Whip up this frosty whole foods nice cream recipe in a food processor in about 15 minutes. Spiked with a bit of chocolate, creamy Strawberry Nice Cream is a delicious and easy no churn, no ice cream maker needed recipe that’s naturally sweet and super simple to pull together. This recipe is vegetarian, vegan and easily gluten free.
All the Good Things Strawberry Nice Cream!
Have you heard?
While I love a classic frozen dessert like ice cream or this Strawberry Banana Milkshake, we can indulge in the frozen stuff without added sugar, eggs, or cream. This frozen strawberry dessert is super easy to make, too, in a food processor with few ingredients and requires only a short time in the freezer!
This Recipe Is:
- creamy
- sweet without added sugar
- made in 15 minutes, hands on time
- vegetarian, dairy free and easily vegan
Nice cream is a creamy, dreamy whole foods banana based frozen treat. It’s made of frozen bananas as a base and any other frozen fruit you’d like to add with a few additional ingredients to make it ultra creamy and tasty!
If you like nice cream recipes or homemade Ice Cream desserts, you’ll enjoy this recipe!
About the Key Ingredients
- Frozen Bananas – plan ahead! These will need about an hour in the freezer if freezing from fresh. Frozen bananas add natural sweetness and a creamy texture to the nice cream.
- Frozen Strawberries – just like the bananas, the strawberries will need about an hour in the freezer if freezing from fresh. Strawberries add color, and a vibrant strawberry flavor to the nice cream.
- Full Fat Coconut Milk – while the bananas and strawberries are freezing, pop a can of full fat coconut milk in the refrigerator. Coconut milk adds richness and body to the nice cream. I’ve tested several brands of coconut milk for this recipe, with varying results. I recommend Thai Kitchen Organic Coconut Milk for consistency in this recipe.
- Dark Chocolate – use your favorite dark chocolate bar for this, vegan and/or gluten free if needed. We’ll melt it down and add it to the nice cream while the food processor is running. This creates little chocolate bits (the crunch is sublime!). I use 80-85% dark chocolate.
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How to Make Strawberry Nice Cream
Step by Step
The technical name for those flecks of chocolate in this recipe is stracciatella. Chocolate chips is easier to remember and spell, so I went with it!
Traci’s Tips
- I’ve included a single and double batch for Strawberry Chocolate Chip Nice Cream in the recipe below. For a double batch, you’ll need at least a 10-12 cup food processor.
- Plan ahead! The bananas and strawberries need to be frozen at least 1 hour in advance and the coconut milk refrigerated for an hour.
- Vegan and Dairy Free! Look for vegan and gluten free chocolate if needed.
- Strawberry Nice Cream tastes best when enjoyed shortly after making it. The texture is smooth and creamy and the consistency is fluffy. I find freezing it for more than a few hours changes its character. If you do freeze it for a longer period of time, be sure to pull it out of the freezer and rest it on the counter for 20 minutes or so just to soften it a bit.
More Egg and Dairy Free Ice Cream Recipes to Try
- Dark Chocolate Cocoa Nib Ice Cream
- Bourbon Soaked Cherry Vanilla Bean Ice Cream
- Bourbon Vanilla Bean Ice Cream
5 Ingredient Strawberry Nice Cream with Chocolate Chips
Servings:2 or 4 Servings
Calories:229kcal
Whip up this frosty whole foods nice cream recipe in a food processor in about 15 minutes. Spiked with a bit of chocolate, creamy Strawberry Nice Cream is a delicious and easy no churn, no ice cream maker needed recipe that's naturally sweet and super simple to pull together. This recipe is vegetarian, vegan and easily gluten free. **Time above does not include time to freeze the fruit, and refrigerate the coconut milk, about one hour.
Ingredients
For Two Servings:
- 2 cups (207 grams) Frozen Bananas chopped into small chunks, about 2 bananas
- 3/4 cups (95 grams) Frozen Strawberries stems removed, cut in half
- 2 tablespoons Full Fat Coconut Milk from a can, unsweetened, refrigerated for 1 hour, I use Thai Kitchen *see note
- 1/8 teaspoon Fine Sea Salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 2 tablespoons Dark Chocolate chopped fine
For Four Servings:
- 4 cups (415 grams) Frozen Bananas chopped into small chunks, about 4 bananas
- 1 1/2 cups (190 grams) Frozen Strawberries stems removed, cut in half
- 4 tablespoons Full Fat Coconut Milk from a can, unsweetened, refrigerated for 1 hour, I use Thai Kitchen *see note
- 1/4 teaspoons Fine Sea Salt
- 1 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
- 1/4 cup (50 grams) Dark Chocolate chopped fine
Instructions
- Get Ready: Place a loaf pan or other small pan (3 cup for small batch, 6 cup for large) in the freezer while freezing the bananas and strawberries, and refrigerating the coconut milk. The nice cream will be stored in this container after processing.
- Make the Nice Cream: In the work bowl of a food processor fitted with the S blade, add the frozen bananas, frozen strawberries, chilled coconut milk, salt, and vanilla extract. Process for about three minutes until fluffy and creamy, scraping down the bowl two to three times or as needed during processing.
- Melt the Chocolate: transfer the chocolate to a small glass bowl and microwave on low power for about 20 seconds two or three times, stirring in between, until the chocolate is melted and smooth.
- Add the Chocolate: Once the nice cream is smooth and creamy, slowly drizzle in the melted chocolate while pulsing the food processor. This creates tasty and texture rich chocolate flecks in the nice cream.
- To Store: To enjoy right away, spoon the nice cream into bowls for soft serve. Or, spoon into the chilled loaf pan and freeze a few hours for a firmer set. For longer storage, place a piece of parchment paper directly on top of the nice cream and/or lid the container it's stored in.
Video
Notes
*Full Fat Coconut Milk – while the bananas and strawberries are freezing, pop a can of full fat coconut milk in the refrigerator. After an hour of refrigeration, sometimes the top will be creamy, other times, there’s no cream visible, just a pourable consistency. Either consistency can be used, it just needs to be chilled. If there’s cream when you open the can, it should be soft, so you’ll scoop it out and add it to the food processor. Just make sure the cream isn’t solid or hard. That will result in small flecks of coconut milk fat throughout your nice cream. Still tasty, but not as pretty.
Nutrition is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate. If this information is important to you, please have it verified independently.
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 229kcal | Carbohydrates: 35g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 0.5mg | Sodium: 152mg | Potassium: 585mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 19g | Vitamin A: 78IU | Vitamin C: 37mg | Calcium: 27mg | Iron: 3mg
Made It? Leave a comment below! The most helpful comment may include recipe rating, feedback, any modifications and/or helping other commenters. On Instagram? Take a snap of your make and share, tagging @VanillaAndBean #VanillaAndBean!
*Many thanks to EdwardAndSons for sending me these fabulous gluten free sugar cones and to Theo Chocolate for their fair trade, organic and gluten free chocolate used in this recipe!
When my strawberries are ready…I’m gonna try this recipe. It looks and sounds delish!
Hi Heide! Sounds good to me! I hope you love it!
can you use ripe frozen bananas?
Hi Jeanne! You need ripe frozen bananas, yes! I hope you love it!