Pumpkin N’ice Cream Recipe
This vegan pumpkin n’ice cream is dairy-free and satisfies your pumpkin cravings for Fall!
I love pumpkin. It’s just so versatile. There aren’t many other veggies that are so full of potential. Pumpkins can be anything from breakfast to dinner or dessert! You just can’t lose with pumpkin. And it’s so good for you! In fact, I would go so far as to say that this may be one of the most nutrient-dense ice creams on the planet! How’s that for being humble?
Many of you know that a lot of my recipes for ice cream are banana-based. Bananas offer a creamy texture that we are so used to in regular ice cream but allow us to avoid unhealthy fat (for those who want lower-fat eating plans) and even dairy for those who are sensitive. But the best part is that you can significantly reduce the amount of sugar you have to add to get the level of sweetness you would expect from ice cream. I don’t know about you, but I’d much rather get my sugar intake from fruit than from a bag of sugar, even if it’s a bag of clean sugar. And while this does contain some maple syrup, it’s much less than you would have to add to regular ice cream. So that, in a nutshell, is why I keep doing these banana ice cream recipes. I will say that if you want to reduce the amount of maple syrup, I recommend switching to honey instead and using maybe a 1/4 cup or so. The great thing is you can adjust to taste after blending and before freezing!
I have, however, gotten emails and Facebook postings from people who dislike or are allergic to bananas. For those people, I highly recommend substituting the bananas with frozen mango. The flavor will be slightly different, but not so much so that it won’t still taste like pumpkin ice cream. Enjoy!
Is Pumpkin Ice Cream Gluten Free?
While some pumpkin ice creams might not be, this one certainly is. It’s dairy-free and egg-free, too!
How Do You Freeze Bananas?
At least a day before you want to make your ice cream, peel and slice a bunch of bananas. Cut them into chunks -usually about ½-1 inch thick- and place them on a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Freeze them overnight. To store the frozen bananas, simply transfer them to a freezer-safe bag and return the bag to the freezer. Then, proceed with the recipe below.
What Is Pumpkin Spice Made Of?
While everyone’s recipe is slightly different, a good pumpkin spice will typically include a blend of ground cinnamon cloves, ginger, and nutmeg.
RECIPE NOTES:
This does freeze pretty hard. When removing it from the freezer, let it sit on the counter for a bit before trying to dig into it. Also, I went a little light on the spices, so if you prefer a stronger flavor, feel free to add more. That’s what is great about this recipe. You can taste it before you freeze it to adjust it to your own taste! Also, just because this has already been asked, yes… you can taste the bananas. There is no way around that. But again, adjust the flavor before freezing to something you enjoy.
That being said if you want to minimize the banana flavor, make sure you use just barely ripe bananas. Avoid bananas with any brown spots at all. If they have just finished turning from green to yellow, they are probably perfect for limiting the amount of banana flavor in this healthy pumpkin ice cream recipe.
More Healthy Ice Cream Recipes
Pumpkin N’ice Cream Recipe Card
Vegan Pumpkin Banana Ice Cream Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 medium bananas, sliced and frozen overnight
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- ⅓ cup maple syrup
- 1 ½ tsp. pumpkin spice, no sugar added if purchased
Instructions
- Using a food processor, blend the bananas, pumpkin, maple syrup, and pumpkin spice thoroughly.
- Transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze for 24 hours.
Do you know the Dietary info on this?
Mostly How many calories?
Thanks
Mary – I no longer offer nutrition data. You would have to enter the recipe into an online calculator. MyFitnessPal.com has an easy one.
Loved this! I’m such a pumpkin fiend in the fall, this helped greatly. mostly healthy too so I don’t feel guilty chowing down.
mine tasted a bit too much banana to my liking. I’m going to add more pumpkin and less banana next time to my preference 🙂 still delish however!
my freezer is super powerful for some reason. it took a day to freeze and 2 hours to thaw enough to eat it haha.
PumpkinFiend – Oh no!! That’s one powerful freezer!! ????
Just found this recipe via Pinterest, and I’m super interested! I’m weird and don’t love the flavor of maple syrup, though. All the comments I’ve looked at mention more about tasting banana, which is fine with me. My question is can you taste the maple syrup, or is that flavor lost/blended in enough that I won’t notice it? Or would you recommend using honey or something else to sweeten it if maple isn’t my jam? Thanks!
Erica – You could definitely sub with honey, but you may want to back off a bit because honey tends to taste sweeter than maple syrup. You’ll have to experiment. I didn’t taste maple syrup, but I enjoy the flavor. So I may not have noticed the way you would.
Absolutely Devine! How many calories is this ice cream?
Sarah – I don’t offer nutrition data due to liability. But MyFitnessPal.com has a great calculator that will import the recipe for you just by pasting the url into it.
Very excited to try this! Can I make it using an ice cream maker? If I do, can I then use room temperature bananas and skip the freezing step?
Amy – Sorry, no. This isn’t formulated for an ice cream maker.
Can I substitute honey for the maple syrup?
Jill – Yes you can! 🙂
Wow! This is great! I want to make all of my ice cream this way!
Donna – I have lots of banana ice cream recipes here. Enjoy! 😀
Yum!! I ended up adding a little more pumpkin pie spice plus extra cinnamon and a drizzle of real vanilla extract, and boy is it good!
Christina – Fantastic! I’m so happy you enjoyed it! 🙂
What a great simple and healthy dessert recipe! Do you think I could cut back on the sugar is I use homemade pumpkin puree?
Bethany – I doubt it. The pumpkin puree you buy at the store is the same as what you would make at home. You could cut back on the bananas a bit, but I’m not sure what that would do to the overall structure of the finished ice cream.
I have been making your all-fruit “ice cream” for over a year now, and I enjoy it so, so much! Today I had the thought of doing some kind of pumpkin + frozen banana ice cream and was just about to do some experimenting when I decided to look on Pinterest first. And what should I hit straight away? The Gracious Pantry pumpkin banana ice cream! You beat me to it! 🙂 I can’t wait to try it out tonight (since I always have loads of frozen bananas on hand anyway)!
P.S. Thank you for your wonderful recipes! Your banana/strawberry/pineapple ice cream has been an essential player in my weight-loss and overall health journey. So delicious and wholesome!
Sara – What a wonderful comment! Thank you! 😀 Please let me know how it turns out for you!
I wonder if you could sub honey instead of the maple syrup? We have all ingredients except the maple syrup at home. Otherwise, I can’t wait to try it! I’m on Weight Watchers and this is such a low point ‘ice cream’!! 😀
Misty – Yes, but I would reduce the amount just slightly because honey is much sweeter than maple syrup. You also don’t want the honey flavor to overpower the ice cream. But otherwise, definitely! I would add to taste. 🙂
Thanks for your site. I made a heavily modified version of this recipe for a Thanksgiving gathering yesterday and it was a huge hit. I was experimenting while making it so I’m not exactly sure of my recipe. It had far more pumpkin than banana, probably 3 or 4 cups puree combined with 4 or 5 bananas and 1/2 cup maple syrup. I also added 1/2 t freshly grated nutmeg, 2 t cardamon, and 1 t cinnamon. After blending, I added about 2 tablespoons of minced candied ginger that was soaked in warm rum to soften it and bring out the flavors. Before serving, I topped it with shelled pumpkin seeds.
Arlin – Sounds amazing!!! 😀
Is this safe for dog consumption?
Janice – I have no idea. I would avoid it unless a qualified veterinarian tells you it’s okay.
Can honey be used instead of maple syrup ?
Susanna – Sure! 🙂
Nutritional values for this? And serving size?
Teresa – You would have to enter the recipe into a recipe calculator. I highly recommend MyFitnessPal.com. They make it very easy to calculate recipes.
Can you use a blender for this instead?
Nicole – You can try, but you’ll have to be very careful adding the bananas. They can burn out your motor if you don’t add them slowly and with other ingredients.
hi! is there a way to make this with out a food processor? 🙂
Sylvia – You can try making it in small batches in a blender. But take it slow and keep the amount of bananas small or you run the risk of burning out your motor.
thank u!
I made this over the weekend and it was delicious! For those who have a Ninja processor, it’s not the best machine for getting your bananas completely smooth before you mix them with the rest of the ingredients. I got the bananas about 80% there and then scooped it out and layered the pumpkin/maple syrup/spice mix with the bananas back into the processor. That helped get the rest of the small lumps in the bananas out. MMMMMM!
Thank you bunches!!! I can’t eat dairy, so this is wonderful.
Rachel – Fantastic! Thanks for the extra tips! 🙂
Can you use honey instead of syrup? Thanks, this looks yummy!
Veronica – Sure! Just keep in mind that honey has a much stronger flavor and is a bit sweeter than maple
Would using honey instead of syrup work?
Savannah – Yes, but the honey flavor would really come through. It’s also a bit sweeter than maple, so you may want to use a bit less than the recipe calls for.