Author Archives: amylaree

Magic One-Ingredient Ice Cream 5 Ways from TheKitchn.

Ice cream, ice cream. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.

When it comes to ice cream, I’m a junky. So much so that I have a Pinterest board dedicated to ice cream in all its various forms and fashions. However, not long after Little E joined us, I had to cut dairy out of my diet to help clear up some of his digestive issues… which meant no ice cream. Ugh.

So, after seeing a few pins of the “miracle” one-ingredient banana “ice cream” I became intrigued. When this 5-variations of one-ingredient banana ice cream popped into my feed, I knew it was time to give it a try. I had my doubts – so many variations based on a basic banana – how good could these be? As it turns out, pretty darn good. This is an incredibly easy and tasty alternative to the real thing.

Here are my thoughts and recommendations…

1. Not including freezing the sliced bananas, it took me less than 45 minutes to make 4 of these 5 variations – including rinsing the food processor between each batch. I would’ve made all 5, but I only had enough bananas for 4 variations. (Note to self: learn how to count bananas.)
2. Once you’ve sliced and frozen the bananas, give them about 15 minutes or so to loosen up before dropping them into the food processor. The softer banana chunks will be much more gentle on your food processor.
3. While you want the bananas softer for the food processor, be sure to freeze it promptly after finishing in the food processor. After it’s frozen, don’t give it too much time to thaw before people start eating it up. There’s a fine line during the thawing process between the ice cream texture and mushy banana!
4. Be sure to check out the comments in the original recipe post – there are lots of good ideas for additional variations, including mango and pineapple versions.
5. So what was the best? None of these will replace Ben & Jerry’s, but they’re all a mighty fine substitute. As for the best, this is very subjective and as my hubs commented, really depends on your mood.

• Strawberry had the most distinctive flavor – very tart and not much banana flavor (this was my favorite).
• Nutella version, however, was surprisingly banana-y but still very good (this was my hub’s favorite). Top it with some more Nutella and you’ll be in hazelnut heaven.
• Peanut Butter and Honey  was creamy like a PB cookie. However, it could’ve used a bit more honey if you like a more pronounced honey flavor – maybe up that to a tablespoon of honey if you like that flavor combo.
• Dulce de Leche was at the bottom of both of our lists. This tasted more like a Cinnabon-flavored ice cream than Dulce de Leche. If you make this version, you may consider adding more sweetened condensed milk to help make it a little bit richer. You try actually making dulce de leche then mixing it in instead of just the sweetened condensed milk.

Go to the store, grab a bunch of bananas, pop them in the freezer and get to blending. Whatever variation you choose, you’ll be glad you tried out this (relatively) guilt-free dessert!

Pinterest in Real Life: 1 Ingredient Ice Cream, 4 Variations