by Texas Homesteader ~ 

A frozen treat is a delightful way to cool down on a hot day. The combination of frozen bananas and strawberries provides a boost of vitamins, antioxidants and fiber making it a healthy snack option too.

When it’s hot outside I make this cheap, healthy, gluten-free frozen sweet treat. It’s a much healthier version of ice cream. 

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Healthier Option For Ice Cream

Here in NE Texas it seems the weather went from winter to summer with nary a mild spring day between! So I’m focusing these days on serving cooler foods and cold desserts. But I wanna keep it healthy too.

RancherMan LOVES ice cream, especially when it’s this hot outside. But it’s just not healthy to indulge in such a high-fat treat too often.

So I started making a cold ‘ice cream’ (or NICE cream) using frozen bananas for the sweetness and frozen berries for an extra punch of flavor & nutrition.

Healthier Frozen Treat Using Bananas & Strawberries

Making this healthy frozen treat literally takes only minutes. I just loosely chop the frozen fruit & plunk everything into my Ninja blender at one time & blend it smooth. Done & done!

That’s important y’all – I don’t want to spend time in the kitchen.

A cold, sweet treat that’s healthy & cheap plus fast & easy to prepare?  Yes please! 

Eliminating Waste By Buying Fruit CHEAP!

This alternative to ice cream is not only healthy but super cheap too. When our local grocery store begs customers to buy those over-ripe bananas by offering them for almost nothing, I snatch them up by the bunches. It seems this ripe fruit is even sweeter than its less-ripe counterpart.

Plus I’m helping eliminate food waste by buying food that the grocery store may have had to throw away soon. AND I’m doing it for less money and with no trash involved – the peels simply get tossed into my composter. #winning

I do the same thing with other various quick-sale fruits & strawberries. When I get home I peel the bananas and seal peeled bananas & berries in separate freezer bags. Then I toss the banana peels in the composter and the bags of fruit & berries in the freezer.

Make Healthy Ice Cream Substitute Using Bananas & Strawberries

Here’s how I make my healthy frozen strawberry treat: 

• • • Three frozen bananas,

    • 1 cup frozen chopped strawberries,

    • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

    • 2 tablespoons of honey 

Then I bring out my trusty *Ninja Blender.  

Have I mentioned lately how much I LOVE that thing??!! This Ninja rocks, y’all! 

NOTE: I try to share all the items we use & love in our Homesteading Tools tab above – feel free to check out our faves!

How Do You Blend Frozen Fruit To Absolute Smoothness?

Blending frozen fruit has never been easier, y’all!

I chop the frozen bananas & tossed them into my Ninja blender.

Then I chop several frozen strawberries & add them into the Ninja – about a heaping cup’s worth. You can add as much as you like though. More bananas makes it creamier, more berries makes it more of a sorbet. Whatever you like!

And I also toss in 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract and a couple of tablespoons of honey because RancherMan likes his desserts sweet.

Then I give it all a quick whir until it was all blended together smoothly. 

What’s The Texture Of Frozen-Fruit Ice Cream?

This recipe makes a soft-set type of ice cream ready to eat right then, right there.

But if you want your sweet treat a little firmer you can toss it into the freezer for about an hour. But much longer and it becomes harder, so you’ll want to bring it out for a few minutes before scooping if you’ve frozen it for long.

Flavor Options For Frozen Blended Fruit Ice Cream

If you have flavored liquid creamers it’s super fun to toss in a couple of tablespoons for a little extra sumpin’ but it’s totally optional.

In the past I’ve added French Vanilla or Hazelnut flavor and RancherMan really seemed to like it.

But it’s delicious either way. And quick to prepare too.

Other Cold Sweet Treats For Hot Summer Days

Here are other cold treat ideas for those hot Texas summer days:

Homemade Peach Ice Cream – can use fresh or canned peaches.

A mock fat-free ice cream using frozen bananas and pudding mix. Even a Mint Chocolate Chip flavor option.

Frozen applesauce into Apple Sticks popsicles – Perfect to offer to the littles.

Healthier Chocolate Fudgesicles – includes yogurt probiotics.

Easy Cookies & Cream Ice Cream Cake – uses ice cream sandwich shortcut.

But below is the easy and healthy frozen banana and strawberry ice cream alternative recipe I often use:

NOTE: Help us show up in searches by rating the Strawberry Nice Cream recipe in your comment below!

~TxH~

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Other Easy Desserts

Cakes, Pies, Cobblers

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Cookies

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Puddings

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Ice Cream & Other Desserts

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Dessert Toppings

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• Cherry Pie Filling From Frozen Cherries
• Peach Pie Filling From Canned Peaches

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