Double chocolate ice cream...no ice cream maker and sugar free!
It's hot hot hot!
I'm not usually that much of a ice-creamy girl which is why you don't see much of it around these parts BUT that said I do have my moments and such a moment occurred to me a couple weekends ago.
Banana ice cream been done a zillion times in 'healthy foodie blog land', not to say that its not amazing because it is (hence why it's been done a zillion times!) So I thought I'd put a tiny spin on things and make a plantain-based ice cream, the theory being a milder banana flavour that doesn't overpower the way that banana can do, as well as a slight change in consistency since plantain is a cross between a fruit and starchy veg in many ways. I feel as though the plantain is actually creamier... but I might be imagining that. What I can say is that it is in no way inferior to its banana counterpart.
Obviously I threw in extra mix-ins such as cocoa powder and my super healthy fudge chunks… well, you know how it goes! Erm, I like chocolate :-)
Plantains should be your new best friend...
I bought a whole bag of plantains at my local asian supermarket. I used a few pre-ripened (more like potato and not sweet) then purposely left the rest to go almost black and sweeten up before chopping them up to use for this ice cream and various other deserts… you'll be seeing some of these come up on the blog shortly! I also chopped the last few into chunks and froze them for future delights. Because plantains are typically larger than bananas and also pretty cost-effective if you can buy in bulk in a supermarket, they are a great versatile option.
This is my chocolate combo, but if you prefer to make a 'plain' version as per the yellow tub in the photos, just leave the cocoa out and maybe add some extra vanilla to taste.
At the bottom of the recipe I have given some ideas for other flavours but I'd love to know what you come up with too!! Tell me tell me... what's your favourite healthy ice cream creation?
Recipe: Super simple plantain ice cream
Makes approx. 1 pint ice cream
Ingredients
2 large plantain (approx. 500g)
¼ cup cashew butter (you could try hazelnut butter!)
¼ cup cocoa
1 tsp vanilla powder or paste (not extract with alcohol)
4-5 drops stevia (optional- omit entirely or us 2 tbs syrup)
toppings*
Method
Blend until very smooth. Spoon into a freezer and press toppings in. Freeze allowing approx. 20 minutes defrost time to serve.
* for my topping I used approx. ¼ cup worth of my 'worlds healthiest fudge' as I had a batch in the freezer, or you could use chopped up 'smoosh bars' or other simple mix ins such as dark chocolate/nuts/dried fruits
Why not try some other flavours...these are a few I've come up with but i'd Iove to hear your suggestions too!
Peanut butter and cinnamon
Carob powder and toffee extract
Beetroot and raspberry/redcurrants
Cashew butter and lemon
Cocoa and peanut butter
P.s shout out for my Rude Health giveaway which ends in 4 days... you can enter here!
I'd love you to join me in other places too!
Why not sign up for my newsletter in my sidebar where I feature roundups and special offers plus me FREE ebook. If you are new round here check out my 'About' and 'Getting Started' tabs up top. To buy nibbles you can also find me over at Wholeplus. Day to day you can always find me in these places: