Guilt-Free Summertime

When the summer heat gets intense (and in Florida, when is it ever not intense?), I find myself craving something cold. And something sweet -- but that's not really limited to summer! However, I don't want to indulge in refined sugars too often.

Banana ice cream to the rescue! It has the consistency of soft serve, it's sweet and creamy, and it has only two ingredients -- neither of which are sugar. Yes, I realize that bananas are sugary fruits, but I really don't mind that.

I've been raving about it to friends and family, but they've all seemed unimpressed -- until they try it! Little Man asks for it frequently, and I love having a nutritious "treat" to serve him. Even Rosa has seemed pleased with the little nibbles she's gotten (when I'm feeling generous enough to share with her!). 

Fresh banana ice cream topped with cream and sprinkles --

You can find various versions of this on the web, but here's how I do it:

Ingredients:

• Bananas
• Milk

Insructions:

1. Cut a ripe banana into slices and lay on a baking sheet (I line mine with wax paper for easy cleanup).
2. Pop into the freezer for a few hours -- they store well for several weeks, so there's no need to use them right away (though I'd recommend transferring them to a closed container if you plan to store them)
3. Place banana "coins" into a food processor (or blender) and add a dash of milk -- we use whole raw milk, but any milk should do. You might even be able to use water if you need it to be dairy free, but I'm not sure what that would do to the consistency and taste.
4. Pulse your food processor until the banana starts to break up. Add more milk as needed until the consistency is smooth and creamy. Adding too much milk will make it soupy, though, so be conservative!
5. Serve with desired toppings. I usually add just a dash of Reddi Whip and a few jimmies (yes, I realize that both of those contain sugar! *wink*), but I've also tried chocolate chips, pecans, shredded coconut -- the sky's the limit!

Notes:

• The texture is quite thick, so I use my food processor -- I've done it in a blender, but it involved lots of stopping to smash banana chunks down into the blade area.  
• You could combine other fruits with the banana if you want to add other flavors -- strawberries and raspberries are both good candidates, but I wouldn't recommend watery fruits like watermelon or citrus.