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1-ingredient Ice Cream

Step 3Enjoy!

Enjoy!
For the first go-round, try this recipe as-is.

Thereafter, feel free to consider this a blank canvas for all of your ice cream dreams.

Try adding honey, chocolate syrup, maple syrup, peanut butter, flavored extracts, or additional frozen fruits! Go to town, and make sure you share your favorite remixes in the comments!
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129 comments
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Apr 12, 2012. 9:05 AMurtlesquirt says:
Time for root beer extract!
Aug 31, 2009. 9:41 AMjune9190 says:
it sounds different. I like banana's and in my house they do go brown.. ok so has anybody really tried it? and did they like it??? I hate to go and buy a blender and find out it's not very good.. What a dilemma!!!
Dec 28, 2009. 11:44 AMsugarego says:
smart thinking june9190.  i *finally* tried this recipe.  in order to facilitate easier blending, i smooshed the bananas up a bit before freezing.  this made it easy to put in small pieces that weren't like giant ice cubes.  and if you think where i'm going with this is that it worked fabulously, i'm afraid that's not so.

the frozen bananas were, of course, darkened, because that's what you do, you use bananas ready for banana bread, right?  well, the color of them when they were frozen and smooshed in the bag simply darkened as they began to melt.  never got white and frothy.  i ran the blender some more, wondering if magic might start to happen a bit later.  worried b/c the bottom of the mixture was getting stirred, but the top was sitting there in a sort-of gelatinous mass.  i tilted the blender to encourage the stuff on top to get mixed in, and even stopped to stir.

what came off of the spoon wasn't even cold: the blades had generated enough heat to completely melt any trace of freeziness.  i ended up with slightly-more-blended, smooshed banana.  basically what i put into the freezer in the first place.

my wife was there with me, b/c we were planning to eat a yummy freezy banana treat, and she just kept laughing and insisting the whole thing was a big elaborate hoax.  that no one could possibly have ended up with something that resembles ice cream, and that everyone else who left comments was in on the hoax.  so, my point is: don't get a blender just for this treat.  you may feel that you, too, have become the brunt of a giant hoax.

anyone else have this experience when attempting to make this?
Jan 7, 2012. 9:20 PMsherrycayheyhey says:
Unfortunately I'm leaning towards the hoax side as well. I was excited to try this but ended up with some gloopy mush. I read other comments about it being better with a food processor but I thought my Ninja brand blender could accomplish the task of turning a banana into an ice cream like substance. I'm not completely abandoning this awesome idea but until I get a food processor or can convince someone with one to try this, I'm going to have to remain skeptical.
Mar 7, 2012. 1:54 PMjediwhiz3 says:
Mine was great. Fun to make. Great because it is dairy-free. And it was DELICIOUS. Need new snacks that are healthy and lactose-free? THIS ONE IS FANTASTIC!
Jan 8, 2012. 6:40 AMlaxap says:
I got fantastic results, largely meeting the expectations.
My tips:
  1. Cut the banana in slices before freezing; the smaller the better
  2. Freeze
  3. Blend using a cutting blade
  4. Progressively add some water (as kitchouha suggested) while blending, if it does not turn creamy
  5. Freeze again
  6. Serve with grilled sliced almonds
Aug 30, 2011. 8:17 AMvCloud says:
well i heard many roumors about this recipe, i am currently trying this today, i heard blenders don't work and you must use a food processor for the best results.
Jun 9, 2011. 4:15 PMJavin007 says:
I'm right there with ya. I tried the brown bananas, cut in half, frozen solid in a sub-zero freezer, and blended with a Vita-Mix (same blender Bobby Flay uses.) What I got was a cold cream with a nice texture that tasted exactly like rotten bananas.

I figured maybe I had let the bananas go too long, so tried a second batch. This time I froze the peeled bananas when the skins were slightly brown, but the bananas were still white. EXACT same result. The banana "cream" tasted just as rotten as the first batch.

My guess is, unless you like the taste of way over-ripened bananas, you'll have to freeze the bananas when they are still fresh. I'm going to try that next. (Though I don't know if the freezing process itself is actually producing that "over-ripe banana" flavor.)

On another note, I find that if you add enough chocolate, caramel, nuts, and fruits to the "ice cream" it's almost edible, but that probably rather defeats the purpose.

I find it interesting that you used the word "hoax" as this is exactly the word my own girlfriend used when we tried it the first time. She refused to even taste it the second time around. Hopefully third time's the charm!
Apr 9, 2011. 3:54 AMleagle says:
I tried it when on vacation with my daughter so needed to buy a food processor when I got home. You need to have the bananas in pieces and really frozen so freeze them not touching if you can. I added a bit of cream to get them started and it is crucial that you don't have too much to process and push down any part processed banana into the mix. That way you can beat it until it changes to a pale colour due to the air you're pumping in. It can be refrozen but is best straight from the mixer. Do put the mixer to soak because dried banana sticks like glue and is a devil to shift :)
Jan 14, 2010. 6:18 AM_chink_ says:
I just made this and am eating it as I'm typing. My boyfriend is also helping me eat it (voluntarily i might add!) so it must taste pretty good.  I used VERY brown bananas, which I think is making it taste extra banana-y, so I think if you want less banana taste, use banana's which haven't gone completely brown like mine were. However, I love banana's, so I don't mind the taste, and the texture is amazing.

I think the point of this recipe is that the banana's need to be frozen whole, or at least in large chunks, and not 'smooshed', because smooshing them before frozen actually speeds up the browning process (oxidation) and releases a lot of the water content. When done as the instructable says, the frozen banana's first blend into an almost bread crumb like consistency, before taking on the smooth and silky texture described.

I do have to mention that I intially had some trouble getting it beyond the crumbly mixture, but that's mainly because I was using my stick blender with the little bowl attachement, and in the end just transferred it to the mixing cup and using the stick attachment, and it worked beautifully.

Don't be scared to try this again =P freeze the banana's whole!
Sep 3, 2009. 11:39 AMcaityjay says:
Buy a blender. Find one at a thrift store (plug it in first, of course, to test it). Blenders are, like... awesome.
Sep 8, 2009. 5:47 PMsugarego says:
blenders are, like, a pain in the arse to clean. i have one, but never want to use it b/c you have to fill the whole dish drain with all its parts laying out to dry. then you have to reassemble and find cabinet space for it a few days later after everything's shifted. maybe i need the blender you've got.
Sep 23, 2009. 9:16 AM4eversixteen says:
Quick, easy Blender cleaning: I add 2-3 drops of dish detergent, fill about 1/4 to 1/3 full with warm water. Blend on high for 30 seconds or so. Then rinse well. Done. Sparkling Clean!
Dec 28, 2009. 4:34 AMkomecake says:
  Oh, how much I learn just from reading comments. Awsome cleaning instructions. I'm not so afraid to get out of the blender now. :)
Sep 22, 2009. 4:12 PMdevynhogan says:
leave put together and fill with water and soap, give it a 30 second spin and presto clean. though you do need to take it apart for some things but for this i think it will do.
Sep 23, 2009. 12:02 PMsugarego says:
i'll have to try this. thanks 4eversixteen & devynhogan, for the suggestion. i'm sure that this would suffice for removing banana goo, or milkshake ingredients. since i'm lazy. :)
Sep 20, 2009. 7:58 PMvililyia says:
Solution: stick blender. I recieved one of these as a baby shower gift and wow! Soooooo easy to clean up and I've used mine for some pretty tough things. I made my own baby food for over a year and this thing never let me down.
Sep 23, 2009. 12:05 PMsugarego says:
you know, it had never occurred to me to get one of these, b/c it just doesn't look like they can do what a blender does. but per your suggestion, i'm going to research it b/c it does seem ultra convenient (and compact!) which would be a welcome change. i would say that i'll have to keep my upright blender for breaking ice to small bits, but my "ice crusher" blender does no such thing. it always leaves behind lots of large bits of ice, so making at-home frozen coffee drinks and the like isn't really feasible anyway. maybe i'll be so happy with the stick blender that i'll take my current blender to a thrift store. it takes up so much room in our small kitchen! :)
Sep 23, 2009. 3:05 PMvililyia says:
It does take some effort to get the stick to do a good job with ice, but it can be done. There's probably some out there that do a better job with ice than mine since I've had mine for almost two years and the specific brand I have has already come out with new ones. Happy researching :)
Sep 14, 2009. 4:49 PMbobwantzanapple says:
my blender only has 2 parts that need cleaning...lid and pitcher
Sep 22, 2009. 2:29 PMZem says:
Same
Jan 7, 2010. 4:45 PMPikminRed says:
x2
Sep 23, 2009. 12:00 PMsugarego says:
well, my lid has two parts (lid, centerpiece) and my pitcher has several parts (glass pitcher, blade assembly, gasket, and bottom plastic piece that these set into, which has a guideline for when you set it on the base, so you know you've twisted it on safely). and honestly, i'm not sure i'd want an upright blender without the ability to get the blades off to make sure they're clean underneath, or without a replaceable gasket for when the rubber gets brittle (i've already replaced it once). but the convenience of just two pieces does sound nice.
Jan 7, 2010. 4:51 PMPikminRed says:
How old is yours? I got mine like, 4 years ago? its a nice stainless steel 'Back to Basics' brand. It works fine and is easy to clean.
Oct 11, 2009. 1:46 PMbobwantzanapple says:
my lid has a centerpiece too, but you don't have to take it out, just put it in the dishwasher and it gets clean.
Nov 8, 2009. 6:02 PMmeejenbea says:
I always dont use the center piece and just cover the top hole with my hand then lick off any thing thats gets on. I recomend trying to prep clean as much of the pitcher as you can with your tounge ! yum!
Nov 10, 2009. 1:10 PMbobwantzanapple says:

the ice cream tasted like rotten bananas

Mar 28, 2010. 8:07 AMmurphypop says:
Did you use rotten bananas? You should only use slightly over-ripe bananas for this. I've accidentally done this too with over-over-ripe bananas, and it did NOT turn out well.
Apr 1, 2010. 6:18 PMbobwantzanapple says:
 it was a perfectly ripe banana & it tasted rotten after freezing

Mar 7, 2011. 8:44 AMoverblast says:
If at first you don't succeed, try and try again! :)
May 10, 2012. 4:11 PMbobwantzanapple says:
Or try something else...
Sep 23, 2009. 12:52 PMZem says:
Wow. Mine only has two lid parts and the pitcher and everything at all assembled together.
May 11, 2012. 10:30 AMZem says:
Are all*
Sep 14, 2009. 2:37 PMredsoxdrummer says:
yo, u can put it in th dish warshur.....
Apr 19, 2010. 3:45 PMfirefliie says:

you**
the**
washer**

Jun 23, 2011. 3:41 PMMicizzle says:
I find it absolutely hilarious when people do this. It tickles me.
Sep 12, 2009. 11:18 AMKasm279 says:
what blender do you have? o.O
Oct 4, 2009. 3:28 PMthartaros says:
can this be done with other fruits? i dont mean adding other fruits TO the bananas...my question is do other fruits become ice-creamy if blended??
Jul 19, 2011. 6:00 PMskarum says:
it really depends on the fruit. if you were to put in an apple, then it would take a long time to blend if at all. if you put in strawberries then i would imagine that it would work a lot better. but ultimately the banana is the best fruit to do this with.
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