Easy Homemade Banana Ice Cream: the super easy ice cream recipe you need to try

Most home cooks are hesitant to try their hand at making ice cream. And there’s good reason for this. The process of making ice cream can be rather tricky, and most of the time you need an ice cream maker. But for this Banana Ice Cream, you need only a handful of ingredients – and no ice cream maker! The bananas are frozen and processed in a blender to make a sweet and creamy ice cream base. Because of the natural sweetness of banana, no additional sugar is needed. If you’ve been craving ice cream, but are on the lookout for something healthier, then keep this recipe. You can easily modify it to make it healthier – see our recipe notes below!

How To Make Banana Ice Cream

For this recipe you don’t need fancy equipment. With just a blender, freezer, and a few bananas you can make a delicious, healthy dessert. When you blend the bananas in the food processor, they will start to look crumbly. Continue blending until you get a smooth consistency.

The recipe does not need to be followed strictly, see our variation ideas below. You can alter this recipe for anyone who is on a vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, or no-sugar-added diet!

Instructions

Peel the bananas and cut them into ½ inch slices. Places the slices on a tray and freeze overnight.

Add the frozen banana slices to a blender and pulse unto smooth.

Scoop half of the banana mixture in a bowl. Add the hazelnut spread, cocoa powder, and hazelnuts.

In another bowl, combine the remaining banana mixture with the crushed chocolate cookies.

Place the two mixtures side by side in a bowl, and freezer overnight.

Scoop the frozen banana ice cream into a serving bowl and top with caramel and fresh fruits.

Recipe Tips and Notes

Green bananas don’t freeze well (they taste very bland in the ice cream), so for this Banana Ice Cream recipe, rather use ripe or overripe bananas.

The thinner the slices, the easier it will be to blend them to a smooth consistency.

Freeze the bananas in a single layer. This will prevent clumping, making them easier to separate into the blender. A food processor works slightly better to get a creamy consistency, but a blender will also do the job.

Variations 

For plain (and healthy) banana ice cream, make the recipe with bananas only. Remember that the riper the bananas are, the sweeter your ice cream will be. For more variety, try any of the following ideas:

Cinnamon: add 1 tsp ground cinnamon to the bananas when blending.

Peanut butter: add 2 – 3 Tbsp peanut butter to the bananas while blending. You can use any other nut butter you prefer.

Chocolate: add 2 Tbsp cocoa powder to the bananas in the blender.

Blueberry: add 1 cup blueberries (or any other berry) to the banana mixture in the blender. The fruit will make the Banana Ice Cream slightly tart. Add a dash of honey of you want to make it sweeter.

Mint Choc Chip: stir 1/8 tsp peppermint extract and cacao nibs through the smooth banana mixture.

Pina colada: add ¼ cup coconut milk and ½ cup chopped pineapple to the blended banana mixture.

Pistachio: add 2 tsp chopped pistachios and 1/8 tsp vanilla extract to the blended banana mixture.

Remember to only add the mix-ins after the bananas are at a smooth consistency!