One-ingredient ice cream (Fitness Friday)

Okay, it’s not really ice cream, since there’s no cream or dairy products of any kind. But I promise you, that it’s as creamy as “real” ice cream, healthy, and tasty. Unless you hate bananas; in which case, I got nothin’ for ya.

When I first heard about one-ingredient ice cream, it seemed simple to do. Freeze a banana, then run it through a food processor. Voila! Frozen banana with the same creamy consistency as ice cream. So I tried it, and just about froze my hands off trying to peel and then slice a frozen banana. Don’t do it that way. This is what you should do–

One-Ingredient Ice Cream:

Step One: Gather your bananas. I like to use 1-1.5 medium sized bananas a person. Slice your bananas into pieces about an inch thick.

Step Two: Lay your banana slices flat in one layer on a cookie sheet or pie tin or casserole dish, and then place in the freezer.

Step Three: Let your bananas freeze for 4-6 hours*, and then remove from the freezer.

*You can freeze your slices overnight if that’s more convenient, but you may want to let them defrost for 20 or 30 minutes before putting in the food processor. The first time I used banana that had been frozen for 24 hours, I was afraid I was going to break a blade on my food processor!

Step Four: Place the slices in your food processor and blend for 2-3 minutes. You may have to stop a couple of times and use a spoon to remove banana slices off the blade**.

**If at any point the mixture starts getting too liquidy, pop it back in the freezer for 20 minutes. You can also do this after blending but before eating.

And that’s it! You’re ready to eat your delicious, healthy one-ingredient ice cream!

Flavor Suggestions:

If one ingredient is too boring for you or you’re ready to be adventurous, try mixing in peanut butter or Nutella or berries or some ground cinnamon. My favorite flavor combination is one banana, one tablespoon of cocoa powder, and one tablespoon of freshly ground peanut butter.

Looking for other ideas? Check out this list of five one-ingredient ice cream flavors from TheKitchn.com.

Fitness Friday:

Well, the last couple of weeks have been a little rough. I’ve been exercising and gotten a few good workouts and runs here and there, but I haven’t been pushing as hard as I should, and I’ve been missing too many days. I need to prioritize better.

The good news is that my foot hasn’t been bothering me as much. It’ll still get sore here and there, usually after I’ve put in about 4 miles, but occasionally just from walking around in unsupportive shoes. I did purchase new running shoes, and I know that has helped.

My diet has been mostly good, but there have been a few days where I just ate a lot of junk. That’s not typical of me, but I think we all struggle at one point or another, right?

I’ve been keeping upbeat about it, and I’m just determined that next week will be better. Health/fitness is a life-long journey. Sometimes my path is going to dip downhill for a bit, but as long as I get back up again and continue the climb, that is a success.

The Link-Up:

If you’re a blogger, I invite you to join up with me every Friday at JillConyers.com and We Have It All. Share your fitness and/or weight loss goals, successes, and failures. Have a healthy recipe? Share it!

Not a blogger? You’re welcome to let us know in the comments below how you’re doing with your goals, so we can support you.

How was your week? Were you able to get out and be active? What yummy foods did you eat this week?
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