Strawberry Banana Vanilla Soy Ice Cream

We can never have too much ice cream at our house so my boys are always looking for some after dinner. But to be honest, I'm not all that fond of making ice cream. It's not so much making it but rather all the effort involved. Or maybe it's just that I loathe how my bulky freezer bowls for my ice cream machine takes up so much space in the freezer so I have no reason but to make more ice cream. Despite how I sacrifice precious freezer space to accommodate the need of homemade ice cream, it is truly worth it in the end. I mean, how else could I have the freedom to create delicious ice cream flavors that are also healthy?! This Strawberry Banana Vanilla Soy Ice Cream is a great example. A sweet cream base using Silk vanilla soy milk is swirled with fresh bananas and strawberries to create a cool, creamy summer treat that's good for you too!

I have a friend that is lactose intolerant and one of things she misses is ice cream. When I told her I could try creating a lactose free ice cream for her to enjoy, she was ecstatic! It's great that these days, lactose free ingredients are readily available , especially when I have lactose free friends, family and clients to serve. I loveSilk soymilk and almond milk in place of dairy when needed and my lactose friends certainly appreciate it! Silk soymilk is great lactose alternative for healthy living and wellness. So why not use it in ice cream too?
I flipped through my Ben & Jerry's Homemade Ice Cream & Dessert book for some ideas and inspiration and found the following recipe. It starts out with a sweet cream base and mixing in fresh strawberries and bananas. I made some adaptations to the original recipe including using vanilla soy milk (instead of whole milk), fresh strawberries (instead of frozen strawberries in syrup) and key lime juice (instead of lemon juice). Before enjoying, I drizzled a little strawberry coulis to garnish!

Strawberry Banana Vanilla Soy Ice Cream

recipe adapted from Ben & Jerry's

Sweet Cream Base:
2 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 cup vanilla Silk soy milk

Fresh fruit flavoring:
2 small/medium overripe bananas, mashed
1 pint fresh strawberries, diced
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon key lime (or lemon/lime) juice

Sweet cream base:
In a large bowl, whisk the eggs until light and fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes.

Whisk in the 3/4 cup sugar, a little at a time, then continue whisking until completely blended, about 1 minute more.

Pour in the cream and milk; whisk to blend and set aside.

In a separate small bowl, place diced strawberies, 1/4 cup sugar and key lime juice; set aside to macerate for 15 minutes.

Adding the fresh fruit:
In a large bowl, mash the bananas.

Drain the strawberries and add the natural syrup created to the banana. Set aside just the diced strawberries. Whisk banana mixture until smooth.

Combine the sweet cream base with the banana mixture and blend thoroughly.

Transfer the mixture to an ice cream maker and process according to manufacturer's instructions.

About 2 minutes before you are done churning/processing your ice cream, add the diced strawberries and continue churning/processing until done.

Transfer your ice cream into a freezer safe container and freeze for a few hours (or overnight) to allow flavors to blend.

If you are a Silk soymilk fan, be sure to check them out on social media!:
Silk: Learn More - http://silk.com/products/learn-more/about-soymilk
Silk Protein Power - http://silk.com/proteinpower
Silk Facebook Page - https://www.facebook.com/SilkUS/app_519239854842176
Twitter - @LoveMySilk
Hashtag - #silkproteinpower

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Silk. The opinions and text are all mine.