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1-ingredient banana ice cream made with nothing more than frozen bananas! No ice cream maker required, it is the perfect healthy frozen treat. It is naturally vegan, gluten-free & customizable.

Perfect Vegan Ice Cream Made with 1 Ingredient

Homemade ice cream. Creamy, dreamy, home ice cream. My dad made it with an old-fashioned churn, involving plenty of ice and rock salt, when I was growing up and it was always worth the labor (the kids did most of the cranking) and the wait.

But what if I told you that you can enjoy homemade ice cream this summer that is:

Made with 1 ingredient
Naturally vegan (no eggs, no dairy)
Super healthy (no fat, no added sugar)
Ready to eat in minutes
Made without an ice cream machine

I’m pretty sure you’d say I’m living in fantasy land :).

But it is 100% TRUE!

Say hello to 1-Ingredient Banana Ice Cream!

Use Ripe, but Not Too Ripe Bananas

The ordinary, but magical, ingredient that makes this ice cream work is ripe bananas.

After making this ice cream multiple times, with bananas at varying degrees of ripeness, I recommend using bananas that are very ripe, but not squishy. The peels should still have plenty of yellow with a significant amount of brown spots.

Bananas that are too ripe will not produce a creamy ice cream; the starches have broken down to mostly sugar. You want a combination of some starch with plenty of sweetness, so use bananas that look a lot like the ones in the photo above.

Peel the bananas, slice or cut into small pieces, and freeze for at least 4 hours, or up to 6 months. The banana pieces should be frozen hard when you get around to making the ice cream.

Use a Food Processor or High Speed Blender to Make the Ice Cream

As promised, you do not need an ice cream maker to prepare this heavenly ice cream.

Instead, pull out your food processor or a high-speed blender (for example, a Vitamix or Blendtec).

Can I Use a Regular Blender to Make the Ice Cream?

I wish that this ice cream worked in a regular blender. I’ve tried, several times. My regular blender could not produce super-creamy results, despite stopping to scrape the container multiple times.

A food processor or high speed blender both work beautifully, but I have to say, my clunky old food processor produces the best results.

Make 1-Ingredient Banana Ice Cream

So let’s make some ice cream!

Begin by placing the frozen bananas into the bowl of the food processor (fitted with the regular S-blade), or in the high speed blender container.

Pulse the bananas until they are broken up into pebbly bits, like very coarse sand. Stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.

Repeat! Just keep on pulsing while stopping to scrape down the bowl every once in awhile. After a minute or two, you will begin to think “this isn’t happening, there’s NO WAY this is going to be anything like ice cream.” And then, the magic begins a few pulses later. Permission to get excited!

The bananas will start pulling together into what definitely resembles ice cream. At firm it will look like icy ice cream, perhaps with some liquid. It’s all good, you’re almost there!

Stop and scrape the bowl and keep pulsing. Moments later, MAGIC! The icy, uneven mix transforms into what looks like velvety soft serve ice cream!!!

You did it!

Eat as Soft Serve Ice Cream or Freeze Longer for Scoop-able Ice Cream

You can eat the ice cream straight away (soft-serve style) or pack into a container and freeze until hard for a scoop-able, traditional-style ice cream.

I cannot wait, so I invariable eat at least some of the ice cream immediately and free the rest for later.

Can I Add Additional Ingredients to the Ice Cream?

Yes!

At the most basic, I like to add a pinch of salt. It deepens the sweetness & flavor of the ice cream.

Here are some other add-in ideas to get your creative juices flowing. I suggest adding these at the end of the blending:

A splash of vanilla extract
Freshly grated lime zest & a splash of fresh lime juice (LOVE)
A few tablespoons of nut butter or chocolate-hazelnut spread
Finely chopped or grated chocolate
Finely chopped toasted nuts or toasted coconut

I know you are going to LOVE this ice cream! Happing blending!

More Easy Vegan Ice Creams To Try:

Mango Banana Coconut Ice Cream

3-ingredient Chocolate Banana Peanut Butter Ice Cream

Strawberry Hemp Ice Cream

2-Ingredient Strawberry Sorbet

Chocolate Avocado Ice Cream {5 ingredients}

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5 from 9 votes