all. They were super sweet.
How To Make One-Ingredient Banana Ice Cream
- Try it with about 3 medium bananas. Slice or dice into small pieces (to make the blending part easier) and place in the freezer. Place frozen banana chunks into a food processor.
2. Can you guess the next step? Ya, blend those babies up. Depending on the size of your food processor, the amount of bananas, and how frozen they are, you may have to stop it a few times and scrape and mush the mixture around. I’ve had to do that every time.
The first time I tried this I was concerned when my mixture never turned into anything resembling ice cream. It just looked like tiny little grains, much like couscous!
But all I had to do was grab a spatula and when I stirred them even the tiniest bit, ta-da!
Sure enough it was smooth, creamy, and looked just like ice cream!
3. Now looking like ice cream is one thing, but what about the taste and texture? I was very surprised to find that this stuff actually feels like ice cream in my mouth. It tastes like- let’s be real here, bananas. But it’s still quite delish. One of the great things you can do is add some mix-ins to the food processor along with bananas. Sure it won’t make it “one” ingredient ice cream anymore, but it’s sure yummy. I tried one batch with some cinnamon-sugar, one with a spoonful of peanut butter, and our personal favorite: a scoop of heaven. Er…I mean, Nutella.
It’s really amazing how much frozen bananas can resemble ice cream.
The true test? This one:
Not only was this 4 year-old super happy to be eating a treat, he had noooo idea it was just bananas.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Can I make this ahead and freeze it? As is, this banana ice cream comes out like soft serve. For a more scoopable texture, pop it in the freezer for a bit. For longer freezing, make sure it is sealed tight to prevent freezer burn. You may need to let is sit out to soften for a bit if completely frozen.
Related Recipes
Looking for other ice cream ideas? Consider these Our Best Bites Favorites:
Ice Cream Crunch Bars (Tastes like Fried Ice Cream!)
Blueberry Cheesecake Ice Cream
Cherry Chocolate Ice Cream
Snickerdoodle Ice Cream
Caramelized Banana Ice Cream
Did You Make This?
I’d love to hear from you! Snap a picture and tag me on Instagram, then come back and give this recipe a rating!
Print
One-Ingredient Ice Cream
- Total Time: 3 hours, 10 minutes
Description
This ice cream is bananas– literally! Frozen bananas make the perfect base for a sweet, frozen treat. Add cinnamon-sugar, peanut butter, or Nutella for a fun twist.
Ingredients
3 medium ripe bananas (just beginning to show brown spots on the peel but the insides have not yet begun to brown– not underripe but also not as ripe as you would use for banana bread)
OPTIONAL ADD INS
cinnamon-sugar
peanut butter
Nutella
Instructions
Slice or dice bananas into small pieces (to make the blending part easier) and place in freezer until frozen through, at least a few hours.
Place frozen banana chunks into a food processor and blend. Depending on the size of your food processor, the amount of bananas, and how frozen they are, you may have to stop it a few times and scrape and mush the mixture around. I’ve had to do that every time.
The mixture may look crumbly and resemble cous cous. Just grab a spatula, stir it, and watch as it transforms into perfect soft serve banana ice cream.
If using, blend in your desired add ins to taste and serve.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Freezer time: 3 hours
Questions & Reviews
oh I love this I make it for my little boy all the time he is allergic to dairy, wheat, soy and nuts. this is perfect for him, minus the nutella, I will save it that part for me.
Oh! I am going to have to try the Nutella! We made banana ice cream with frozen bananas, honey and cream, but I will have to try this the next time I don't have cream on hand!
I just stumbled upon your blog today and am so excited! My son is allergic to wheat, milk, eggs, peanuts, tomatoes, and rice…and it's extremely difficult to find coconut milk ice cream that he can eat…and of course, he loves ice cream! 🙂
I am going to the store today to buy bananas to try this out for him! Can't wait to see how he loves it!!!
Yes, I'm late to the party on this one but WOW! Made this for my kids for breakfast this morning and they loved it. I loved it too. Next time we'll be trying some mix-ins…stir in a little peanut butter for protein and that's a whole meal!
I came across this after seeing the frozen banana split squares post. Wow, this sounds so simple but delish. Gotta try this one soon!
I haven't made this in awhile, but it's always a winner! I like to add frozen strawberries and sometimes a bit of yogurt. As long as there are enough bananas, it still has that ice cream-y consistency instead of going sherbet. I put it in a cone for my 2-year old and he loves it! I'm thrilled that it doesn't require an ice cream maker, as that won't make the top of my priority purchase list any time soon.
I was really excited about this idea since I'm really trying to focus on good, healthy snacks for our 2.5yo daughter. I just made this in our Ninja Blender and it didn't even take a few minutes. I was tempted to throw in some frozen blueberries or strawberries that was beside my ginormous bag of frozen banana chunks, but I decided to try it plain the first time. My little one loved it!!
This is a perfect recipe for my family, because any time our bananas start getting too mushy I break them up in pieces and throw them in a bag in the freezer. I figure this is a way better way to eat them than making banana bread or something yummy that likes my hips too much. 🙂
I love this!!! It was so good…thanks for such a great health snack idea!!
What an awesome idea!
I just tried it, and it really does taste like ice cream and even has the same texture!!
I even used super ripe bananas that had been frozen in their skins and it turned out great!
This is AWESOME – I've just shared it with all my friends.
For folks without a food processor: I did have to use a blender, and it did work. The only problem is that I had to blend it soooo long to get the banana chunks all smooth – so by the time it was done the consistency was closer to half-melted ice cream instead of like the scoop in your picture. But it was still delicious, and if this is the cost of having to use a blender, I can live with that. Next time I'll break the bananas into smaller chunks before freezing and see if that makes a difference.
THANK YOU!!!!
This is a totally awesome "dessert" for kids. I also feed this to my 6 month old nephew who is teething. It works great because the cold soothes the gums and it is only bananas so he can eat it!!
Love it. I'm trying to eat a little healthier and ice cream for breakfast last week really hit the spot. It was such a great after workout treat.
The Joy- my kids call sprinkles "sparkles" too! Love it, lol.
LOVE THIS! I tried it this morning with my two kids (4 and 2 1/2) and it was a huge hit! We even put a few sprinkles on it to make it sparkly (as my kids say). My daughter (4) suggested we try it with raspberries next time too!
Thank you so much! It was just what we needed for an easy breakfast/snack while we are trying to move!
Jennifer- so glad you've been enjoying this! I'm sure you could make this ahead of time and freeze it, but it would definitely get rock hard. You'd have to let it sit out before you could get a spoon into it!
Sooooo good. I've made this 3x since reading your blog last week. My husband and I started a new diet and this works perfect for our sweet tooth moments.
Do you know if you can make ahead and store in the freezer?
Love it! I'll definitely be giving this a whirl! 🙂 Ha-ha!
~ingrid
I really wish I had read this post before I threw away the brown bananas on my counter this morning! So excited to try this- we just started a new diet and the old brown bananas couldn't be made into banana bread- too many calories! Hooray for a low calorie sweet treat!!
love your blog, love that banana ice cream is a breakfast food. Yeah
I was so excited to try this recipe, and then reading the comments, I was bummed to find out it probably wouldn't work without a food processor, a juicer or an insanely powerful blender.
I had already frozen my banana chunks, so I looked at my KitchenAid an thought "What could it hurt?"
It worked!! It was a tiny bit more "complicated" then a food processor, but really, all I had to do was break up big chunks and keep an eye on the speed.
The banana "ice cream" is amazing! I added a spoonful of Nutella, yum!!!
Oh yummy! I love bananas and I am going to definitely try this! I am going to mix coconut in mine because I love coconut and that goes well with bananas! Mmmmm
I can't wait to try this. Especially with the nutella add in.
I made this last night! It was pretty good. I could even share it with my 6 month old. He loved it! Thanks for posting this
We totally made this yesterday and it was good. Even my 2 year old that has NEVER eaten even pieces of bananas in her entire life ate the small portion we gave her.
Thanks for sharing!
Wow! What a neat idea! I always end up with 1/2 of my bananas looking like this before they get eaten at our house. You would think I would learn and just buy less…And I have been banned from making banana bread in my house since it never EVER turns out right. So this is a really neat alternative to throwing away all those bananas! Thanks for sharing!
I made this ALL the time when my kids were small–on occassion I would add honey and vanilla mmmmm but IMO you must eat fast before it starts to melt!
OMG you guys just keep flooring me recipe after recipe :)This looks awesome. I heart bananas. This is soo going on my blog. With a HUGE shout out to you of course!
This is funny. I've been doing this exact thing for years. I got it as a tip from a dietitian several years ago. My favorite is to mix in some frozen strawberries or any berry for that matter. Also good, chopped raw almonds. Yummy!
I tried this last night and it was surprisingly delicious and ice cream like. Thanks for the fun and low cal recipe!
This is so interesting! I will have to try making it for my kids, which is also the perfect excuse to now get myself a food processor. 🙂