Dirty Banana Ice Cream

Let me introduce you to a delicious St. Lucian frozen concoction called the "Dirty Banana." You'll find Lance and Jonathan serving them up all day long at the pool bar at our honeymoon spot, Calabash Cove Resort near Castries. Though we never knew exactly what was in the drink, I believe it consisted of a ripe banana, lots of dark rum, milk and simple syrup. Good thing it was banana season in St. Lucia as Nick drank a few of these each day we were there!

I wasn't trying to recreate the drink in ice cream form when I tried making this recipe, but the finished product brought us right back to the glorious infinity pool with the swim-up bar. Most of you probably don't have an ice cream maker lying around the kitchen, but I encourage you to invest in one NOW. We got ours on sale at Crate & Barrel for $60. I even reorganized our cabinets so that we could find a spot for it! There's nothing better than homemade ice cream, and the ability to create new and interesting flavors is a fun project for a relaxing summer weekend.

You will love the mixture of the fresh banana, crunchy toasted walnuts and the hint of dark rum flavor. It couldn't be easier to make - just mix the base together and throw it in the ice cream maker for about twenty minutes or so. Then add the bananas and walnuts. Sounds like my kind of summer dessert. I also used light cream in the recipe, so that cuts down on the fat and totally justifies an extra half-scoop.

Dirty Banana Ice Cream
Makes about 5 cups
Adapted from "The Best Ice Cream Maker Cookbook Ever"

Ingredients

• 2 cups half-and-half or light cream
• 1 14-ounce can fat-free sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 overripe medium bananas
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons dark rum
• 3/4 cup toasted chopped walnuts 

Preparation


In a large bowl, combine the half-and-half, condensed milk, and vanilla. Whisk to blend. Cover and refrigerate until very cold, at least three hours or as long as three days.

In a small bowl, mash the bananas, lemon juice, and rum to form a coarse puree; there will be about 1 cup. Cover and refrigerate until needed.

Whisk the half-and-half mixture to blend and pour into the canister of an ice cream maker. Freeze according to the manufacturer's directions. When the ice cream is at the soft serve stage, add the mashed bananas and toasted walnuts and process 2 minutes longer.

Serve with vanilla wafers or caramel sauce.