Summertime, when it’s hot and bananas are ripening at a fast rate, is a great time to make healthy banana popsicles!
We love putting our bananas — peels and all — to good use for banana popsicles! Check out some of the many benefits.
For making popsicles, we first essentially make a smoothie in our Vitamix and then pour that into the ice cream molds. So most any popsicle batter can often serve equally as smoothies and vice versa. So when we make smoothies, if there’s any leftover, we just pour it into a popsicle mold to freeze for later.
The Benefits of Healthy Banana Popsicles
Homemade banana popsicles are a winner for many reasons:
- Saves waste by making good use of over-ripe or rapidly ripening bananas.
- Saves waste and makes good use of the highly beneficial banana peels along with the banana pulp. (Optional, but surprisingly a good addition)!
- Save money! Homemade popsicles cost a fraction of the price of store bought.
- Quicker than a trip to the store and super easy to make in just 10 minutes (plus freezing time).
- Healthy and refreshing frozen treat:
- Low calories
- Low sugar
- High in nutrients, especially calcium, magnesium & phosphorus.
Substitutions & Variations
Substitutions
Banana popsicles are versatile, and you can easily substitute ingredients to cater to various dietary needs or preferences:
- Ripe Bananas: You can choose a variety of ways to use bananas, but whether fresh or frozen, peeled or unpeeled, it’s easier on your blender to chop them into 1-2 inch chunks.
- Fresh unpeeled bananas
- Fresh peeled bananas
- Frozen unpeeled bananas
- Frozen peeled bananas
- Coconut Milk: There are so many wonderful healthy milks available to use these days. We use them all and find them all equally good with mild nuances:
- Nut Milks:
- Almond milk
- Cashew milk
- Hemp milk
- Oat milk
- Yogurt – instead of — or in addition to — you can use your favorite yogurt.
- Cow’s milk, whole or low fat, however the thinner liquids will freeze harder like water and less creamy.
- Nut Milks:
- Agave:
- Honey ot maple syrup can be used as natural sweeteners in place of agave.
- Low (or zero) sugar sweeteners – If you’re cutting down on sugars, you can use stevia or monk fruit sweetener.
- Chocolate Protein Powder:
- If you’re allergic to chocolate or just want a change, consider using a different flavored protein powder like strawberry or cookies and cream.
- If you’re vegan, make sure to use a plant-based protein powder.
- Vanilla Protein Powder:
- For a caffeine kick, you could replace one serving of vanilla protein powder with a coffee-flavored protein powder.
- Alternatively, try an unflavored protein powder and add a teaspoon of real vanilla extract for a more natural flavor.
Variations
As with most recipes, once you’ve mastered the basic recipe, the possibilities for variation are endless:
- Tropical Banana Pops: Substitute part of the coconut milk with pineapple juice and add some shredded coconut for a tropical twist.
- Nutty Delight: Add a 1/4 cup (or so of) almond or peanut butter to the mix before freezing.
- Berry Blast: Incorporate mixed berries like strawberries, blueberries, or raspberries into the blend for added antioxidants and flavor.
- Choco-Mint: Add a few drops of peppermint extract to the chocolate protein powder mixture for a refreshing minty touch, (and feel free to add more chocolate, like chocolate chips)!
- Spiced Banana Pops: Add a small amount of cinnamon or nutmeg to your banana mix for a warm, spiced flavor.
- Indian / Middle Eastern banana pops: add cardamon powder and rosewater instead of protein powders and chocolate.
- High-Protein Boost: You can increase the servings of protein powder for a post-workout snack, but you may need to adjust the liquid amount accordingly. You can also use other flavored powders, such as banana or strawberry.
- Vegan and Sugar-Free: Use plant-based protein powder and a zero-calorie sweetener for a vegan and sugar-free alternative.
- Coffee Lovers: Blend in a shot of espresso or a teaspoon of instant coffee powder for a caffeinated banana popsicle.
Feel free to combine these variations and substitutions to create your ultimate healthy banana popsicle. The options are only as limited as your creativity and personal preferences!
You’ll probably also love this Raw Chocolate Smoothie, either as a smoothie, or as batter for yummy chocolate popsicles!
Healthy Banana Popsicles Recipe With Protein Powder (Optional)
Equipment
- 1 popsicle mold This holds 12 popsicles at once with relatively easy extraction.
Ingredients
- 5 medium ripe whole bananas including skin (optional, but see banana peels benefits)
- 2 cup coconut milk or your favorite milk
- 1/4 cup Agave or honey or maple syrup
- 2 scoops vanilla protein powder or 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 2 scoops chocolate protein powder (or omit and double the vanilla protein powder)
Instructions
- Wash banana skins lightly. (Best to use organic bananas).5 medium ripe whole bananas medium ripe whole bananas
- Chop off both stem and bottom ends of bananas.
- Keeping skin on, cut into 1-2 inch sections and drop into blender.
- Add 1/4 cup Agave, protein powders (or vanilla flavoring), and 2 cup coconut milk (or your preferred milk of choice) to the blender.
- Blend until smooth.
- Gently pour banana mixture into the popsicle molds and insert the popsicle sticks.
- Freeze for at least 4-6 hours (preferably overnight).
Nutrition
Still Going Bananas?
For more banana treats, check out these articles:
- Banana French Toast
- Easy 2-Ingredient Banana Pancakes
- Raw Chocolate Smoothie – great as a smoothie, or as batter for yummy chocolate popsicles!