Nice Cream – if you haven’t heard of it before, it’s basically a healthy ice cream substitute made with a frozen banana base. Bananas have a remarkably creamy texture when frozen, making them a fantastic sub when you want a creamy, cold treat that isn’t a total calorie bomb. They’re also pretty versatile, and are able to accommodate pretty much any topping you want to add in. While it’s typically served in a bowl like ice cream, I thought it would be way more fun to make some bite sized treats that are ready whenever the craving strikes.
These Chocolate Covered Nice Cream Bites are made with just 4 ingredients, excluding toppings, and can be customized however you want. Top them with coconut or pumpkin seeds like I did, or get creative with your own favorite toppings. The possibilities are endless.
The reason this recipe idea came about was because my husband bought a bunch of bananas that turned ripe all at once, so I decided to peel them, slice them, and stick them in a gallon sized Ziplock bag to use for smoothies or, you guessed it, nice cream. When my daughter started eating the frozen banana slices on their own and saying they tasted like ice cream, a light bulb went off and that was it. If you don’t happen to have a bunch of bananas around that you’re willing to freeze, you can always buy frozen banana slices. While it won’t be as cost effective, they’re already ready to go, so no downtime necessary.
For the chocolate, it couldn’t be easier. You need some organic cacao powder, coconut oil and my favorite zero calorie and zero sugar sweetener, Sweetleaf Stevia Drops. They even have a chocolate kind which I used for this recipe. If you don’t have the Sweetleaf Stevia drops, you can also use a little maple syrup instead.
So that’s it – frozen banana slices, cacao powder, coconut oil and stevia drops or maple syrup. The toppings are up to you.
Chocolate Covered Nice Cream Bites
Author: The Lean Clean Eating Machine
- 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
- 1/2 cup organic cacao powder – I used the Navitas brand
- 2 droppers full of Sweetleaf stevia Chocolate drops or 1/2 tsp maple syrup
- 2 Bananas peeled, sliced and frozen solid in a gallon size Ziplock
- Any toppings you want
- Peel and slice bananas in to 1/2″ chunks. place banana carefully into a gallon sized Ziplock bag and let freeze overnight.
- When bananas are ready, combine 1/4 cup of melted coconut oil, 1/2 cup cacao powder and Sweetleaf stevia drops (or maple syrup). Stir until no clumps remain and mixture is completely smooth.
- Set out a piece of parchment paper to set your bananas on.
- Place one frozen banana slice at a time into the chocolate mixture until evenly coated. Remove with a fork and place on parchment paper until chocolate sets. If you want to add toppings, make sure to have them ready to do this immediately after you pull them out of the chocolate so the topping will stay put.
- When finished, place your covered bananas into a new Ziplock bag and store in the freezer.