I decided to revisit the intriguing 1-ingredient "ice-cream" that was blogged about a few years ago and actually try it. Bananas with that magic window of time between perfection and soggy ripeness are the basis for this terrific idea. Originally seen on the Kitchn, this is an extremely easy way to get a rich and healthy dessert, without the use of an icecream maker, any diary products or additional sweetening agents.
A simple enough process: slice bananas and freeze for a couple of hours. Add frozen pieces to a food processor and blend. Lots and lots of blending & spatula work later, you end up with a nice creamy consistency....Voila !!
Simple and Delicious! Add toppings to taste - chopped almonds, cherries, chocolate sauce....so many variations abound but the simple 1 ingredient banana seems best and true to spirit..
In trying to understand why this works (why do bananas work and other fruit not?) - some theories (including one from the great Nathan Myrhvold) postulate that its due to the pectin content.
Pectin is essentially a complex sugar found in cell walls, which is used as a gelling agent. When bananas ripen, the enzyme pectinase breaks down the pectin resulting in the characteristic softening. A quick check shows that on average, bananas have around 1% pectin. In comparison, an orange has around 2.3% and an apple ~0.8%. So I am tempted to think that this not the only component. Is it the fat? Bananas have only ~ 0.3g of fat. It does have sugar ~ 28 g. I think that the combination of the sugar, pectin and the fat together with low fiber content undergo shear in the food processor such that the emulsions formed during freezing are broken. This then appears to result in coalescence of the fat with the resulting creamy texture.
One note is that this ice-cream needs to be eaten soon. If you try refreezing, it becomes hard again and needs to be reprocessed back to its original creamy consistency. Luckily a reversible process !
Simple and Delicious! Add toppings to taste - chopped almonds, cherries, chocolate sauce....so many variations abound but the simple 1 ingredient banana seems best and true to spirit..
In trying to understand why this works (why do bananas work and other fruit not?) - some theories (including one from the great Nathan Myrhvold) postulate that its due to the pectin content.
Pectin is essentially a complex sugar found in cell walls, which is used as a gelling agent. When bananas ripen, the enzyme pectinase breaks down the pectin resulting in the characteristic softening. A quick check shows that on average, bananas have around 1% pectin. In comparison, an orange has around 2.3% and an apple ~0.8%. So I am tempted to think that this not the only component. Is it the fat? Bananas have only ~ 0.3g of fat. It does have sugar ~ 28 g. I think that the combination of the sugar, pectin and the fat together with low fiber content undergo shear in the food processor such that the emulsions formed during freezing are broken. This then appears to result in coalescence of the fat with the resulting creamy texture. One note is that this ice-cream needs to be eaten soon. If you try refreezing, it becomes hard again and needs to be reprocessed back to its original creamy consistency. Luckily a reversible process !
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