No-churn banana nice cream is what dreams are made of. Frozen bananas and creamy coconut milk make up the base and its jam-packed with chocolate chips and nuts! Best part is all you need is a food processor and five ingredients to get the job done. Enjoy ice cream without the guilt this Summer!
What is banana nice cream?
Perhaps you’ve heard the term before, or maybe you just think there’s a typo, but NICE CREAM is a thing! It’s a delicious vegan substitute for ice cream and instead of cream, we use frozen bananas. The banana base turns into a creamy, indulgent ice cream that is totally dairy-free AND healthy!
But of course, I don’t stop there. In this nice cream recipe, I add cold coconut milk for extra creaminess (and healthy fats).
How to make nice cream
This recipe requires (a little) prep work but I promise you its worth it.
- Place ripe bananas slices into the freezer
- Add a can of coconut milk to the fridge at least 6 hours in advance, but preferably 24 hours
- Add frozen bananas, solid coconut milk, and sweetener to a food processor
- Blend until smooth
Notes:
- If you have bananas going bad, freeze them! You can use frozen bananas for smoothies, or in this case, nice cream. It’s a great way to ensure no food goes to waste!
- When a can of coconut milk is in the fridge, the solid and liquid separate so you can just use the solid in this recipe. Save the liquid for smoothies, soups, or curries!
What I love most about this nice cream recipe is it’s no churn. As much as I love ice cream, I just don’t have the room for an ice cream appliance. Using a food processor or blender, you can get the job done!
Once your nice cream is smooth, you can transfer to a container (I prefer a glass loaf pan as shown below) and stir in your mix-ins!
The nice cream will be a soft consistency like a soft-serve ice cream. If you prefer a hard ice cream, you can transfer to the freezer and let sit for at least an hour before serving.
Personally, it’s good both ways. But sometimes my patients get in the way to make a hard ice cream 🙂
Get creative with your mix-ins!
If you’ve ever indulged in the Ben and Jerry’s chunky monkey ice cream you know it’s a banana ice cream with fudge and walnuts. If that doesn’t sound like the perfect flavor combo (which if it doesn’t, I’m slightly judging), once you have a smooth nice cream base you can get creative with the flavors.
- Add cocoa powder to the food processor to make a chocolate nice cream
- Stir in peanut butter or almond butter for a delicious protein kick
- Add sliced strawberries and granola for a classic flavor combo with some crunch
- Mix in coconut slices and pineapple chunks for a tropical feel
If you tried this vegan banana nice cream, let me know in the comments below and share a photo using #mindfulavocado. I’d love to hear from you! Want to see more recipes? Let’s get social! CONNECT WITH ME on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or Pinterest to see what I’m currently cooking up!
If you like this vegan no-bake dessert you’ll love:
Raw Matcha Cheesecake Bites
Raw Coconut Cheesecake Bites

Chunky Monkey Banana Nice Cream
Ingredients
- 1 can coconut milk
- 4 bananas sliced and frozen
- 2 Tablespoons maple syrup (can substitute with agave or honey)
- 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
Tools:
Instructions
- The day before: place can of coconut milk in fridge and banana slices in the freezer
- Remove can of coconut milk from fridge and open. Scoop out solid coconut milk from the top and put in food processor or blender
- Add frozen bananas and maple syrup
- Blend until smooth
- Using a rubber spatula, spoon into a container such as a loaf pan
- Add chocolate chips and chopped walnuts. Mix well
- Serve right away for a soft serve ice cream consistency. Place in freezer for at least 1 hour for a hard ice cream consistency
- Serve with ice cream cones
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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So easy to make and so healthy, this is a guilt-free ice cream
Agreed! Thanks, Laura!
What a nice banana nice-cream recipe. It really looks so nice and creamy – I must try this – my kids will be so pleased with this. Beautiful recipe and really nice pictures.
Thanks so much, Ramona!
I make something similar and agree it’s both easy and tasty!
Thanks, Caroline!
Is it full-fat coconut milk?
Yes! Full fat coconut is best for this recipe.
I put mine in the freezer overnight and now it seems to be “too frozen”. It is not a smooth consistency and hard to scoop. Should I just leave it out on the counter longer to let it soften? Or do you have any other suggestions?
Yes you can leave it on the counter to soften! Nice cream has more of a soft-serve consistency when fresh so when it freezes, it does become solid! Once it’s a little thawed you can even try whipping it again in the food processor!
should i use only the top of the coconut milk or all the can?
Hi! Only the cream from the can! Putting a can of coconut milk in the fridge overnight separates the cream from the liquid. Just scoop out the cream from the top to use in this recipe. You can save the remaining liquid for a smoothie!
THIs recipe only has five ingredients can’t wait to give this a try!
I hope you love it!
Can you use coconut cream in a can instead of coconut milk? Also how long can it stay in the fridge for storage?
Yes, coconut cream should work fine! I usually leave a can of coconut milk in my fridge at all times. It’s great for making nice cream or making some vegan whipped cream!
I’ve seen vodka added to this recipe by other bloggers. The alcohol stops the excessive freezing. Haven’t tried it, but BIG MAN’S WORLD suggest it for his nice cream.
I never tried this but I would use caution trying this. The alcohol would remain in this recipe making it unsuitable for children or anyone who doesn’t drink.
When using coconut cream/cream of coconut do you still refrigerate until separated?
You shouldn’t have to! Your nice cream may just be a little more liquidy since the coconut cream is not cold. I hope that helps!
Do you have any suggestions on what to do with the leftover non solid coconut milk?
I usually save it for smoothies!
This looks so good! What a great way to use up bananas before they go bad!
Thanks for sharing! Does it keep long?
Yes! I’d say a couple of months in an airtight container!
Can you use almond milk for this?
I haven’t tried subbing it with almond milk, but I do not think it would work. When coconut milk from the can in refrigerated, the cream separates from the liquid and the cream is what is used in the recipe. Since almond milk doesn’t work the same way, it probably would not yield the same results.
I want to use the can of coconut cream, but you didn’t list how much to use?
This recipe calls for 1 can of coconut milk. You put the coconut milk in the freezer and the cream separates from the liquid in which you use all the cream. If you have a can of coconut cream, I would use about 3 giant spoonfuls of it. If the coconut cream is room temp, the nice cream will be runnier so keep that in mind. You could spoon out most of the can of coconut cream and refrigerate it before use so it hardens. I hope this helps!
Do you cover the loaf pan you put in the freezer?
I usually do yes! This will prevent frost bite.
This was very good! When I put the can of coconut milk in the fridge, it never separated; I ended up using the entire can. Still turned out great. I also added a pinch of salt, 1/2 TB more of maple syrup and 1 TB of vanilla extract. It didn’t taste too much like banana or coconut. A nice balance of flavors and a great creamy texture. Thanks for the recipe!
It’s very odd but some cans of coconut milk are “duds” and do not separate. My favorite brand is Trader Joe’s! So happy the recipe turned out great for you.
Made this with my Grandsons (2&4 year old) this afternoon for family dinner tonight and it was a hit. Went together easy and they were proud of their contribution to our dinner. Thank you for a fun and delicious recipe. We will continue making with your other suggestions of add ins. Thanks Again!