Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Banana Ice Cream (Dairy Free!)

I’m going to make a pretty general assumption that if you’re reading this, you like ice cream. I’m going to make a second assumption and guess that you’re like me and eat WAY too much ice cream. We’re talking a pint of the good stuff (Jeni’s and Graeter’s I’m looking at you) lasts maybe two days in my freezer before it’s gone.

DARN YOU ICE CREAM BECAUSE I HAVE NO SELF CONTROL.

They all say that the first step to knowing you have a problem is to admit the problem.

Done.

Now that the denial is out of the way, I began searching for remediation. I just so happen to live across the street from a Wendy’s, so my idea of “self-control” turned to no longer buying pints at the store and  instead stopping across the street for a junior frosty once or twice a week to satisfy my craving. It worked, and might have been a little healthier, sure, but I needed a better plan.

I gave my first attempt at Banana Nice Cream the old college try a few years ago. Unequipped with the knowledge and resources I have now, I dumped a few frozen bananas in my mom’s blender and poured in a little 2% milk and called it a day.

It was okay, but it was still bleh.

My ice cream needs are too high-end for this type of nonsense. Luckily, times have changed over the past few years and so has my pantry! I’ve added some common household items to my banana nice cream recipe to give it a complete makeover, and OH THE TRANSFORMATION.

I’ve included two recipes to this post: one for the super simple ice cream I make the most often (read 2-3 times a week) because it’s the less involved and takes under 10 minutes.

For the ice cream, I just throw one frozen banana into a blender with almond (or coconut) milk, frozen almond cubes, cocao powder, peanut powder, and half a scoop of vanilla (or chocolate!) protein powder. Blend and done! I swear I no longer can even taste the bananas in it, and it definitely reminds me of a slightly-melty Wendy’s frosty for wayyy less fat and calories.

The second recipe is for the chocolate chip cookie dough balls! These call for a little more planning (the cookie dough balls can be tedious to mix and roll up) but luckily, you can make them in advance and freeze for future use! I’ll admit to also opening the freezer and munching on them by themselves, too. You’d never know they’re made from chickpeas 😉

Happy ice cream mixing, friends!