Banana Cashew Ice Cream
This raw vegan banana cashew ice cream is super easy, really delicious, and so rich and creamy you’d never know it was dairy-free.
I’ve been making this simple dairy-free ice cream for years, and it never gets old. It’s on the menu for my easter party, and I want it to be on your menu, too. This cashew ice cream is always a hit, and it is sooooo easy to make.
You will need a high-speed blender for this cashew ice cream. Raw unsalted cashews or coconut meat are my go-to base ingredients to make rich, creamy dairy-free ice creams. And, to get the smoothest consistency that will replicate full cream and milk, you need a powerful blender that will not only completely pulverize the cashews into cream, but also blend this thick ice cream mixture.
Soak your cashews for the best results
Regardless of what blender you use, soak your cashews for the smoothest consistency with this cashew ice cream. You can soak them the slow way by submerging in room temperature filtered water for 2 hours and then draining and rinsing. Or the quick way by soaking in boiled water right out of the kettle. Read my post about soaking for the full instructions.
Use ripe bananas for the best flavor
Use ripe bananas for the best results with this ice cream. You want a banana flavor, and you don’t want the cashew flavor to be too dominant. If you don’t have ripe bananas, you may want to add more maple syrup to taste.
Other flavor options for this cashew ice cream
If you want a rich creamy vegan ice cream, but you’re not a fan of bananas, this basic recipe serves as a fantastic base to create other flavors of cashew ice cream.
To the base recipe add:
- 1/3 to 1/2 cup raw cacao powder for chocolate cashew ice cream
- 1/3 to 1/2 cup raw cacao powder + 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes for chocolate chile cashew ice cream
- Replace the 4 bananas with 4 cups of fresh strawberries for strawberry cashew ice cream.
Ice Cream Makers I recommend
This ice cream recipe is designed to be churned in an ice cream maker.
I love the ice cream maker attachment for my KitchenAid stand mixer. I just keep the bowl in the freezer so I can make ice cream whenever I want. This ice cream attachment is inexpensive, and it reduces the need to purchase a whole other machine.
If you don’t have a stand mixer, and want a really simple ice cream maker, the Cuisinart ice cream maker is really popular and accessible.
For ice cream connoisseurs and people who make homemade ice cream on a regular basis, consider investing in a really amazing ice cream maker. I also have the Breville Smart Scoop ice cream maker, and it is incredible. The capacity of the ice cream bowl is small. But, the machine has a cooling cycle so you don’t have to freeze the bowl. The machine does all of the work for you!
How to make cashew ice cream without an ice cream maker
If you don’t have any kind of ice cream maker, here is how to make banana cashew ice cream in a high-speed blender with no ice cream maker:
Throw these ingredients into your high-speed blender and enjoy immediately like frozen yogurt. Or put the mixture in the freezer for a few hours to solidify for a more commercial ice cream consistency.
Other Vegan Ice Cream Recipes
Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream
Coconut Ice Cream
Chocolate Hazelnut Ice Cream
Maple Pecan Ice Cream
Black Sesame Ice Cream
Please let me know what you think of this recipe in the comments!
Your feedback is really important to me, and it helps me decide which recipes to post next for you.
