Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Nice-Cream

I first came to know the magic of frozen bananas years ago as a cold treat after a long run on a hot and humid day. When given the freezer treatment, both the sweet and creamy aspects of bananas shine and they are transformed from fruit into dessert.

More recently, I’ve come to know what’s referred to as banana nice-cream. Frozen bananas, peanut butter, a little unsweetened almond milk, a splash of vanilla, and some mini chocolate chips blend together into something you’d swear was actual ice cream. And other than the chocolate chips, which are optional, there’s no added sugar. Totally plant-based, healthy, but eats like a decadent delight when you really need dessert.

You can play with the flavors. Instead of peanut butter, almond butter would be good, with a bit of almond extract in place of the vanilla. Instead of chocolate chips, mix in some chopped fruit and/or nuts. For those with nut allergies, sunflower seed butter is a delicious option.

I make this delicious indulgent-tasting dish in my Vitamix, but a food processor would work too. At first it’s the texture of soft-serve ice-cream and becomes as firm as regular ice-cream after about 4 hours in the freezer. If frozen longer, it gets pretty hard, so it’s best to take it out of the freezer and let sit on the counter for a bit before scooping.

If you’d like, add your favorite ice-cream toppings, then sit back and savor this rich, creamy treat there’s no need to feel guilty about. Enjoy!

Banana Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Nice-Cream

• Servings: 2
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Adapted from this Fit Foodie Finds recipe

2 frozen bananas (I peel my bananas, place in plastic wrap and freeze until solid), sliced

1/4 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/3 cup mini chocolate chips

Place bananas, peanut butter, almond milk, and vanilla in a high-speed blender or food processor. Blend until smooth and creamy, the consistency of soft-serve ice-cream. Add chocolate chips and blend until just mixed in.

Eat right away as a soft-serve treat or place into a container with tight-fitting lid and freeze for 4 hours until it becomes firm like regular ice-cream. If you freeze it longer, it will probably need get too hard to scoop, so it will need to sit on the counter a while to soften a bit.

Top with your favorite ice-cream toppings. Makes about 2 servings and is easily doubled.

Spiced Pear Butter

A while back I spied some beautiful organic Bartlett pears on sale at Whole Foods and decided to buy a big bag of ‘em. I left them on the counter to ripen and then put them in the crisper drawer of the fridge with plans for lots of pear snacking. Fast forward a week or so and that bag o’ pears was still in the crisper, said snacking had not happened, and the pears were starting to lose their beauty.

A dessert using all those pears would be mighty big and I certainly don’t need those calories, so I decided to see if there was such a thing as pear butter. Pears are kind of like apples, and apple butter is delicious, so pear butter must be a thing. Sure, enough, I found several recipes online.

The result is wonderful! Full of warm fall spices with a richness from the brown sugar and vanilla—I’ll be finding many uses for this deliciousness! On ice-cream, English muffins (paired with peanut butter it’s especially good!), mixed in with plain yogurt, a sweet touch to a savory grilled cheese sandwich, pancake topping, a smoothie mix-in—so many ways to use this concoction! Enjoy!

• Servings: three 12-ounce jars
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Adapted from this USA Pears recipe

3 pounds ripe Bartlett pears

¼ cup water

¾ to 1 cup light brown sugar, use the lower amount for a less sweet version

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

½ of a vanilla bean or ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract*

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/8 teaspoon ground allspice

1/8 teaspoon ground ginger

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Wash, quarter, and core pears (if you do not have a food mill, mentioned later in the recipe, peel pears after washing, and skip the food mill step).

Place pear quarters and water in a large stockpot, over medium heat, until water starts to simmer. Cover pot and adjust heat to maintain a simmer, and cook until pears are soft, about 20 minutes. It may seem like you should add more than a quarter cup of water, but the pears will release liquid as they soften—I assure you there’s no need for more water.

Remove pot from heat and mash pears with a potato masher (if you don’t have a potato masher, carefully mash the pears with the bottom of a large drinking glass).

Place a food mill over a large bowl and run mashed pears, in batches, through mill, discarding pear skins that are left in the mill. Dump the bowl of pear pulp back into the stockpot, add the brown sugar, the vanilla bean, and the spices.

*If you are using pure vanilla extract instead of vanilla bean, add the vanilla later, after the cooking process, where the instructions have you remove the vanilla bean.

Cook pear mixture, uncovered, at a simmer, for about an hour, until desired thickness. Stir every few minutes to prevent scorching. Mixture will thicken somewhat as it cools.

Spoon mixture into jars and, if freezing, leave about an ½ to an inch of headspace in jars for expansion. Will keep in refrigerator for a couple weeks and in freezer for a couple months. Makes about three 12-ounce jars.

 

Homemade Dairy Queen Ice-Cream Cake

The August birthdays at my office are my boss Laurie’s and mine. There used to be a couple more, but as people have left and been replaced, we’re the only two (and now the year is nicely rounded out with at least one birthday each month).

As the office birthday party coordinator, I asked Laurie what she’d like for the celebration. She suggested I decide. Oh, the pressure! I hate making that kind of decision—the other birthday people are supposed to decide. But in years past, Laurie has several times requested Dairy Queen Ice-Cream Cake, so with my new found no-churn ice-cream making ability, maybe I could make a homemade version? Yeah, that’s the ticket!

There were several copycat versions out there, and I ended up adapting one from Browned Eyed Baker, whose recipes I’ve had success with before. My ice-cream, hot fudge sauce and whipped cream frosting are all homemade, but I drew the line at making homemade Oreos. That’s like trying to make your own Coca-Cola—it’s can’t be done.

Vanilla Ice-Cream

The recipe may seem putzy and you do have to make it over the course of a couple days, but the actual hands-on time isn’t that bad—less than an hour total, so as long as you plan ahead, it’s no big deal.

One thing that bears mentioning, especially since my blog usually contains recipes that lean more toward the healthy side, this isn’t a dessert you should have often. It’s delicious and exponentially better than the Dairy Queen version that contains some not so natural flavors and ingredients, but it’s very rich and high in saturated fat, and best reserved for truly special occasions—like office or kids (both the young and old variety) birthdays and other events that merit a huge splurge.

Cake made of ice-cream!

The adult “kids” at this birthday party loved the ice-cream cake and all proclaimed it wonderful and much better than the one from that franchised shop down the street. Yay—success! I know you’ll feel the same when you indulge. Enjoy!

B-Day Cake

Slice ‘o cake

• Servings: 12-14
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Overall recipe adapted from this copycat Homemade Dairy Queen Ice-Cream Cake on Brown-Eyed Baker; Hot Fudge Sauce is also from Brown-Eyed Baker. Ice-cream recipes adapted from this previous blog post and Sally’s Baking Addiction.

Chocolate ice-cream layer:
2 cups heavy cream

1 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

Hot Fudge Sauce/Oreo Cookie layer:
2/3 cup heavy cream

½ cup light corn syrup

1/3 cup dark brown sugar

¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

¼ teaspoon sea salt

6 ounces bittersweet (NOT semi-sweet) chocolate, chopped, divided in half

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

24 Oreo cookies, crushed (place in large plastic zip lock bag and crush with a rolling pin)

Vanilla ice-cream layer:
2 cups heavy cream

1 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Whipped cream frosting layer:
2 cups heavy cream

4 teaspoons sugar

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Optional: Sprinkles or other cake decorations

Lightly butter sides and bottom of a 10-inch spring-form pan. Place a circle of parchment paper on the bottom of the pan and lightly butter it. Set pan aside.

Chocolate ice-cream layer: Place bowl and whisk of your stand or hand mixer in the freezer for 15-30 minutes. Remove from freezer and add cream, sweetened condensed milk, vanilla and cocoa powder. Whisk on low until cocoa is mixed in (so powder won’t fly all over). Increase mixer speed to medium high and beat until good and thick, about 4-5 minutes. Pour ice-cream into prepared pan. Cover and freeze overnight.

Hot fudge sauce/Oreo layer: In a 2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat, bring the cream, syrup, brown sugar, cocoa powder, salt and half of the chocolate to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low or low (enough to maintain a low simmer), and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Remove from the heat and whisk in the remaining chocolate, the butter, and the vanilla extract, until smooth. Let cool for 20 to 30 minutes before using (it will thicken as it cools).

Mix crushed Oreos into the sauce until well combined. Spread over the chocolate ice-cream layer and return to freezer for a couple hours.

Vanilla ice-cream layer: Place bowl and whisk of your stand or hand mixer in the freezer for 15-30 minutes. Remove from freezer and add cream, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla. Beat on medium high until good and thick, about 4-5 minutes. Pour ice-cream over fudge-Oreo layer. Cover and freeze overnight.

Before you prepare the frosting, unmold the cake. To release the cake from the pan, invert the cake onto a plate or cardboard round the same size and wrap a hot kitchen towel around the cake pan, keeping it there for 30 seconds, or until the cake loosens, unlatch pan release, and slide the pan off. Remove the bottom of pan and parchment. Top with a serving platter and turn the cake right side up. Return to the freezer for at about 30 minutes.

Whipped cream frosting: Place bowl and whisk of your stand or hand mixer in the freezer for 15-30 minutes. Remove from freezer and add cream, sugar, and vanilla. Beat on medium high until fairly stiff peaks form, about 3 minutes.

Reserving 2 cups of frosting; spread the remaining whipped cream on the top and sides of the cake, working quickly so that the ice cream doesn’t melt. (If the cake gets soft, just pop it back into the freezer for 5 or 10 minutes.) With the remaining frosting in a pastry bag with a Wilton #21 decorating tip, pipe a shell border around the top and bottom of the cake (my cake was pretty much the same size as the platter, so there was no room for a border around the bottom—next time I’ll use a larger platter). Decorate with sprinkles on top, if desired.

Return cake to freezer until ready to serve—should serve it within a day. Makes 12-14 servings.

Summer Fruit Crisp with No-Churn Coffee Liqueur Ice-Cream

Up until a few days ago, I had never made ice-cream. Never wanted to buy an ice-cream maker and every recipe I’d ever come across required one. That is, until last week.

While looking for ideas to make M & M sandwich cookies for an office birthday party, I stumbled upon something even better, M & M cookie ice-cream sandwiches!!! Included was a very simple ice-cream recipe only requiring three ingredients, and wonder of all wonders, NO ice-cream maker necessary.

Very intrigued, I went to the store for heavy cream and sweetened condensed milk, dumped them in the bowl of my stand mixer, added a teaspoon of vanilla, turned the mixer on high and the timer for five minutes. Plopped the resulting thick, creamy deliciousness into a container and froze it overnight. Skeptical it could be this easy, I kept checking it to see if this was really turning into ice-cream.

Amazingly, by the next morning, it truly was ice-cream. Lovely, rich, creamy and decadent ice-cream! The entire batch was gone before I even made the M & M cookies, so another batch was necessary and it ended up being not quite enough for the number of sandwiches I needed. One more batch coming up.

Earlier that day some friends at work were joking that I always put booze in my baked goods (it really isn’t always), so it gave me the idea of incorporating booze into this ice-cream. What would go with M & M cookies? Hey, doesn’t coffee go great with cookies? And I just happened to have some of my mom’s homemade Kahlua (coffee liqueur) on hand.

Worried that the alcohol would interfere with the ice-cream freezing, I only put in ¼ cup, but it was enough to give it a coffee/boozy hint, and while I didn’t think it was possible, this version was even better than the first two batches.

After filling the remaining cookies, there was ice-cream left over that needed a partner and I immediately thought of a mouthwatering recipe seen recently on 101 Cookbooks for a summer berry crisp that, aptly, also contained alcohol, this time in the form of red wine.  And with a healthy boost from the fruit, oats and whole grain flour, it would cancel out the not-so-healthy ice-cream, right??

There were fresh raspberries at the farmers market last night and some cherries and plums at home. The only ingredient missing from the original recipe was port, and as Heidi Swanson mentioned in her notes, red wine would also work, and she’s right. This is the best fruit crisp I have ever had and Pete agreed. A big scoop of the coffee liqueur ice-cream on the still-warm-from-the-oven crisp took this dessert over the top! Enjoy!

• Servings: 9
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Adapted from 101 Cookbooks

1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour

4 tablespoons poppy seeds  or a combination poppy and black sesame seeds

1 cup rolled oats (not quick oats), uncooked

1 cup organic cane sugar

1/2 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt

2/3 cup unsalted butter, melted

1 tablespoon arrowroot powder or all-natural cornstarch

1/3 cup / 1.5 oz. organic turbinado sugar

4 1/2 cups berries/fruit – mix of ripe, pitted cherries, raspberries, peeled plums, etc.

1/4 cup port wine or merlot

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F with a rack in the middle of the oven. Butter an 8-inch square baking dish, or equivalent.

To make the crumble, mix together the flour, poppy seeds, oats, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Use a fork to stir in the melted butter. Divide the mixture into three portions and use your hands to form three patties. Place the patties in the bowl and freeze for at least 10 minutes, or until you’re ready to bake.

Make the filling by whisking together the arrowroot and sugar in a large bowl. Add the fruit and toss until evenly coated. Wait 3 minutes, add the wine, and toss again. Transfer the filling to the prepared baking dish.

Remove the topping from the freezer and crumble it over the filling, making sure you have both big and small pieces.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the topping is deeply golden and the fruit juices are vigorously bubbling. Let cool a little before serving, 20 to 30 minutes. Makes about 9 servings.

No-Churn Coffee Liqueur Ice-Cream
Adapted from this Sally’s Baking Addiction recipe

2 cups heavy cream

1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

¼ cup coffee liqueur

Place bowl and whisk of your stand or hand mixer in the freezer for 15-30 minutes. Remove from freezer and add all ingredients to the bowl. Whisk at high speed for about 5 minutes until mixture is good and thick. Transfer to a 2-quart container with a tight fitting lid and freeze overnight (keeps in freezer for two weeks. Makes about 2 quarts.