Coconut Nice Cream

Name: Coconut Nice Cream
Prep time: 5 min
Total time: 5 min
Ingredients: 4 overripe bananas, peeled and frozen whole; ¼ cup of coconut cream (from a can of coconut cream or scoop the hard cream from a refrigerated can of full-fat coconut milk); 1 teaspoon of coconut extract; 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract; A pinch of fine sea salt

August 29, 2022 by Carol Clayton in dessert

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Coconut Nice Cream is a vegan ice cream lover’s dream come true! It’s made by blending wholesome frozen bananas and rich coconut cream into a thick and creamy soft serve treat. This 5-minute recipe is gluten-free, dairy-free, and naturally sweet!

If there was only one dessert I could pick to eat for the rest of my life, it would be nice cream. My love for this frozen miracle runs deep. One time, before a flight home, I spotted a box of very overripe bananas sitting next to a garbage can just outside the smoothie stand in the airport’s food court. Could they be throwing these golden nuggets away? Double checking with the cute smoothie barista, the bananas were “too old” to be used in smoothies and were headed for the trash. Tragedy! I rescued what I could fit in my personal item and gleefully took this treasure home to freeze.

Fortunately, you won’t have to go much farther than the discount shelf in the produce aisle to find overripe bananas. You might even have some lurking at the back of the fruit bowl, which is a total score. Peel those babies, pop them in the freezer, and prepare to have your mind blown! Vegan nice cream is fluffy, creamy, tastes like ice cream, and is healthy enough to eat for breakfast.

What is nice cream?

Nice cream is simply blended overripe frozen bananas. That’s it! From there you can customize to your heart’s delight. Adding a healthy fat such as coconut cream or peanut butter bumps up the richness and elevates the creaminess. I tablespoon per banana is enough to make it uber luscious without turning your dairy free ice cream into a calorie bomb.

Coconut nice cream has both vanilla and coconut extract for subtle layers of flavor.

Tips for making perfect nice cream

Overripe bananas are key!

Bananas are the main ingredient in nice cream and what makes it naturally sweet. Choose bananas that are over overripe and covered all over with black spots. You know, the kind you see stacked on the discount shelf in your grocer or discover at the bottom of your kid’s lunch box? Those are perfect and will be very sweet!

Freeze the bananas whole-

Peel your bananas, lay them side by side in a freezer-friendly container, and freeze them whole. This keeps them from sticking together and saves you the time of spreading sliced bananas on a cookie sheet to freeze and bag later. If you stumble upon a pile of overripe bananas, go for it! Frozen bananas will keep their flavor for about 6 months.

Click here to read all about freezing bananas for nice cream.

Thaw your bananas a little bit before blending-

Even in a Vitamix, frozen solid bananas will cause my motor to smoke, overheat, and eventually quit. Thaw them in the microwave for 20 seconds at a time until they are still frozen but not rock hard. Or, let them sit on the counter until you can just cut them with a knife.

Use a high-powered blender-

It will make your nice cream loving life a lot easier. I’ve made hundreds of batches in everything from a Vitamix, to a Blendtec, and a Nuwave. In these types of blenders, you can pile in all your ingredients and let the blender do the work. The handy tamper in these models makes it easy to push the frozen fruit down toward the blade without stopping the blender.

If you have a standard blender like Ninja, plop your coconut cream in first followed by the bananas. This will help the blades grab onto the frozen fruit and blend with less effort. You’ll want to thaw your bananas until they make a slight dent if pressed to help the motor out. Stop and scrape the sides of the container to push the ingredients toward the blade for quicker blending. If you blend for too long, the friction of the blades will melt the bananas and you’ll end up with a smoothie instead of a frozen treat.

Eat right away or freeze for later-

Nice cream fresh from the blender is fluffy, creamy, and has the texture of soft serve. I love dishing it into a fun dessert glass or a big coconut bowl. It melts quickly so enjoy right away. For firmer nice cream, smooth it into a small pan, cover, and pop it in the freezer for later. Just be sure to let it thaw until scoopable before serving.

Love coconut bowls? Me too! Click here to get 15% off your order. Use code VEGETAFULL at checkout!

Where do I find coconut cream?

There are 2 ways to find coconut cream:

Purchase a can of coconut cream and scoop out the thick cream.
Refrigerate a can of full fat (not lite) coconut milk overnight and scoop out the hard cream. (Do not use Thai Kitchen Organic Coconut Milk, the cream will not separate.)

Serving Suggestions:

Mix in dollops of Healthy Vegan Cookie Dough to make cookie dough nice cream

Place a scoop between two Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies for a crave-worthy ice cream sandwich

Add ¼ cup of Dutch cocoa powder for chocolate coconut nice cream

I hope you fall in love with this coconut cream nice cream, it’s:

Naturally sweet
Completely healthy
Low calorie
Minimal ingredients
Quick and easy
Creamy
Dairy-free
Vegan

Keep Scrolling for step-by-step instructions and photos!

Ingredients for Coconut Nice Cream

4 overripe bananas, peeled and frozen whole
¼ cup of coconut cream (from a can of coconut cream or scoop the hard cream from a refrigerated can of full-fat coconut milk)
1 teaspoon of coconut extract
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
A pinch of fine sea salt

How to make Coconut Nice Cream

coconut nice cream ingredients in a blender

1. Thaw your frozen bananas slightly so the blender can grab onto them. You’ve got a couple of options here: Microwave them for 20 seconds at a time, checking to see if you can dent them with a knife. Or, let them sit on the counter until still frozen but not rock hard. Cut them into thick slices.

2. Tumble the bananas into a blender followed by the coconut cream, extracts, and salt.

3. Secure the lid and start blending at low speed. Stop now and then to scrape the sides of the container or use the tamper to push the bananas toward the blade. When it begins to come together in a fluffy mass, increase the speed to medium and blend until creamy.

4. Scoop into a fun dessert glass, bowl, or cone. For firmer nice cream, smooth into a small pan and freeze for later.

Notes:

If freezing for later, let thaw until scoopable before serving.

Summers not over yet! Click here for more nice cream recipes.

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Yield: 2 Generous Servings

Author: Carol Clayton

Coconut Nice Cream

Prep time: 5 MinTotal time: 5 Min

Ingredients

4 overripe bananas, peeled and frozen whole
¼ cup of coconut cream (from a can of coconut cream or scoop the hard cream from a refrigerated can of full-fat coconut milk)
1 teaspoon of coconut extract
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
A pinch of fine sea salt

Instructions

Thaw your frozen bananas slightly so the blender can grab onto them. You’ve got a couple of options here: Microwave them for 20 seconds at a time, checking to see if you can dent them with a knife. Or, let them sit on the counter until still frozen but not rock hard. Cut them into thick slices.
Tumble the bananas into a blender followed by the coconut cream, extracts, and salt.
Secure the lid and start blending at low speed. Stop now and then to scrape the sides of the container or use the tamper to push the bananas toward the blade. When it begins to come together in a fluffy mass, increase the speed to medium and blend until creamy.
Scoop into a fun dessert glass, bowl, or cone. For firmer nice cream, smooth into a small pan and freeze for later.

Notes

If freezing for later, let thaw until scoopable before serving.

For step-by-step instructions and photos, see blog post!

Nutrition Facts

Calories

321.9

Fat (grams)

11.18

Sat. Fat (grams)

9.49

Carbs (grams)

56.37

Fiber (grams)

6.79

Net carbs

49.58

Sugar (grams)

29.36

Protein (grams)

3.66

Sodium (milligrams)

23.34

Cholesterol (grams)

Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators.

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Pumpkin Spice Nice Cream

November 15, 2021 by Carol Clayton in dessert

Pumpkin Spice Nice Cream

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Decadent enough to be served for dessert yet healthy enough to be eaten for breakfast, this Pumpkin Spice Nice Cream will be your new favorite fall treat. It’s fluffy and creamy just like soft-serve ice cream with all the cozy spices of the season!

Hello pumpkin spice, it’s nice to see you again…

I was cleaning out the fridge last weekend and came across a partially finished can of pumpkin puree which seems to be a thing around Thanksgiving. Remembering how fluffy pumpkin makes Vegan Pumpkin Spice Blender Muffins I added it to my peanut butter nice cream, along with the classic seasonal spices, and ahhhhh, ended up with Pumpkin Spice Nice Cream! Being a confessed nice cream-o-holic this is now my favorite way to use up leftover pumpkin.

Nice cream, which is just blended frozen over-ripe bananas is pretty much the easiest and healthiest dessert you can make in 5 minutes. There’re just a few things to keep in mind when making this delightful frozen concoction.

Tips for making perfect nice cream

Bananas:

The perfect nice cream banana is past the point where you would want to eat it fresh out of the peel. The skin will be soft and covered all over with dark brown or black spots, indicating that the starches have turned to simple sugars, making them naturally very sweet. You can often find them on the discount produce shelf.

To freeze bananas, peel them and freeze them whole. This keeps them from sticking together. They are easy to slice even when frozen solid. I usually freeze 4 bananas per container, which will make 1 batch of nice cream. Frozen bananas will keep their flavor for about 6 months.

Click here to read all about freezing bananas for nice cream.

Blender Basics:

Thaw a tiny bit: Let your frozen bananas sit on the counter to thaw a bit while you gather your other ingredients or microwave them for 10-20 seconds. They should still be frozen but thawed just enough to dent slightly if squeezed. This allows the blender to grab onto the banana, achieving the creamiest result. Cut the bananas into chunks.
Add smushy ingredients first: Add soft ingredients to the blender container first. This includes extracts, nut butter, and pumpkin Then add the frozen bananas and a pinch of salt.
Blend: Secure the lid on the blender container and blend, starting at low speed and working your way up to medium. This can take up to a minute or more, depending on your blender. Be careful not to over blend as the friction of the blades creates heat which will melt your nice cream.
Serve or freeze: Scoop your nice cream into bowls or cones to eat right away. If a thicker consistency is desired, put it in the freezer to harden. If freezing for later, let thaw until scoopable

What blender should I use?

You can make nice cream with almost any blender. I use a Vitamix E 320 which is a basic but powerful model. My favorite part is the tamper which allows you to push the food around without taking off the lid and scraping down the container. It will overheat though, if I don’t thaw my bananas sightly or add a soft ingredient like pumpkin.

If you have a basic, less powerful blender, thaw your bananas until you can make a dent in them with your fingers, but they are still frozen. You will need to stop and scrape the container a few times but nice cream is always worth the effort. If the nice cream looks too soft, put it in the freezer to firm up.

Why you’ll love Pumpkin Spice Nice Cream:

Fluffy just like soft-serve ice cream
Sweet and creamy
Full of pumpkin spice flavor
Quick and easy to make
Healthy, made from bananas and pumpkin

To take your nice cream from breakfast to dessert, dress it up with Vegan Caramel Sauce and sprinkle with chopped pecans!

4 large over-ripe bananas, peeled, frozen, and sliced (you can use 5 medium bananas or 6 small bananas)
½ cup (113 grams) of pumpkin puree
¼ cup (2 oz.) of creamy peanut butter
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon of ground cloves
¼ teaspoon of ground nutmeg
A pinch of fine sea salt

Makes 4 single scoop servings or 2 generous servings.

How to Make Pumpkin Spice Nice Cream

Steps 1-2:

1. Thaw your frozen bananas just a little bit. You can do this by letting them sit on the counter or by putting them in the microwave for 10 seconds at a time. They should still be frozen but just soft enough to dent slightly if squeezed. (see blog post for tips)
2. Add the bananas to a blender container along with the pumpkin puree, peanut butter, vanilla, spices, and salt.

Steps 3-4:

3. Securely attach the lid to the container and start blending at low speed, using the tamper (with a Vitamix) to push the bananas toward the blade, or stop to scrape down the sides with a spatula as necessary. When the bananas begin to look creamy, increase to medium speed and blend until fluffy.
4. Top with vegan caramel sauce, chopped pecans, and enjoy as a scrumptious dairy-free dessert!

For more delicious nice cream recipes click here.

And don’t forget the Vegan Carmel Sauce!

If you like this Pumpkin Spice Nice Cream recipe, please give it a 5-star rating in the recipe card below, and lemme know how it turns out in the comments. Hearing from you always makes my day! And if you’re looking for more yummy vegan inspo, check out my Pinterest and Instagram Page!

Yield: 4 single scoop servings

Author: Carol Clayton