How to make Ben & Jerry’s Peanut Butter Me Up at home using a healthy banana ice cream recipe and easy raspberry chia seed jam

Hands in the air if you’re one banana bread recipe of a minor breakdown… Okay, glad we got that off our chests. Of course it’s lovely to see so many people baking and sharing their wares on the world wide web – I’m just hangry – but if you’re a bit bored of the same-old and you’ve got some ‘nanas that are super speckled and need using up sharpish, this healthy peanut butter and banana ‘ice cream’ is a great no-bake alternative. A good one for the little ones to play around with too if you’re looking for ideas on what to do with kids in lockdown!

It’s healthy, satisfying and 100% inspired by a craving for Ben & Jerry’s Peanut Butter Me Up ice cream with the tangy jelly core (that me and my other half once demolished an entire tub of on a 15 minute bus ride). I served mine in paper cups for the full scoop it out of the tub in front of a film effect. I didn’t have any peanut butter cups or choc chips so ticked the chocolate fix box with a thin disc of chocolate to smash through over the top.

(Makes 2 large portions or 4 small portions)

1 cup frozen raspberries
1 cap of vanilla extract (OR a squirt of honey/maple syrup)
Tablespoon of chia seeds
4 pre-frozen (sliced) bananas
3 heaped tablespoons of peanut butter
Scoop of protein powder (optional) – vanilla, banana or PB flavours would work best
A handful of chocolate (dark works best)

Non-edible requirements:

Tin foil
A full packet of Lockets – yes, the cough sweets… just go with it.
2 paper coffee cups (or 4 smaller paper tubs)

How to make the homemade raspberry jam:

Put your frozen raspberries in a saucepan on a low-medium heat with a small splash of water.
Once they start to break down (just mush them with your spoon if they need a bit of encouragement), add in your vanilla extract and chia seeds.
Stir until everything is combined and jam-like.
Set aside to cool then pop in the fridge to chill and set whilst you get on with the rest…

My healthy banana ‘nice cream’ recipe:

Chuck your bananas, peanut butter and protein powder into a blender.
Add in a splash of milk or water then blend until smooth.
If your blender is struggling, slowly add in another splash of milk or water to loosen the mixture slightly.

Now it’s time to piece everything together…

This is where it gets a little bit strange but stick with me…

Wrap a clean and unopened packet of Lockets (or something similarly cylindrical) in some kitchen foil.
Hold the contraption straight down the centre of each cup so it stands up straight and pour your ice cream mixture into the cups around it.
Place into the freezer to solidify with your makeshift corer still standing in the centre, ensuring the cups have room to stand upright while they freeze.
After 2-3 hours remove your cups from the freezer and pull out the placeholders – you should be left with an empty core ready to be filled with jam.
Fill the core with your homemade jam – I did this with the handle of a teaspoon but a piping bag would have been much easier had I thought it through. *Eye roll*
Melt your chocolate and then smooth a thin layer over the top.
Place back in the freezer for around 30 minutes – or until you’re ready to tuck in!

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