Tuesday, April 29, 2014

Healthy banana "ice cream" aka my latest obsession


This simple concoction has become an addiction for me. For Bogdan and me, both, actually. Most nights we put the kids to bed (if Bogdan isn't working late) and blend up a batch, stick it in the freezer for 20 more minutes, and enjoy while catching up on our day (and maybe on the news and Jimmy Fallon as well). It's satisfying, chocolatey, naturally sweet, and so refreshing after a long day. I got the recipe from @wildelyraw on Instagram. It looked so amazingly delicious on her feed, I immediately added powdered peanut butter and raw cacao powder to my grocery list, and stocked up on bananas, of course. Hers was called a milkshake, because it does end up pretty runny after blending. I wanted more of an ice cream you can eat with your spoon, so we put ours back in the freezer for 20 minutes or so. And the trick is to use just enough coconut milk to be able to blend everything together, so it stays as solid as possible.


Recipe for two:

3 frozen sliced bananas
2 heaping tablespoons raw cacao
1 heaping tablespoon powdered peanut butter
about 1/2 cup coconut or almond milk

Blend everything together, separate into two bowls, and put in the freezer to harden up for about 20 minutes, or until you get a thick consistency. Top with your favorite toppings. We like pecans, almonds, walnuts, frozen berries, and chocolate chips.

I let my bananas ripen on the counter until they're getting brown spots, then peel and slice them into a glass container in layers of three bananas per layer, placed in between layers of parchment paper. Otherwise they stick together into one big mass, and you can't pry them apart. Also, this way they're premeasured so you don't overdose on bananas. The consistency is exactly like a quality milkshake, and yes, I'm picky about milkshakes and ice cream in general. Ice cream that doesn't even feel cold in your mouth just feels like you're eating whipping cream and sugar, but a good ice cream has an icy consistency to it that melts in your mouth. The frozen bananas in this version of "ice cream" have a smooth, creamy consistency, which is perfect for imitating the real thing. I honestly would eat this over ice cream any day, especially with nuts--heaven.


Give it a try and let me know how you like it!

xoxo,
Tanya

1 comment:

  1. If you freeze the bananas and then blend them it's like ice cream right away, delish! I keep sliced bananas in the freezer just for this!

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