I love ice cream. Way too much. I can’t help it. I love the creamy consistency, the tongue-coating richness of the cream and eggs, the way the flavors intensify as it slowly melts on my tongue. I can savor it slowly, or eat it quickly, guiltily, chewing each mouthful while keeping an eye out for witnesses. I cannot keep any in my freezer, or it will call to me all day while I am at work. “Sarah, come and eat me, I taste so good. My magical powers will erase every bit of depression from your day.” My mouth waters and I start day dreaming of dark chocolate, fragrant mint, soothing vanilla, brownie bits, fudge swirls . . . I get off track and drift into a dream world of low-productivity. Best to keep temptation far away from me. But what about when (not if!) the ice cream cravings attack me? I need a solution. Something creamy, sweet and cold. Something to satisfy my cravings, without side tracking me from my goal of healthy eating. The answer: Banana Ice Cream. Not really ice cream, closer to sorbet. But, close enough to ice cream to replace the calorie-filled evil banished from my freezer.
Banana Ice Cream
All you really need is a blender, a freezer, and bananas. Feel free to improvise off of this “recipe”. I am sure cinnamon, vanilla, lemon juice, lime juice, nutmeg, etc . . . would all work great in addition to the basic banana. Freeze however many bananas you would like to purée. I recommend peeling the bananas first, then laying them on a cookie sheet so no banana touches any other banana. Then freeze them. At this point, you can put them in Ziploc bags or freezer containers, and save them for banana bread, muffins, cake, or ice cream. Or, you can remove them from the freezer and let them thaw just long enough so they do not completely pulverize your blender. They should still be plenty cold, and icy, but not rock hard. Add them to the blender and purée. You can add some liquid if the bananas don’t want to behave. Water, milk, soy milk, juice, etc . . . Puree until smooth and serve immediately. You can freeze it if you want a firmer consistency, but come on, who can wait when an ice cream craving strikes? No added sugar, or fat, just naturally sweet fruit and a little man-made power.
What Am I Eating? 