Banana Ice Cream with Coconut Milk

Get ready for an ice cream that you don’t have to feel guilty about! This banana coconut ice cream is naturally sweetened with bananas, is dairy-free but yet still creamy, and takes only a few ingredients to make. You can also add or substitute the bananas with other fruits. You will just need a natural sweetener like honey if you omit the bananas.

Ingredients:

• 4 large, ripe bananas
• 2 cups of coconut cream from 2 cans of coconut milk
• 1/3 tsp vanilla extract
• Up to 2/3 cup of coconut water from the 2 cans of coconut milk (optional)
• Pinch of cinnamon (optional)
• Sea salt to taste (optional)

Other optional ingredients:

• Strawberry / raspberry ice cream: 1/2 cup of strawberries or raspberries
• Dark chocolate ice cream: 1/3 cup of cocoa powder
• Mint and chocolate chip ice cream: substitute vanilla extract with peppermint extract and add 1/4 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips (preferably free of refined sugar)
• Chocolate peanut butter: 2 tablespoon creamy peanut butter and 1 tablespoon cocoa powder

Directions:

1. Refrigerate the 2 cans of coconut milk overnight or place in freezer for 1 hour.
2. Slice the bananas into small chunks and freeze until solid, at least 1-2 hours.
3. Open the cans of coconut milk without shaking them. The  coconut cream (which is thick and white) will have separated out from the coconut water and floated up to the top of the cans. Scoop out the coconut cream and place it in a strong blender. Keep the remaining water for the next step if it is needed.
4. Add the frozen bananas to the blender and blend until smooth and creamy. This will take a few minutes and may require you to scrape down the sides of the blender with a spatula a few times. If your blender has trouble blending the ingredients, add a tablespoon of coconut water to the blender at a time. Do not add more than 2/3 cup of coconut water or the ice cream will be too soft.
5. Add the vanilla extract, cinnamon, sea salt or the other optional ingredients. Pulse the blender a few times to mix the ingredients all together.
6. Serve immediately. This ice cream is best eaten immediately or after the first time you freeze it. Each time you refreeze it thereafter, more ice crystals will form and the harder it will be to scoop. If you do find yourself having to refreeze, just wait for a little while for it defrost before trying to scoop. Enjoy!