Vegan Ice Cream without a machine
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Man, you guys are so lucky! Today’s recipe is actually a triple-threat with not one, not two, but three (count ‘em) recipes for delicious, vegan, sugar free ice cream without even having to use an ice cream maker. I’m so good to you.
So the core ingredient in this ice cream is bananas. It’s almost magical – if you slice up a banana, freeze the slices, and then blend the frozen pieces in a food processor, it turns into a smooth, creamy substance that is very much like ice cream. (Somewhere between regular ice cream and soft serve in texture.) And that right there is Banana Ice Cream! So actually I’m giving you four recipes. You’re welcome.
Assuming you want to branch out beyond banana flavored ice cream, your first option is a nice simple berry blend. Throw your frozen banana slices into the processor along with about 1/4 cup frozen berries – I used a mix but you can really use whatever kind you like. Blend until creamy and you’ve got Berry Ice Cream.
But seriously, does anyone actually like fruit flavored ice cream? C’mon, let’s get to the really decadent options! That’s right – Chocolate Peanut Butter. Is there a better combination of flavors in the world than chocolate and peanut butter? Banana fits in quite nicely with those as well. So this time you will combine your frozen banana with a couple tablespoons of peanut butter and a couple tablespoons of cocoa powder. Blend and be amazed!
You really don’t even taste the banana in this, it’s all about the peanut butter and chocolate. So freakin’ good.
And for my last number, I present: Butter Pecan! That’s right kids, you too can make your very own delicious Butter Pecan ice cream right in the comfort of your very own food processor. This one takes a tiny bit more prep because you have to chop up some pecans and coat them in a 50/50 maple syrup/agave nectar mixture.
Toast those in the oven for about an hour at 300 degrees until the syrup hardens. You may want to pop them in the fridge for an additional 20 minutes to really let it get good and crunchy.
Then all you have to do is blend your candied pecans with your frozen banana and a teaspoon of vanilla (you can even add a dollop of coconut milk if you’re feeling really decadent) and you’ve got Butter Pecan Ice Cream. Ta Da! This one is probably my favorite, it’s so good. And again, the banana isn’t nearly as strong of a flavor as you’d think.
So there you have it, three different and delicious flavors of vegan, sugar free ice cream. As you probably figured out, once you know the banana trick you can really experiment with a ton of options – have any of you tried this? Any favorite recipes I should know about?
Each of the recipes below makes about a cup and a half of ice cream, but it is very easy to double or triple the recipes.
Berry Blend Ice Cream (Vegan, gluten free, low fat, sugar free)
Ingredients:
- 2 bananas, sliced then frozen (note that it says slice then freeze. Doing it the other way around is much more difficult.)
- 1/2 c. Frozen mixed berries
Directions:
Blend bananas and berries together in a food processor until smooth. Depending on how frozen your bananas are, it may go through a crumbly phase – just scrape down the sides of the bowl and keep blending and it will smooth out. Top with additional frozen berries.
Peanut Butter Chocolate Ice Cream (Vegan, gluten free, low fat, sugar free)
Ingredients:
- 2 bananas, sliced then frozen (note that it says slice then freeze. Doing it the other way around is much more difficult.)
- 3 Tbsp creamy peanut butter
- 3 Tbsp cocoa powder
- 1 tsp agave nectar (optional)
Directions:
Blend bananas, peanut butter and chocolate together in a food processor until smooth. Depending on how frozen your bananas are, it may go through a crumbly phase – just scrape down the sides of the bowl and keep blending and it will smooth out. Add agave nectar to taste. Top with chopped peanuts and chocolate, if desired.
Butter Pecan Ice Cream (Vegan, gluten free, low fat, sugar free)
Ingredients:
- 2 bananas, sliced then frozen (note that it says slice then freeze. Doing it the other way around is much more difficult.)
- 1 c. pecans, roughly chopped
- 1 tsp agave nectar
- 1 tsp maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 Tbsp coconut milk (optional)
Directions:
Mix agave nectar and maple syrup together and toss with chopped pecans to coat. Spread coated pecans on a parchment lined cookie sheet and toast at 300 degrees for about an hour. Refrigerate for 20 minutes to an hour.
Blend bananas, candied pecans, vanilla and coconut milk (if using) together in a food processor until smooth. Depending on how frozen your bananas are, it may go through a crumbly phase – just scrape down the sides of the bowl and keep blending and it will smooth out. Top with a few of the candied pecans.
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65 Responses to “Vegan Ice Cream without a machine”Trackbacks
Check out what others are saying about this post...[...] See the full recipe by Jessica via cleangreensimple. View Post… [...]
[...] Original post by Jessica [...]
[...] link: Vegan Ice Cream without a machine Posted on March 14, 2011 by admin. This entry was posted in Cream and tagged cream, sugar-free, [...]
[...] Vegan Ice Cream Without a Machine! I made the peanut butter chocolate one and it was amazing! I love this song: Digg this post Recommend on Facebook share via Reddit Share with Stumblers Tumblr it Tweet about it [...]
[...] Ingredient “Ice Cream” (Hint: the ingredient is a fruit!) (The Kitchn) –Berry Blend, Peanut Butter Chocolate, and Butter Pecan Ice Cream: all low-fat, vegan, sugar-free, gluten-free, and naturally delicious! (Clean Green Simple) [...]
[...] Ingredient “Ice Cream” (Hint: the ingredient is a fruit!) (The Kitchn) –Berry Blend, Peanut Butter Chocolate, and Butter Pecan Ice Cream: all low-fat, vegan, sugar-free, gluten-free, and naturally delicious! (Clean Green Simple) [...]
[...] Vegan Ice Cream Without A Machine [...]
[...] It’s impossibly elementary and discerning to make healthy ice cream, and we don’t even need a machine! All we need is some solidified bananas: http://cleangreensimple.com/2011/03/vegan-ice-cream-without-a-machine/ [...]
[...] a recipe similar to this a while ago when I posted about the 3 vegan banana ice creams from Clean Green Simple. Since then I’ve made it a few times a week (okay, sometimes daily) for most of the summer, [...]
[...] I have made this vegan ice cream by clean, green, simple three or four times this week. My favorite is the chocolate peanut [...]
[...] sorbet versions such as those here suggest peanut butter mixed with cocoa powder. Have fun kids, and post any cool variations you [...]
[...] sounds so simple, yet so tasty. The base of this kind of vegan ice-cream recipe from Clean Green Simple is banana. You slice it up, freeze it and blend it just before serving. A creamy, smoothie-like [...]
[...] Vegan ice cream without a machine [...]
[...] Adapted or Inspired by (Attribution): Clean Green and Simple’s Vegan Ice Cream without a Machine http://cleangreensimple.com/2011/03/vegan-ice-cream-without-a-machine/ [...]
I’m ready for a sample….and I’m not even big on ice cream!!!….hmmm, so good!!!!
I love banana ice cream! So many different variations have been made in my food processor!
These look delicious! You mentioned you can’t taste the banana in the chocolate peanut butter one, but what about the others? I hate bananas but would love to try these recipes if the taste is ‘masked’ by the other ingredients!
Well, I can’t really taste it, but I think banana is a pretty neutral flavor – if you don’t like it it might be more noticeable to you. But at least it’s a fairly quick and cheap recipe to try! If you do try it please let me know if you like it, I’d love to hear if it works for people who don’t like bananas!
^About the banana taste… I think it’ll depend on how ripe the banana is when you freeze/process it. I don’t particularly enjoy ripe bananas because of the texture and the strong fragrance, but a frozen ripe banana isn’t nearly as strong. When we run out of fresh bananas for smoothies, I have to turn to my family’s reserve of frozen “overly ripe” bananas (we freeze them when they get too ripe and no one wants to eat them anymore! lol)
I haven’t tried this recipe yet, but I’m really excited to try it! A warning about using semi-green bananas though – although I’m partial to eating semi-green bananas (yellow, but with a touch of green), if it’s not ripe enough then the bitter taste might come through, and the texture might come out different. Any who, I’ll just try the recipe already
This is amazing! I can’t tell you how long I’ve been looking for vegan ice cream recipes. I’ve tried a few and they were all major fails (most noteworthy was the cashew nut as a base) but I am definitely trying these. Going to freeze some bananas tonight and make the chocolate & PB tomorrow! THANKS.
P.S. Tried your maple vanilla granola today. It was amazing. Will blog about it tomorrow
Awesome! I hope you enjoy the ice cream – can’t wait to see your post about the granola!
I’m a huge fan of Vegan Ice Cream. It has a very unique but delicious flavor.
Wow. Already enjoying this for breakfast, I could not wait! I added frozen blueberries and strawberries. I did have to add about 1/2 cup almond milk as it was too thick to mix up in the food processor without some liquid help. Yum Yum!
That’s a good idea to add a splash of milk to make it a little smoother. Glad you’re enjoying it!
Wow all of those look so delicious! I’ve made the frozen bananas before (so good) but didn’t think about all of the amazing possibilities that could be created! I gave up dessert for Lent…but since these are technically sugar free perhaps its allowed?? Can’t wait to make them!
Just have it in the morning and call it breakfast!
Amazing concept! I love the simplicity and many variations! Might try a bit of almond milk with the chocolate combination.
Between a dairy free son and my being wheat/egg free, I think we have a winner!
I must admit that I really dislike bananas. Another thing I hate about sorbets is the added sugars. So I as soon as I saw this recipe I couldn’t help but borrow one of the hubs bananas, slice it and freeze it. I have a bag of mixed berries in the freezer so in an hour I was good to go. Wow!! The banana flavor was very subtle and the texture was creamy. And no soy or almond milk needed. I can’t wait to get some creamy peanut butter to try the next flavor. Thank you so much for this no added sugar treat!!
That’s great that you enjoy it even though you don’t like bananas! Just wait until you try the peanut butter
I predict that this will severely improve my life
I love this so much… I can’t even begin to tell you how much! And since my Sister In Law is dairy free this is like a total blessing! Congrats on the top 9!
i’m excited to try this, thank you for posting!
These all look fabulous! I would love a huge spoonful of the PB & chocolate right now.
Sadly, I can’t have bananas, but I’ve done almost the same thing with pear. And this method works with more traditional (vegan) “ice cream” bases, too. I’ve posted several different flavors that way and they all work in the food processor, whether or not you have banana in the mix. 
You’ve made me think summer’s on the way–and I can’t wait!
Love the berry one! So pretty.
I still dont get hoiw it turns out so creamy looking…and how long do you blend it for? on average?
and you dont freeze the icecream mixture after the blending?
Mine never turns out smooth…
I’d say I blend it for maybe…2 or 3 minutes? It really seems to depend on how frozen the bananas are – I notice that they go through a sort of crumbly phase if they are very frozen. Try either freezing them for just an hour or two, or if they are in the freezer longer take them out and let them defrost for maybe 30 minutes before you blend them. Some people have also suggested adding soy or rice milk, you could try that.
Trying this riiiight now! It just sounds so easy and delicious, how could you NOT try it?! :] thanks for sharing this wonderfulness
I have been on a very restrictive diet for the last 8 weeks. I was skeptical but tried this last night and it was delicious!! I made the chocolate-peanut butter and it was sweet enough without adding anything. Wow! Thank you so much for sharing this!
All of the flavors look delicious, but that chocolate peanut butter left my mouth watering! I think I’ll make this tonight!
I loved this post! I’m not even vegan or lactose intolerant, but I make frozen banana ice cream all the time when it’s warm out. I’m excited to try these flavors.
Wow this is seriously fantastic. I am gluten free and dairy free (and getting married in a few months so watching what I am eating). I didn’t have any chocolate or peanu tbutter on hand, but did have some canned pumpkin, added a little spice and ended up with the best dessert ever – with no guilt. Thanks for the recipe!
I blend my frozen banana with low fat milk and I was just wondering why is my ice cream turn brown-ish after I put them back to freezer?
It still taste wonderful, though. Definitely will be so much better with cookie crumbs \\(^o^)//
this is fantastic!!! .ty. I used tahini instead of peanut butter ( a lot less calories.
Wonderful photography and excellent ideas!! I adore the fact that it’s Vegan AND Sugar-Free! Splendid!!!!!! I have the bananas freezing for the Butter Pecan (candied pecans are cooling now-I used brown rice syrup in place of agave and am using all organic ingredients). I decided to use “fresh frozen” bananas instead of the black ones in the freezer now (they have a “funny” taste I can’t get past). I’m really excited to try this recipe!! I hope my children love it! Thank you!!
What a shocker! Tasty!! This is a delicious cross between gelato and pudding texture…that is just right : )
Ooh those look so good! I plan on making homemade ice cream + all the fixings so I needed something low-sugar to keep it a bit healthy. Thank you!
Great recipe! My 8 yr. old can do this by himself! I had some turkey figs and pistachios I needed to use and added a spoonful of Nutella to it. Can’t wait to try it tonight!
This can be a great idea!:) I have the freezer space problem, too, though. We have a very deep freeze, but it’s full of stuff that many people don’t eat (just like frozen pizzas for my brother). Maybe I ought to rearrange stuff and make room for frozen meals! Virgina Shillings
Wow! Thank you so much! I love this website. I have already told one of my friends about it and I only found it yesterday!
HaHa! I just had this for breakfast as well! I made mine with banana & peach…yummy! I am so glad I don’t have to buy an ice cream maker… yet another machine to put on my counter.
Tried the peanut butter one and just LOVED it. I can’t wait to try some of the others!
I love love love these recipes…ive made all of them…the choc peanut butter is my fave…i literally have ice cream every night lol
Just made this for the first time using peanut butter and cacao..my only problem was impatience.. didn’t give my bananas time to completely freeze so it was more like a soft serve on a hot day…but it didn’t hurt the flavor one little bit and next time I will let my bananas freeze solid. Thank you so much! Delicious!
I grew up eating this! I make it in a champion juicer, but I suppose the food processor would work just as well.
I just tried frozen oranges, limes and lemons with the banana. It masked the banana flavor and was fantastic!
And when I was little my dad would put root beer extract in the mix. Fantastic for kids and they would never know it was banana!
This looks great. But I was wondering can another fruit be used instead of bananas? I’m allergic to bananas….
I have made banana icecream before, but never even thought of making it like your own recipes. Yum! That pecan one looks amazing! I like to make banana, cashew, and peach icecream in my blender and then top it with agave nectar…. Mmmmm
I have made banana icecream before, but never even thought of making it like your own recipes. Yum! That pecan one looks amazing! I like to make banana, cashew, and peach icecream in my blender and then top it with agave nectar…. Mmmmm love your blog btw!!
Your “butter pecan” ice cream is currently freezing in my freezer but from the few bites I stole it tasted pretty awesome – thank you for the great idea!
Hi,
What a great idea!
I’ll try over the W/E and I’ll let you know.
Cheers from London, UK
Stef
Hi, I searched for a vegan icecream I could make w/o a machine and found yours…tried it today, very yummy : ) It’s in the freezer waiting to be taken to a dinner party tonight…they asked me to bring something to go with chocolate cake. Hmmm, The hostess is vegan and after thinking thinking thinking, I chose this. Keep your fingers crossed for me : ) I think I will blog it for my Monday post if you don’t mind : ) Giving you credit of course…Thank you for the inspiration and the recipe!!!
i am going to make the berry ice cream tonight waiting on my bananas to freeze now thank you . I am glad I found this site. Now I can eat ice cream and not be worried about the sugar etc.
Just made the last two. SO good!!!! This will be my new staple for dessert!
I froze my cut up bananas for about 3 hours and it blended perfectly! Thank you!!
I’ve been looking for something as simple and wonderful as this for a bit now. My mom and her boyfriend have been eating Ben and Jerry’s all week, and it’s been making me a little sore. As soon as I tried the recipes my first instinct was to tell you that I love you, but soon decided that was a little exaggerated. So, thank you. (:
Aw, thanks! Always nice to be loved
Love, love, love your site. I made the buttered pecan first and strawberry second, omg yummy to the tummy. I mean that seriously no tummy ache or allergy problems. Just a side note your could use fruit fresh to keep bananas from browning before freezing then allow them to thaw just a little makes for easy processing. I’m trying the chickpea and whipped cream recipes next. Thanks for a great site.