2 HEALTHY CHOCOLATE ICE CREAM ALTERNATIVES TESTED

Who doesn’t love a good ice cream on a hot day? We certainly do! Especially when it’s always summer at its hottest here in sunny Singapore.
But, ice cream isn’t the healthiest thing to have on a frequent basis.
These are the ingredients from a random chocolate ice cream that I found:
Sugar, Glucose Syrup, Coconut Oil, Whey Protein Concentrate, Cocoa Powder, Whey Powder, Skimmed Milk Powder, Contains Permitted Stabilisers (E412, E410, E407), Emulsifier (E471-plant origin), Flavouring and Colourings (Tartrazine) Substances of Plant and Synthetic Origin.
Our approach to eating healthy is very simple: Eat a variety of mostly WHOLE foods.
That ingredient list above definitely doesn’t scream “HEALTHY”.

THE RECIPES

I’ve read about making homemade ice cream using blended frozen bananas, and always wondered how satisfying can that be. So, on a hot afternoon (32 degrees celsius / 90 degrees fahrenheit!!), craving for some ice cream, I decided to experiment.
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Here are the two recipes that I decided to give it a go at:
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Chocolate Banana PB Ice Cream
Prep Time
15 mins
Waiting Time
2 hrs
Total Time
2 hrs 15 mins
 
Servings: 2
Calories: 176 kcal
Ingredients
  • 2 medium ripe bananas (~7 to 8 inches)
  • 1 tbsp unsweetened peanut butter (or any nut butter of choice)
  • 2-3 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder (use 3 tbsp if you prefer a darker, more chocolatey version)
Instructions
  1. Peel the bananas and roughly break them up into smaller 1 inch chunks. Freeze them until they are fully frozen (at least 2 hours).
  2. In a food processor or high-speed blender, add the frozen bananas, peanut butter and cocoa powder. Blend until well combined.
  3. Serve immediately if you enjoy ice cream with a soft serve consistency. For a firmer consistency, pop it in the freezer for an additional 30 mins. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
  • The ice cream will be rock hard if kept for too long in the freezer. Thaw for 10-15 minutes or till desired texture before eating.
  • Ice cream can be stored in an airtight container in the freezer for a few weeks.
  • If you have a hard time blending the frozen bananas, you can add 1-2 tablespoons of milk to help move it along.

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Chocolate Coconut Ice Cream
Prep Time
10 mins
Waiting Time
3 hrs
Total Time
3 hrs 10 mins
 
Servings: 2
Calories: 250 kcal
Ingredients
  • 200ml / 7oz full-fat coconut milk
  • 2-3 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 tbsp honey
Instructions
  1. In a blender, add coconut milk, cocoa powder and honey and blend until well combined.
  2. Transfer mixture to freezer safe container and pop it in the freezer for at least 3 hours. To ensure it doesn't become too icy, lightly mix your ice cream every 20-30 minutes for the first hour. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
  • The ice cream will be rock hard if kept for too long in the freezer. Thaw for 10-15 minutes or till desired texture before eating.
  • Ice cream can be stored in an airtight container in the freezer for a few weeks.
  • To speed up the freezing process, you can place the freezer safe container in the freezer beforehand.

REVIEW AND RATINGS

CHOCOLATE BANANA PB ICE CREAM
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Texture: The banana ice cream turned out smooth, creamy, and really came out looking like actual, real ice cream.
Taste: If you love dark chocolate (like we do), we recommend adding the full 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder to give it a richer, darker chocolate flavor.The peanut butter gave it a creamier, nutty taste, giving it even more of a dessert-ish feel. Even though it tasted great, you could still taste the bananas, and it isn’t gonna fool anyone into thinking they’re eating REAL ice cream.
Healthy or not? No doubt, this recipe is a healthy one. Three wholesome ingredients in bananas, cocoa and pure nut butter, you’re *almost* basically having fruits and nuts. Eat a variety of mostly whole foods? Check.
CHOCOLATE COCONUT ICE CREAM
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Texture: It’s only natural that being made from mainly coconut milk, the ice cream turned out to be icier than the first recipe. To fully enjoy the coconut ice cream, you would have to leave it out on the counter for a little while, otherwise you’d be licking a solid block of ice.
Taste: Although the texture wasn’t convincingly ice cream-ish, it tasted amazing! If you had ever been to Bangkok, you may have come across one of their famous coconut ice cream. This one certainly reminded us of that. However, if you are not a big fan of the coconut flavor, then of course this may not be the one for you.
Healthy or not? This ice cream recipe may be slightly higher in calories compared to the previous one, but compared to your store-bought mass produced ice cream, the ingredients are probably a lot more wholesome. Makes for a great treat occasionally, but wouldn’t eat this on a daily basis, though.

CONCLUSION

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HOW EASY IS IT TO MAKE YOUR OWN HEALTHY, HOMEMADE ICE CREAM?
Honestly, surprisingly easy! Throw a bunch of ingredients into a blender or food processor and you’re done!
WOULD WE MAKE THEM AGAIN? DOES IT SATISFY OUR ICE CREAM CRAVINGS?
The answer is a resounding yes! The ease of making them, the satisfying flavor, and the surprising fact that they’re pretty healthful (recipe #1, at least), these two gems of a dessert are definitely going into our book of go-to recipes.
Definitely give these two recipes a go. They are so simple to make, there are practically no excuses for you not to! If you have some bananas that are over-ripe, now you know what to do with them.
Anything you’d like us to try? Leave it down in the comment section below!