Well hello there!
At the time you’re reading this, I’m likely in the air, somewhere between London and Bahrain. I’ve just spent a night with my sister and her dog, Tesla, who is so spoiled that she pretty much deserves human sister status too.
How could you ever say no to that face!?! Seriously, she is a princess and is THE best behaved dog I’ve ever seen. No jumping, no barking, she’s super clever and will happily cuddle all day. I kind of want to steal her on my way back to Vancouver. 😉
After I landed we dropped my luggage at my sister’s place, then did a quick walking tour through South Kensington, Leicester Square, Covent Garden, and the area where my sister used to go to uni. It was rainy and dark, but still beautiful and fun to see all the lights up for Christmas.
Along our travels we came across M&M World, which I didn’t know existed but couldn’t possibly ignore due to the aroma of chocolate wafting out the doors. If you ever wanted to buy anything with M&Ms on it – onesies, pajamas, umbrellas, plush toys, t-shirts, Christmas ornaments, mugs, t-shirts, boxers, M&Ms in Star Wars costumes, super fleecy pants, slippers – you name it, they have it, in all the colours.
This place is 4 levels packed with all those things I just listed, an M&M lab with people in lab coats, a pick-and-mix-your-own-combinations station, an area for creating personalized M&Ms (as in, stamping your your initials on them), and life-size M&M figurines like these ones, which are set up like The Beatles on Abbey Road…
It was amazing stuff, I tell ya. In our travels we stopped for dinner at a restaurant called The Goodlife Eatery, where they’ve got heaps of smoothies, cold pressed juices, açai bowls, superfood salads, sandwiches, wraps, soups, and baked goods – otherwise known as exactly what my dreams are made of. I had their Sunset Chopped salad with a delicious tahini orange dressing and awesome grilled chicken, and my sister had The Downtown Sweet Po’Tater – a baked sweet potato stuffed with vegan walnut mince and a side kale salad. The food was delicious and it was a really cute, cozy little spot but the service was a little lackluster. So was the lighting, hence the lack of food photos.
But you know what isn’t lackluster?
The treat I’m about to share with you today, that’s what. I didn’t want to leave you without a healthy recipe of the week, and today’s is a super simple, ridiculously foodgasmic, 100% guilt-free dessert. I hope you’ve got some frozen nanners in your freezer because it’s time to put them to use!
Peppermint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream
Prep Time: 5 mins
Cook Time: 0 mins (4-6 hours freezing)
Ingredients (2 servings)
- 3 frozen bananas, peeled
- 1/2 scoop vanilla Vega Performance Protein (optional – you can leave this out if you prefer and just add a little more vanilla extract. The protein makes this an extra delish post-workout treat!)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2-3 drops peppermint extract
- just enough unsweetened almond milk or coconut milk to blend
- 30g high quality dark chocolate (I used Vega Maca Chocolate)
Instructions
Put everything except the dark chocolate into the blender and blend until smooth, adding a little bit of liquid at a time as needed. If you’re using a , I find it helps to use the damper stick in order to stir things around. This helps to reduce the amount of liquid you need to get it all moving.
Transfer the banana mixture to a freezer-safe bowl. Coarsely chop the chocolate and stir it in.
Seal the container and freeze for 4-6 hours.
Scoop into bowls and serve topped with additional chopped dark chocolate, crushed candy cane or your favourite nuts.
Click here to print the recipe.
[Tweet “Healthy holiday dessert: #Vegan Peppermint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream #recipe”]
Now let’s hear from you…
- What’s your favourite holiday dessert?
- Are you traveling far from home to see family this Christmas?
My problem is now solved regarding the crap ton of frozen bananas currently taking up room in our freezer!
This is perfect! I was just dreaming of peppermint ice the other night