Today we have a delicious frozen banana Ice cream recipe for you! That's right - a banana coconut milk ice cream recipe with only 4 ingredients and sugar is NOT one of them! Now - how can it get any better than that? My waistline sure does like to store a lot of sugar from all that ice cream I consume - but no more! I can enjoy ice cream without all that sugar!
I'm so proud of myself for coming up with this sugar-free recipe. I mean, I think it's genius. You only need four ingredients - 4 frozen bananas, butter, coconut milk, and pecans. Did you hear that? No sugar of any kind, other than what is naturally in a banana.
Nothing tastes better than natural flavors packed together to create a chilling comfort food! I purposely created this recipe without any sort of sweetener, except the bananas. Really, this recipe is all about technique. If you haven't tried brown butter before, then this is the recipe for you to try it on. It tastes nutty and has a deep flavor - you may even call it "caramelized."
It does take a little time to prep ahead of time because you have to freeze the bananas first. Although, really that's what I do when all my bananas are starting to go bad. So it may not even be an extra step for you. I put brown frozen bananas in smoothies all the time.
You may be tempted to skip the freezing the banana part, but don't. When you freeze the banana, it changes the structure of it and when it's blended, it is so creamy. Plus, the sweetness of an over-ripe banana makes it plenty sweet, at least for me.
Tip and Tricks
- The riper your bananas are, the sweeter the ice cream will end up being. This happens to be a delicious way to use up any over-ripe bananas you have laying around the house.
- You may be tempted to brown all the bananas, but try to resist the temptation. The consistency won't be as creamy and it will be icier and not as substantial.
- You can use an ice cream maker if you want. If you do, you don't need to freeze the bananas. Just caramelize the bananas and through everything in the blender then put in your ice cream maker and follow the instructions for your ice cream maker.
- I don't recommend you make a large batch and keep it in the freezer unless you want to just pour the extras into popsicle molds and have ice cream popsicles. If you try to freeze it to eat as ice cream later, it can freeze hard and be icy (like a popsicle). To avoid this, you could make it in an ice cream maker or let it sit out on the counter for a while to soften a bit before scooping.
- You could always take this base ice cream recipe with the frozen bananas and coconut milk and change up the flavors, like peanut butter, chocolate chip, chocolate, peanut butter chocolate chip, berries, etc. Pretty much any kind of regular ice cream flavor, except something like cookies and cream or Oreo, would work well.
- If you don't have a GOOD blender, it really helps with something like this. When I use my Vitamix, this ice cream is creamier and smoother and it doesn't burn out the motor. After burning out the motor of a regular blender three times in a year, I bought a Vitamix * blender. It's lasted me for at least five years and I use it probably at least once a day. I've also heard good things about Blendtec * blenders and I think they are both a good choice.
- You should be using canned coconut milk and not the coconut milk that is found in the refrigerated cartons. It will affect the creaminess and overall texture of the ice cream.
- You use both the solid and the liquid from the canned coconut milk.
I don't know about you, but ice cream is by far my biggest weakness! I love it so much! I would not be the cookie monster but ice cream monster!!!
Time to make this delicious recipe! I hope you enjoy this recipe! Do you have any more tips to make this ice cream even better? Leave your feedback in the comments and let me know if you like the recipe and if you have any tips for the other readers.
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Caramelized Pecan Frozen Banana Ice Cream Recipe
- Prep Time: 480 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 495 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: Paleo
Description
A paleo ice cream recipe that only has 4 ingredients and is a healthy version of a classic dessert treat. It is creamy with caramelized bananas and pecans and rich from the brown butter.
Ingredients
- 4 Bananas
- 3 Tbl Ghee * (salted)
- ½ Cup Coconut Milk * (canned, chilled)
- ½ Cup Pecans (chopped & toasted)
Instructions
- Slice 2 of the bananas and place the slices in a sealed bag or container in the freezer overnight, or for at least 8 hours.
- Slice the remaining 2 bananas into rounds at least ½" thick.
- Melt the ghee * in a saute pan over medium/high heat until it begins to foam and turn very lightly brown.
- Place the banana slices in the saute pan with the butter and cook until the bottoms turn golden brown.
- Flip slices over and brown on the other side.
- Transfer the caramelized bananas and butter to a container or thick Ziploc bag(use a rubber spatula to scrape all the butter and browned bits in as well) and freeze for 8 hours or overnight.
- Place the frozen bananas (both the caramelized and the un-caramelized)in a high-speed blender like a Vitamix *. A food processor would work, as well.
- Break up any large, stuck together pieces as best you can.
- Pulse the frozen bananas until they start to look like very large bread crumbs.
- Add the coconut milk and blend.
- You may have to scrape down the sides and press the banana crumbles down into the center a few times.
- Blend until very smooth.
- Mixture will be thick like soft-serve ice cream.
- Add the pecans to the ice cream and mix in with a rubber spatula.
- Scoop into dishes and serve immediately.
Keywords: Paleo, Classic, Creamy, Rich
Theresa Ford
Can I use my food processor? Both my processor and blender are KITCHEN AID
Rebecca Baron
Yes. A food processor works fine.
Jojo
Delicious 😋
★★★★★
Maroula Spagnuolo
Really nice but do not freeze, it doesn't taste the same once you freeze it
★★★★★
Rebecca Baron
You're right, no homemade ice cream of any kind is near as good if you freeze it after it's first made.
Dee
Made this tonight and it was really good. Just wish it was a little firmer but will make this again. I made mine with salted butter instead of ghee. Didn’t have ghee and did not want to spend money on it if I didn’t like the recipe. Love the smell of the bananas as they were cooking. I made sure to scape the bits off the bottom of the pan to get all the caramelized goodness. Thank you for this recipe.
★★★★
Michelle
Little tip: You can make Ghee at home =D It is VERY simple and you make it from a regular butter. I was chocked when I figure this out and it save me a LOT of money.
Rebecca Baron
Yes. You totally can! I totally agree that it isn't hard and can save a lot of money. It's crazy how much it costs.
Delicious!!
Delicious!!
★★★★★
Christine
This tasted good! Even my daughter liked it.
★★★★★
Jeanine C
delicious!!!! perfect for a carb refeed day
★★★★★
Ashlee René
Delicious!
★★★★★
Whitney
Delicious! Worth the effort to caramelize bananas. Would make again
★★★★★
Christine
Amazing! Just made this tonight in my vitamix. So creamy and delicious! Have you tried this with other fruits instead of banana? Maybe peaches? Or berries?
★★★★★
Rebecca
I haven't tried but I'm 99% sure it wouldn't work with other fruits. There is something special about the bananas that works and it just wouldn't work with other fruits.
Leigh
Delicious!!
★★★★★
Maroula
This ice-cream was quite yummy however, mine certainly did not look like the one in the picture.
Also DO NOT RE-FREEZE after blending it. It doesn't taste anything like it does before you re-freeze it.
Rebecca
Thanks for the tips. Right. Leftovers of this do not work.
Susan V
This is really tasty! Thank you!
★★★★★
Rebecca
I'm glad you like it. Thanks for commenting.
Shirley
I'm salivating. I'm going to make this tomorrow!
Loum
I wanted mine to taste a bit more like a butter pecan. Four bananas made it a bit too sweet. I used two caramelized bananas, a full can of coconut milk, a dadh of salt and added two tablespoons of maple syrup. Perfection.
★★★★
Rebecca
Thanks for the tip. Hopefully it will help others!
Donna
I have just fried up 4 bananas for 2 lots of this ice-cream because it was SO SO good the first time. We are also reducing sugar and have tried various fruit ice-creams and frozen yoghurts but this is the best. My partner declared this was better than ice-cream giving it a score of 10.5 out of 10! Thanks for the delicious recipe.
★★★★★
Rebecca
Thanks for the positive review!
FS Conklin
This recipe was amazing. My family is trying to cut way back on eating so much sugar, but to keep everyone on track, we need to occasionally have a sweet treat. If all 3 of us sugar lovers liked this, it has this be good! We did pop it back in the freezer for about an hour and then scoop it out with an ice cream scoop. This is most definitely a keeper!
★★★★★
Rebecca
I'm so glad you like it!
Sonia
Hi! The ingredients say 1/2 cup chilled coconut milk. Is it just the fat at the top or should we shake can for the entire milk when measuring? Thanks!
Rebecca
You chill it so it's cold, not necessarily to get the fat off the top, although that's what I usually do, just because it's creamier and thicker.
Anne
You are my new best friend because of this recipe. Yum!
Rebecca
Ha ha! I'm glad you like it. I'm pretty proud of it myself.
Colleen Kunze
I am two weeks into the Paleo diet and was having a serious craving for something sweet. I had tried the frozen banana ice cream recipe on another site and it was "ok" but not quite the sweet I was craving. Browning the bananas was the trick! This was perfectly sweet and very satisfying. My mom, sisters and I are having a crafting weekend soon and this will definitely be served to show them that I still eat the "good" stuff, now it's just good for me too!
Thanks so much for the recipe!
Rebecca
I am glad the recipe worked well for you! Keep it going! You got this!
Bernadette Sto l l
It sounds like some people are using coconut milk out of the carton and the sweet coconut milk oot of a can which is it?
Rebecca
I use it from the can because it's much creamier and has the fat you need to actually make an ice cream. I've never tried it from a carton though because they don't have that at any stores around here, so maybe it would be fine.
jen
This sounds fantastic! I can't wait to give it a try. Do you think ghee would substitute the butter well? I'm trying to avoid butter too!
Rebecca
It will change the flavor of the ice cream so perhaps give it a try and see if it is what you are looking for. Let us know how it works out if you choose to do so.
Ellie
Amazing recipe! Thanks for sharing!
Rebecca
Your welcome! Glad you like it!
Mariola
This is absolutely amazing!!!
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe with us. I have a sweet tooth (like you wouldn't believe) and ever since my daughter was born (17 months ago)I'm doing everything in my power to cut my chocolates and sugar so we all getting only the good stuff. I couldnt find a homemade icecream recipe that would be satisfying and healthy of course but this is by far the best I have ever made!
I am not on paleo diet but my cooking is based on very similar principles and I think it's the best approach.
Thank you
Rebecca
You are welcome! I am glad it works well for you!
Cynthia
This recipe sounds really great! Too bad my blender gave up the ghost after 17 LOYAL years a few days ago. 🙁 Once I get my new one, I'll have to break it in with this recipe!! Can't wait to try it!!!
Vicki
I am sooo going to be trying this recipe, tried something similar but not with caramelized bananas or nuts.
Lisa Costello
I have made this recipe twice. It was delicious. I have to get more bananas to make it again. I'm getting a craving. Thanks for the recipe.
Lisa Costello
Rebecca
Thanks for the comment! We would love to help you try more of our recipes.
Kathy
Tried this recipe a few days ago and it is fabulous! Very satisfying. Thank you for sharing!
Ann
I couldn't get it done today, but hopefully tomorrow. It's all ready to go but other things got in the way.
One thing about the banana ice cream is that even though there's no added sugar, people need to remember bananas are very high in sugar. Those who are insulin resistant need to be very cautious about consuming too much fructose.
Ann
I'll be fixing this today ( between gardening chores 😉 I make several ice cream flavors with the coconut milk and bananas, and did do one butter pecan type, but this sounds great with caramelizing the bananas. I know my dear husband will be thrilled. Thanks!
Anthea Trent
My mother's lactose intolerant, what could I use instead of butter.
Rebecca
You could use a non-dairy or vegan butter, your local health food store should have them. Do keep in mind that it may not brown the same as a regular butter.
Amy Warren
This says serve straight away but is it ok to keep it in the freezer and just scoop out like regular ice cream?
Rebecca
The ice cream has the best texture if served right away with it's soft serve consistency. You can keep it frozen, but it will be difficult to scoop out when solid. Let it sit on the counter for awhile before trying to scoop. You could also avoid the hard freeze by making the ice cream in an ice cream maker.
Kelsey
If using an ice cream maker is all the freezing and chilling of ingredients the night before still necessary?
Rebecca
If you were to use an ice cream maker you would not need to freeze the bananas before hand. Just caramelize the bananas, throw everything in the blender and then follow the directions according to your ice cream maker =)
Sarah L
I love ice cream but not all that sugar. Thanks for this great recipe.
★★★★★
Daisy
I will definitely will try this.I have a vitamix and it really works well.I make a ice cream with frozen bananas and peanut butter, It is very good and it gives you the protein we need.
Rebecca
Please let me know if you like it!
patti
This looks amazingly good and I can't wait to try it!
Courtney
Mine turned out more like a smoothie but still very delicious!
Christina
Do you use the solid or liquid from the coconut milk (or both).
Rebecca
Both.
Becky
This looks incredible, thanks for sharing! I might have to make this for myself for Mother's Day...I even have everything I need! 🙂
Cindy Eikenberg
Rebecca, this ice cream looks seriously amazing and I'm in love with the flavors! I totally have to try this! Thank you so much for sharing at Best of the Weekend and pinning. Hope you're having a wonderful week!
Ruth
Could you make a large batch and keep in the freezer? Sounds yummy!
Rebecca
You could, but it would freeze pretty hard and have a bit of an icy quality. To avoid this, you could make it in an ice cream maker, if you have one. If not, let it sit out on the counter for awhile to soften a bit before scooping.
Rebecca Baron
This looks so good!! 🙂
Rachel Kathyg @ onlinesisterhood
This looks so amazing. Trying soon. pinned. found at showstopper sat. Have a great weekend.
Christal
This looks and sounds amazing! I can't wait to try it, thanks for sharing 😀
Jill
Yum! This sounds so good. Pinning to try!
Julia
Do you think I could blend everything together and use my ice cream maker? This is an amazing recipe!
Rebecca
You could definitely use an ice cream maker! If you were to use an ice cream maker you would not need to freeze the bananas before hand. Just caramelize the bananas, throw everything in the blender and then follow the directions according to your ice cream maker =)
Amy | Club Narwhal
Oh, this looks fabulous! i love making banana ice cream but haven't added pecans to the mix. Sounds amazing!
Starla J
Looks yummy!!
dax
Just tried this and it was definitely very good, but perhaps it might be even better if I were to brown ALL of the bananas instead of half of them? That really seems to bring out the banana flavor. Thoughts?
Rebecca
You can brown all of the bananas if you like, but the consistency will not be quite as creamy and a bit more 'icy'. The bananas that are not caramelized keep the ice cream creamy as well as keeping it substantial.
Tracy
I think this looks great, I will try it! I always have frozen bananas in the freezer!
Rebecca
We would love to hear how it turns out!
Sandy @ Everyday Southwest
This. Looks. Yummy!
★★★★★