Pumpkin "ice cream" is a healthy, three ingredient soft serve treat that is perfect for celebrating the fall season no matter the temperature outside. And it's nice for soothing a sore throat if seasonal allergies are getting to you.
As much as I want it to, it just doesn't feel like fall here yet. The high on Thursday was 91°F... yep, October 2nd and it's 91°F
So while I'd love to be making big batches of soup and turning on my oven to bake casseroles and doughnut holes and what not; I just can't bear it yet.
Not until it gets under 75°F do I really start to get into the fall-season foods.
This makes it a little difficult to write a food blog where I typically plan a few weeks ahead of the seasons.
It would be silly to hold off on the pumpkin recipes until the end of October because everyone will be tired of pumpkin by then and/or they've already picked out what pumpkin recipes they wanted to try. You miss opportunities if you don't get a head start.
So when one of my friends mentioned making banana ice cream with some leftover canned pumpkin, I jumped at the idea. Genius, right?!
It couldn't be much easier or healthier. Plus, I had tons of pumpkin leftover from all my pumpkin recipes {pumpkin spiced coffee concentrate, pumpkin pie smoothies, pumpkin cornbread, and pumpkin rice crispy treats!}, and I always have frozen bananas.
Just blend together the frozen bananas and pumpkin puree, add in a few spices, and you're good to go! I don't think it needs any added sugar but you could always taste it and add a little maple syrup or honey if you really wanted.
A delicious, nutritious, and refreshing snack that will get you in the fall spirit even if the weather isn't.
Why you should make pumpkin ice cream
Well, first of all, it's delicious and refreshing. Second, it's super easy. The main thing is to just remember to freeze a banana. However, I often keep bananas in the freezer for smoothies, so I don't need to remember very often.
Also, it's a satisfying treat. Now, if you're looking for regular ice cream, this probably won't do the trick. But if you're looking for something sweet, this will do it! Plus, it has no added sugar so it could even be enjoyed as breakfast or a snack without having to worry about a sugar crash later.
How to Make healthy pumpkin ice cream
Freeze the banana. Once it's frozen, blend together the banana, pumpkin, spices, and peanut butter if using. Enjoy!
Seriously doesn't get any easier than that!
Tips for Making this pumpkin dessert
Make Ahead Tips
I honestly think it tastes best right after preparing, but I will sometimes pop it back in the freezer right after I blend it to make sure it is extra cold and creamy.
This tastes more like soft serve, but adding it to the freezer after blending will help harden it up a little bit.
Variations & Substitutions
Ingredients substitutions:
Feel free to ditch the cloves and nutmeg. I really like the depth it gives this "ice cream" but they're not mandatory.
I couldn't believe that I wasn't going to need sugar, so I had some honey ready to add. But to my delightful surprise, I didn't need any added sweetener. I think the combo of the sweet banana and spices really gives you enough flavor. But feel free to add honey or maple syrup.
Also, I like to add a little peanut butter for more staying power. Almond butter, cashew butter, and sunflower seed butter would all be great additions as well.
Alternative prep & cooking methods:
I use a mini food processor, but you could also use a blender. However, only making one serving might not be enough ingredients to actually get your blender to blend. A small blender or anything that would make a single serving smoothie would work well!
Storage Tips:
This is best enjoyed immediately after making, but you can keep the prepared "ice cream" in an airtight container in the freezer for a few days. After that, I find that the consistency is off.
What to serve with this dish
This can be dessert or snack or even breakfast, but it doesn't have much protein. Either add the nut butter or serve it with some kind of protein like a hard boiled egg.
Final thoughts:
This is too easy and too delicious not to try! Great way to use up leftover pumpkin!
MORE PUMPKIN RECIPES YOU'LL LOVE:
- Pumpkin Granola
- Spicy Pumpkin Deviled Eggs
- Pumpkin Protein Pancakes
- Pumpkin Hummus
- Pumpkin Donut Holes
Pumpkin "Ice Cream"
Ingredients
- 1 small banana frozen
- 1/3 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 tablespoon peanut butter or any nut or seed butter, optional
- 1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
- dash cloves optional
- dash nutmeg optional
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients to a blender or mini food processor, and blend until smooth.
Notes
What to use in this recipe:
Meme
Doesn't this recipe look good?! You should probably pin it for later:
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