Banana-Peanut Butter "Ice Cream"

Here is a cool, sweet treat to give your family this summer. It gets its creamy consistency from the bananas; there is no cream or milk in the recipe at all. Each batch makes a large serving or a couple of small ones. Increase the recipe as needed for the size of your family. You can make this even healthier by using all-natural peanut butter.  I really enjoyed this, and that says a lot, because I'm not crazy over ice cream and I usually don't care for peanut butter when it's mixed with anything sweet like jelly or chocolate (Reese's Cups being the exception).

If you think of it ahead of time, you can pre-freeze the bananas and have your treat in slightly less time.  Or if you're like me, you can make this on the spur of the moment and use bananas that are at room temperature.


Banana-Peanut Butter "Ice Cream"

2 ripe bananas (the riper, the better)
1-2 Tablespoons peanut butter (any brand, chunky or creamy)
1-2 Tablespoons honey
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
pinch of salt (can omit if the peanut butter is heavily salted)

Method #1:

Peel the bananas and place in lidded container.  Freeze until firm.

Place all ingredients in blender or small food processor/chopper.  Blend until smooth.  Scoop into lidded container and freeze until set, about 15 minutes.  Serve.


Method #2:

Peel bananas, but do not freeze them in advance.  Place all ingredients in large bowl and blend well using a hand-held mixer.

Leave mixture in the bowl and place in freezer.  Remove bowl every 15 minutes.  The mixture will be firmer around the outside and softer in the middle; quickly mix again with hand mixer.  Continue doing this until mixture is uniformly set.  (It will take 30-60 minutes.)  Serve immediately or transfer to a lidded container and return to freezer.