Recipe: A healthier, homemade alternative to ice cream
Meghan Sedivy, a dietitian with Fresh Thyme Market, shares an ice cream alternative that you can make at home this summer.
Ingredients
2 frozen bananas, cut into bite size pieces
2 cups fresh strawberries
1 tbsp. almond milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Toppings
Coconut chips
Fresh blueberries
Fresh strawberries
How-to
Our first step is to cut the bananas into bite size pieces and place in a plastic freezer bag and freeze for 2 hours.
Dietitian Tip: Bananas are the base of this recipe and provide the creamy rich texture that you would usually get from milk or other dairy products in ice cream. They are packed with potassium that helps your body maintain fluid and electrolyte balance and assists in nerve function and muscle contractions.
Once the bananas are frozen, place them in a large food processor and blend until smooth.
Next add 1 tsp. vanilla extract, 1 tbsp. almond milk, and 2 cups of fresh strawberries, blend until thick and smooth. If the NICE cream texture is not thick and smooth you can add 1-2 more tbsp. almond milk to help with the smooth consistency.
Dietitian Tip: Using almond milk so that this NICE cream remains dairy free is a great option for those who are eating a dairy-free or plant-based diet.
Building Your NICE Cream Sundae
Now that we have made our NICE cream we get to build our red, white and blue sundae. Start with 3 scoops of NICE cream and spread evenly into a small rectangular glass bowl, next add your stripes one layer at a time, using strawberries and coconut chips. Add blueberries to the upper left corner and you have a festive and flavorful sweet treat to share over the 4th of July.