No need for an ice cream maker when you're making this pumpkin ice cream with frozen bananas. You do need a food processor, or a high-speed blender.
Ripe bananas are my lifeline to sweetening many things naturally, including sugar-free, dairy-free ice cream. I make sure to always have some peeled, frozen bananas in the freezer for instant ice cream and thick, creamy smoothies.
The trick to having instant banana ice cream is to have a good supply of frozen ripe, peeled bananas. Once you have your supply in place, you can treat yourself to the basic banana soft serve ice cream, as well as a wider range of possibilities. Here's a creamy, mellow, naturally sweetened ice cream treat for any time of day or night.
You can add pumpkin ice cream to pies as well, or in between two ginger snap cookies. Some of the recipe testers added a tablespoon of maple syrup or honey. For me, if my bananas are ripe and sweet enough and my butternut squash is baked until soft and creamy, I don't need additional sweetener.
Pumpkin Ice Cream {no churn}
Ingredients
- 1 cup frozen pumpkin purée or 6 cubes (see recipe below)
- 2 bananas, frozen peel before freezing
- ½ cup coconut milk or other milk
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice recipe below, or 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract optional
Instructions
- Let the frozen bananas and squash sit at room temperature for a few minutes to defrost a bit.
- Place all the ingredients in a food processor, or high-speed blender on a low setting, and pulse until creamy—about a minute or so.
- Consume immediately as soft-serve ice cream. You can also freeze it for later. To eat later, defrost for a several minutes to soften before serving.
Nutrition
Pumpkin Pie Spice
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
Instructions
- Combine all the spices in a bowl and whisk to blend.
Frozen Pumpkin Purée Cubes
Equipment
- ice cube tray
Ingredients
- 2 cups pumpkin purée
Instructions
- Prepare the pumpkin purée.
- Spoon the pumpkin purée into ice cube trays. Freeze for at least 4 hours, or overnight.
angelic says
Is there something else that can be used besides bananas? I can't eat bananas due to mold and latex content in bananas.
Erica says
sorry, not for this recipe
Leslie T says
Yum! I can't wait to try this ASAP! Thanks for the recipe and the variations of squash that can be used!
Erica says
Yes, although you'll want to use sweet squash to avoid needing too much sweetener. Enjoy!
brye says
Have you tried sweet potatoes? I'm just wondering since they are sweet and similar consistency.
Erica says
not yet, but that's a great idea! If it seems too thick just add some more milk or some water.
Rebecca says
That looks really nice. Could you use butternut squash instead? In Ireland we can only get pumpkins for Halloween.
Erica says
Rebecca, that's what I prefer to use, so you're good to go!