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This Banana Ice Cream is creamy, cold, sweet, and made with just one simple ingredient: frozen bananas. It tastes like soft serve, but you don’t need an ice cream maker, dairy, or added sugar. It is one of my favorite easy treats to make when I want something sweet, especially in the summer.
5 Star Reviews ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
“Love that this recipe is so easy and delicious! Great treat for summer. Thank you!” – Nallie
“Loved this one ingredient banana ice cream. My great grandsons enjoyed my ice cream!!” – Charlene
“So easy and healthy! What a great summertime recipe!” – Hanna
Why I Love This Recipe
I have recently discovered banana ice cream and it has become one of my favorite treats. The best part is that my kids love it too! It is such a simple summer snack, and they could eat it all day without even realizing it isn’t regular ice cream.
I am not even a huge banana person, but I still love this recipe. Once the bananas are frozen and blended, the flavor is sweet and mellow, and the texture turns smooth and creamy. You can keep it plain with just bananas or add mix-ins to make it taste more like your favorite ice cream flavor.
This is also a great way to use up ripe bananas before they go bad. Instead of tossing them, peel them, slice them, freeze them, and you are already halfway to homemade banana ice cream.
🩷 Erica
Ingredients You’ll Need
Bananas: Use ripe bananas with brown spots for the best natural sweetness and the creamiest texture. See our post on how to freeze bananas for more info.
Parchment paper: This keeps the banana slices from sticking to the baking sheet while they freeze.
Ingredient Additions and Substitutions
You only need bananas to make this recipe, but it is also really fun to change up the flavor. Here are some easy ideas:
- Vanilla and salt – Add a splash of vanilla and a tiny pinch of salt to bring out the banana flavor.
- Peanut butter or almond butter – Blend it in at the end for a creamy, nutty flavor.
- Chocolate – Add cocoa powder, chocolate chips, or a spoonful of Nutella.
- Berries – Blend in frozen strawberries, raspberries, or mixed berries.
- Tropical fruit – Add frozen mango, pineapple, or a splash of coconut milk.
- Cookies and cream – Blend the bananas first, then fold in crushed Oreo cookies.
- Nuts – Stir in chopped peanuts, pecans, or almonds for crunch.
- Milk or cream – If your bananas are too hard to blend, add a small splash of milk, almond milk, oat milk, coconut milk, or cream. Use just enough to help it blend so it does not get too thin.
How to Make Banana Ice Cream
- Slice the bananas. Peel ripe bananas and slice them into 1 to 2 inch pieces.
- Freeze. Place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze until solid, 6 to 8 hours. Use the frozen bananas right away, or move them to a freezer bag for later. When you are ready to make the ice cream, add the frozen banana slices to a food processor or high-powered blender like a Blendtec blender.
- Blend until creamy. Pulse first to break up the banana pieces, then keep blending. The mixture may look crumbly at first, then thick and gooey, and finally smooth like soft serve. Stop and scrape down the sides as needed.
- Serve or freeze. Serve right away for soft-serve banana ice cream, or transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze for 2 to 3 hours for a firmer, scoopable texture.
Recipe Tips
- Use ripe bananas. Bananas with brown spots are sweeter and make better banana ice cream than firm yellow bananas.
- Slice before freezing. Whole frozen bananas are hard on a food processor or blender. Slices blend much more easily.
- Use a food processor if you have one. A high-powered blender can work, but a food processor usually blends the bananas more evenly and gives a creamier texture.
- Let the bananas sit for a few minutes if needed. If your food processor is struggling, let the frozen banana pieces sit at room temperature for 5 to 10 minutes before blending.
- Keep blending. It will look crumbly before it turns creamy. Don’t stop too soon.
- Scrape down the sides. This helps all the banana pieces blend evenly.
- Add liquid only if you need it. A small splash can help the bananas blend, but too much will make the texture thinner.
- Serve right away for the creamiest texture. Banana ice cream is best when it is freshly blended or only frozen for a couple of hours after blending.
- Add chunky mix-ins after blending. Chocolate chips, nuts, and cookie pieces are best folded in with a spatula once the banana ice cream is smooth.
Frequently Asked Questions
Banana ice cream is made from frozen bananas, so it is a simple fruit-based treat with no dairy or added sugar. It is naturally gluten-free, dairy-free, and vegan as long as you do not add dairy-based mix-ins. It still contains natural sugar from bananas, so I like to think of it as a lighter frozen treat rather than a replacement for every kind of ice cream.
This banana ice cream is made with one ingredient: frozen bananas. You can add vanilla, salt, peanut butter, chocolate, berries, or other mix-ins, but the base recipe only needs bananas.
It usually just needs more blending. Frozen bananas go through a few stages in the food processor. They look crumbly first, then thick and mashed, then smooth and creamy. Keep blending and scrape down the sides as needed.
Yes, but a food processor usually works better. A high-powered blender can handle frozen bananas, but a regular blender may need a splash of milk to get things moving. Add liquid slowly so the ice cream does not turn into a smoothie.
Use ripe bananas with brown spots. They should be sweet and soft, but not moldy or fermented. The riper the banana, the sweeter the ice cream.
Banana ice cream does not have the added fat and sugar that traditional ice cream has, so it can freeze very firm. Let it sit at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes before scooping, or enjoy it as soft serve right after blending.
Yes, you can blend in a small scoop of protein powder, but it can make the texture thicker or a little chalky depending on the brand. If needed, add a small splash of milk to help it blend.
Three medium bananas make about 2 servings of banana ice cream. The exact amount depends on the size of the bananas and whether you add mix-ins.
Make Ahead and Storage
- Make ahead: Peel and slice the bananas, then freeze them on a parchment-lined baking sheet until solid. Once frozen, transfer the slices to a freezer bag or airtight container so they are ready whenever you want banana ice cream.
- Storing frozen banana slices: Frozen banana slices keep well in the freezer for up to 3 months. They are still safe after that if properly frozen, but the texture and flavor are best within that window.
- Storing finished banana ice cream: Transfer blended banana ice cream to a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 1 week. For the best texture, serve it the same day you make it.
- Serving after freezing: If the banana ice cream is too firm to scoop, let it sit at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes. You can also break it into chunks and re-blend it for a softer texture.
Pairing Ideas
Banana Ice Cream is perfect on its own, but it is also so good with other easy desserts. Serve it with warm homemade brownies, chocolate cake, peanut butter cookies, oatmeal cookies, or a warm fruit crisp. It is also delicious topped with hot fudge, caramel sauce, chopped nuts, fresh berries, or whipped cream.
More Frozen Summer Treat Ideas
This Banana Ice Cream is one of the easiest frozen treats you can make. All you need is ripe bananas, a freezer, and a food processor. Serve it soft right away, freeze it for a scoopable texture, or add your favorite mix-ins to make it your own.
If you try this recipe, leave a comment and rating below. I would love to hear what mix-ins you added! 💛🍌
Banana Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 3 ripe bananas
- parchment paper
Instructions
- Peel and slice bananas into 1"-2" slices.
- Place banana slices on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and freeze for 6-8 hours.
- You can prepare ice cream immediately or place bananas in a Ziplock freezer bag until ready to use.
- When ready to prepare ice cream, place frozen banana slices in a food processor (or high-power blender).
- Pulse until smooth and creamy. If it seems crumbly and not smoothing out, just keep blending. It will get there!
- Serve as soft-serve immediately or place in a freezer safe container and freeze for another 2-3 hours to scoop and serve.
Equipment
- Food Processor
Notes
- Use ripe bananas with brown spots for the sweetest flavor.
- Slice bananas before freezing so they blend more easily.
- A food processor works best, but a high-powered blender can also work.
- If the bananas are too hard to blend, let them sit at room temperature for 5 to 10 minutes.
- Add only a small splash of milk if needed to help the bananas blend.
- Serve immediately for soft serve or freeze for 2 to 3 hours for scoopable ice cream.
- If frozen solid, let it sit at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes before scooping.
- Optional mix-ins include peanut butter, cocoa powder, chocolate chips, berries, mango, pineapple, coconut milk, chopped nuts, vanilla, or crushed cookies.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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So easy and healthy! What a great summertime recipe!
Love that this recipe is so easy and delicious! Great treat for summer. Thank you!
Loved the one ingredient banana ice cream.
Great grandsons enjoyed my ice cream!!