Banana Ice Cream, Part II

Its been a while since I wrote about my experiments in homemade ice cream and I’m sure that you’ve been dying for an update.  Even if you haven’t, I have one for you anyway.

Banana Ice Cream, versions 2 and 3

My second attempt at banana ice cream was an optimistic exercise.  I used three bananas, two cups of whole milk, ¼ cup of brown sugar (why not!), and one teaspoon of vanilla.  The result had a good flavor, but a not so good texture; it was pretty grainy.  Ok, so probably whole milk only doesn’t have enough fat.  Let’s try again!

Maybe the third time’s a charm?  So, I tried three bananas, two cups of heavy cream (might as well go big), ¼ cup of granulated sugar, and one teaspoon of vanilla. This had a better texture, but it was a little too fatty for me (like licking butter).  Maybe it was time to try something else and come back to banana ice cream later.

Coconut Ice Cream, version 1

I was rummaging around in the cupboard and got the idea to try making coconut ice cream. After some Pinterest research, I decided to use: one can of coconut milk, one can of coconut cream, half a cup of sugar (we started with ¼ cup, but it needed a bit more), and a splash of vanilla. 

First, I dumped the contents of both cans in the blender and gave them a whirl to smooth everything out (it had been cold, so the coconut fat was separated and solid).  Then I added the sugar and the vanilla and dumped the whole concoction in the ice cream maker.  After about 15 minutes, I added about a cup of sweetened, shredded coconut.  I ran the machine for 20 minutes total before transferring the mixture to a container so that it could harden in the freezer.  This was delicious, the problem that it was super rock hard.  It would be great for popsicles though.  I decided to try again with half coconut milk and half whole milk, hopeful that will come out scoop-able.

Coconut Ice Cream, version 2

For my next coconut ice cream experiment, I tried one can of coconut milk, then the same amount of whole milk, half a of cup sugar, and a splash of vanilla.  It came out of the ice cream maker so yummy and it seemed like the consistency would be perfect.  But after it spent overnight in the freezer, it was rock-hard too.

I started to think that I need to go back to sweetened, condensed milk or bite the bullet and make a proper custard…