One-ingredient banana ice-cream recipe

This ‘magic’ one-ingredient banana ice-cream recipe almost sent the internet crazy. Find out how to make it and also try our other glorious ice-cream recipes

Kelly Pigram

2 min read

November 26, 2023 - 10:58AM

Ice-cream that’s delicious and healthy? We’re so on board.

Recently the internet met the “magic” one-ingredient banana ice-cream. This recipe is healthy, keto, vegan, dairy-free, gluten-free and everything else you can think of – and it sent people crazy. Sorry, but there are no prizes for guessing the one ingredient involved.

This sneaky recipe has been common knowledge in some circles for years (we’re looking at you, vegans), but one-ingredient banana ice-cream went through a renaissance when American website Salon wrote about it and encouraged the world to get on board.

We’ve been fans for a while – and we’re happy to see this genius trick back in the spotlight.

You don’t need any dairy or additives because the water-soluble pectin present in banana breaks down and turns the fruit into soft-serve after a few minutes of blending.

How to make one-ingredient banana ice-cream

1. Freeze ripe bananas.

2. Blend frozen bananas in a food processor until they reach ice-cream consistency.

Yep, it’s that easy. You don’t need any dairy or additives because the water-soluble pectin present in banana breaks down and turns the fruit into soft-serve after a few minutes of blending. If you want specific quantities, here’s our super easy banana soft serve recipe. It uses two ingredients (sorry to make things difficult), but we think the addition of lemon juice makes for an easier blending experience and a little extra hit of flavour.

Fizzy sherbet ice-cream (see recipe at end of article).

Experiment with different flavours

If you want to spice it up a bit, try experimenting with different flavours, like adding a tiny bit of cinnamon or honey, or using blueberries for an extra kick. Here are some of our foodies’ suggestions:

Banana, blueberry & lime soft serve

Proceed with banana soft serve recipe adding 210g (1 1/2 cups) frozen blueberries and the finely grated rind of 2 limes to food processor. Top with fresh blueberries to serve.

Spiced honey banana soft serve

Proceed with banana soft serve recipe adding 60ml (1/4 cup) honey and 1 tsp ground cinnamon to food processor. Drizzle with extra honey to serve.

Choc, peanut & banana soft serve

Proceed with banana soft serve recipe adding 90g (1/3 cup) smooth natural peanut butter and 2 tbs cacao powder to food processor. Top with chopped roasted peanuts to serve.