Banana “Nice” Cream

By: Co+op

Total Time: 4 hours; 10 minutes active

Servings: 2

Craving a sweet treat? Instead of ice cream, make “nice” cream from frozen bananas. It’s dairy free and you can easily create custom flavors.

Ingredients

3 ripe bananas (2 cups), sliced and frozen

¼ teaspoon vanilla

1 tablespoon almond milk (or other milk)

Chocolate

2 tablespoons cocoa

Peanut butter

2 tablespoons peanut butter

1 tablespoon honey

Pistachio

3 tablespoons pistachios

Strawberry

2 tablespoons all-fruit strawberry jam

Chia

1 tablespoon chia seeds

Preparation

Place the sliced bananas in a food processor bowl and process, breaking down the banana into small bits.

Scrape down the banana, add the vanilla and almond milk, and process until smooth. As soon as there are no lumps, transfer to bowls to serve or to a storage tub to freeze.

For variations

Chocolate: Add cocoa with the vanilla and milk and process.

Peanut butter: Add peanut butter and honey with the bananas and process.

Pistachio: Grind the pistachios in the food processor until creamy, scraping down and repeating as needed. Then add the bananas and process. When a thick puree is produced, add the vanilla and almond milk and process.

Strawberry: Add the jam with the bananas and process.

Chia: Add the chia seeds with the almond milk and process.

Tips and Notes

Make sure your bananas are completely frozen and work quickly so the nice cream will remain cold. If you want it firmer, just scoop it into a storage tub and freeze. You can also scoop it into individual cups and freeze for easy serving.

Serving Suggestion

Top these frosty treats with some strawberries or chopped nuts, such as pistachios or peanuts!

Nutritional Information

200 calories, 0.5 g. fat, 0 mg. cholesterol, 10 mg. sodium, 52 g. carbohydrate, 6 g. fiber, 3 g. protein

Kiwi Sorbet

By: Co+op

Total Time: 3 hours and 20 minutes; 20 minutes active

Servings: 4

If you think making sorbet requires an ice cream maker, prepare to turn your food processor into a sorbet factory! Frozen fruit can be pureed to smoothness with just enough added natural honey to bring out the fruity flavor.

Ingredients

8 medium kiwis, peeled

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup almond milk or other dairy-free milk alternative

Preparation

Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Slice the kiwis into ½-inch rounds and spread on the prepared pan. Freeze until solid, about three hours. If you are not making sorbet the same day, transfer the frozen slices to a freezer container and store in the freezer for up to one week.

To make sorbet, place the frozen kiwi slices in the bowl of a food processor and add the lime juice. Process, scraping down as needed, until the kiwi is finely chopped, with no large chunks.

Add the honey and almond milk and process until smooth and thick.

Serve immediately or transfer to a freezer container and store for up to one week. When frozen solid, let the sorbet sit for five minutes before scooping.

Serving Suggestion

Serve in fun teacups or martini glasses to let the color of the sorbet stand out, and top with a slice of kiwi.

Nutritional Information

160 calories, 1 g. fat, 0 mg. cholesterol, 15 mg. sodium, 40 g. carbohydrate, 5 g. fiber, 2 g. protein

Raspberry Agave Sorbet

By: Robin Asbell

Total Time: 3 hours with chilling; 10 minutes active

Servings: 4

Sorbet is a refreshing, light alternative to ice cream, but it is so much more. Try it layered in parfaits, floated in berry sangria, or on top of another berry desserts, such as Fruit-Topped Bread Pudding or Berry Cobbler. In this version, using agave syrup means that you can skip the traditional step of making a syrup from sugar, since agave dissolves in cold water.

Ingredients

12 ounces frozen or fresh raspberries

1/2 cup light agave syrup

1/2 cup water

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Equipment

Ice cream maker or food processor

Preparation

If using an ice cream maker, have it chilled and ready to go (if using the freezer method, have an ice cube tray or cookie tin lined with parchment paper ready to go). Place a fine wire screen strainer over a bowl, which you'll use to strain the raspberry puree.

In a food processor or blender, puree the raspberries until smooth. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the puree into the wire strainer, and then to press the puree through. Scrape and move the fruit pulp until all you have left are seeds. You should have about one cup of puree. Stir in the agave, water and vanilla, then chill until very cold.

Use the ice cream maker to freeze the sorbet. If desired, transfer to a storage tub and freeze until ready to use. (If using the freezer method, pour the sorbet mixture into the ice cube trays or onto the parchment lined cookie tray and freeze. Break the frozen sorbet mixture into chunks, if using a cookie tray, and puree the chunks in a food processor before serving.)

Nutritional Information

166 calories, 0 g. fat, 0 mg. cholesterol, 2 mg. sodium, 42 g. carbohydrate, 8 g. fiber, 1 g. protein

Grilled Pluots with Ice Cream

By: Co+op

Total Time: 20 minutes

Servings: 4

Stone fruit is perfect for drizzling with honey and topping with ice cream. It’s easy to sear the buttered cut sides of the fruit to make grill marks, then flip the fruit and let the juice simmer inside the skin.

Ingredients

4 medium pluots

2 tablespoons melted butter

2 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon fresh lime zest

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Preparation

Preheat a gas grill on high. Scrape the grill to make sure it is very clean and the fruit won't stick.

Slice the pluots in half vertically, and remove the pits, forming hollows in the fruit. Place the halves on a plate, cut side up, and brush lightly with melted butter. In a cup, stir the honey, lime zest and cinnamon.

When the grill is hot, place the fruit on the grill, cut side down. Cook until marked, three to four minutes. Turn the fruit over with tongs, then use a small spoon to drizzle the honey mixture into each one. Cook until the fruit is bubbling a little around the edges and the flesh is very soft, about two minutes.

Transfer to a plate and serve hot, topped with ice cream and chopped nuts, if desired.

Serving Suggestion

These sweetened stone fruits make a perfect topping for vanilla ice cream, Greek yogurt or even a green salad.

Nutritional Information

120 calories, 6 g. fat, 15 mg. cholesterol, 50 mg. sodium, 18 g. carbohydrate, 1 g. fiber, 1 g. protein