Blogs

I always get asked how I stay in shape and what I eat and if I have some crazy limited diet.  The truth is I am always looking to try and eat and feed my family in as healthful a way as possible, but I love bread, cheese, wine, and I loooove desert. Ice cream is one of my favorites.  So Yonannas was a very exciting prospect for me.  Now that I have become a Yo-Pro (yes, I made that up and I know I am a nerd) I thought I would share some of my tips and recipes with you.

1) Its super simple:  I am a juicier so I am used to numerous pieces to have to clean and weird attachments to use.  Yonannas is ridiculous simple.  And it is just 3 pieces to rinse.  It’s a breeze. No time at all.

2) Make sure you get the right bananas: I buy ones that are starting to spot at the store then wait one more day, have my kids peel them and throw them in the freezer.  Remember it takes 2 bananas for 1 bowl of ice cream (which I usually split between my girls,) so you will need to have quite a few in the freezer.  But, it is still cheaper than buying ice cream and better for you.

3) Let the bananas sweat:  The 1^st time I used it, I failed to read the directions (it really is that simple but its still good to read them,) and I put the bananas in straight from the freezer. It will work but be super difficult, its best to let them sit out of the freezer for a few minutes until they start to have little beads of water on them.  That’s the perfect thaw for Yonannas.

4) Desert for breakfast! :  You will be the best mom, grandmom, aunt, baby sitter etc… ever when you offer “ice-cream” for breakfast.  I let my daughter have pineapple Yonannas one morning and she thought she had died and gone to heaven.  Since it was just bananas and pineapple it was perfect for breakfast.  Just make sure you keep it to fruit and not the more “grown up” versions with the candy. You can also put it on top of some whole grain waffles or pancakes.

5) Make it fresh: Its best to make a bowl of Yonannas and enjoy then and there.  It isn’t quite as yummy if you try and store it for later or let it melt too much.  Yonannas are meant to be enjoyed in the moment.

6) Just add chocolate:  When in doubt throw in a few pieces of a chocolate bar, or chocolate chips to ANY recipe and it is always a good call.

7) Mint in moderation: My hubbys favorite is mint chocolate chip ice cream so I got mint chocolate pieces and tried that.  It didn’t work out exactly as planned.  The “ice cream” doesn’t really taste like banana but something about the mint brought out the banana taste more so we decided maybe mint wasn’t the right choice.

So here are my favorite Yonanas recipes:

1) Pineapple:  One banana, ½ cup or more of frozen chunk pineapple, then one more banana. Make sure you cut the pineapple before you freeze it.  Don’t freeze sliced of cored, it will be too hard to cut once frozen.  This is like a Hawaiian vacation.  My next adventure is to soak the pineapple in coconut juice before freezing.  Aloha!!!!

2) Chocolate and more:  One bananas, 1 (or2) chocolate peanut butter cups, one banana, one handful of heath bar pieces, one more banana.  Ah, yea, it’s as good as it sounds.  I made it for my hubby and he was in heaven.  Next I want to try adding in cold (not frozen) cookie dough. 

3) 5’oclock somewhere: One banana, 2 cubes of frozen chardonnay, ¼ cup of frozen raspberries, one banana.  This one is for the over 21 crowd, it will be great as a Saturday afternoon refresher.  You could substitute the Chardonnay for Pinot Grigio or any of your favorite cocktails (Cosmo Yonanna anyone??)  Just make sure you do let the cubes and berries “sweat” a bit before you blend.  And no Yonanan-ing and driving please!

I’m just getting started and will be sure to try some other fun recipes as the summer gets going.  I need something red white and blue for the holiday. But, with me as long as there is chocolate I’m pretty much in. Id love to hear your favorite Yonanna recipes and any tips you have for making the best frozen treat around.   Share them below. 

Have some blessed bananas!

Kerstin Lindquist

Be sure to keep up with me and see more pictures on Facebook and Twitter.