Monday, May 30, 2011

It's Bananas! B-A-N-A-N-A-S!

I've been jamming in my head to Gwen Stefani all day, because I'm pretty sure I just discovered the most delicious summer treat evah. It all started when I heard about something called the Yonanas Maker. It's basically this high-powered blender that transforms frozen bananas into a soft-serve ice creamy concoction. I was intrigued, because I could probably eat ice cream (especially soft serve) for every meal and not blink an eye. (I'm still holding a grudge against that ice cream machine in my dorm cafeteria my freshman year in college for producing such delicious soft serve and doing evil things to my pant size. You mean you can't scarf ice cream cones after every meal and not gain weight? Lame.) I did a little investigating, and found a whole bunch of recipes for pretty much the same thing, except instead of shelling out fifty bucks for a Yonanas Maker, I could use my food processor.

As soon as we got home last night (more on that adventure to come), I sliced up some bananas, froze them, threw them into my Cuisinart, and proceeded to be totally amazed/dumbfounded at the results. Delicious. Sweet. Creamy. And it's frickin' bananas! Mike and I loved it so much, we went out this morning to buy more bananas - and came back with a fifteen pound bag of almost too ripe 'naners that cost a whopping $2.99. I spent my afternoon slicing and freezing them, pretending I was Gwen Stefani, and dreaming about all the awesome, healthy desserts I would be chowing on in the months to come.
Here's what I did:

First, we bought an insane amount of bananas. But it was less than three bucks for the whole bag and I was feeling thrifty. You can probably make do with two or three at a time.

Next, I sliced and laid them out on wax paper on a baking sheet.

Into the freezer! Two hours is probably enough time to get them good and firm. I threw all my extras into freezer bags.

Toss them into the food processor. This is probably three or four bananas. I was making a little extra since my parents were over for dinner.

Blend them up! It will take a few minutes - they will look chunky at first, but once they start to thaw a little bit it will be smoother. You should also periodically scrape the sides down with a spoon.

The finished product! You can stop here - totally delicious!

Or, if you're feeling a little crazy, you can add some peanut butter and chocolate chips. Mmmmmm.

Looks just like ice cream, right? Bliss.

The ultimate seal of approval.
Not to sound pushy or anything, but you seriously need to go make this right now. For reals. Go!
Happy Memorial Day!

4 comments:

  1. Wow, that really does look like ice cream! I just might have to try making some of it. I'm really into smoothies right now and the perfect tool for making them is the Magic Bullet. If you don't have one, try Googling it.

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  2. I cannot wait to give this a try!!

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  3. Thanks, Tara, for sending me this link! I am TOTALLY making this soon!

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  4. Frickin' brilliant! Is that what Cedella tried and loved at your house? I need to try that. When I have a kitchen again ; )

    Now I have Gwen Stefani stuck in my head...

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