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Dairy-free, egg-free, gluten-free, AIP, and Paleo, this kid-friendly snack or dessert can be made in literally 2 minutes. Uses only 5 real food ingredients.
My kids are different than a lot of kids in that they've been pretty much fed real, grain-free, not-processed food from scratch most of their lives. My oldest was 2 when we went on the GAPS diet to get rid of his weird food sensitivities to cinnamon and walnuts and we've been mainly on a grain-free diet (Paleo) since. My youngest has always been this way. Sure, we eat gluten-free baked goods and corn on occasion, but a good 80% of their diets are grain- and dairy-free.
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I've never found it particularly hard to feed them this way, and for the most part they've been ok with it too. It's gotten a bit harder as my oldest entered elementary school and sees his friends eating certain things that he can't, but that's when I really relax on the grain-freeness and seek out gluten-free options that are similar. Like for example, last week my son had a Valentine's Day party at school where they decorated sugar cookies and had cheese and crackers. I brought in some Simple Mills almond flour crackers and gluten-free sugar cookies for him and let him eat some of the Hershey's kisses and conversation hearts and he was as happy as could be.
Do we see effects from letting him eat processed gluten-free food and sugar? Sometimes. I do notice him getting a bit more hyperactive and he doesn't seem to think as clearly, but to me it's a matter of balance when it comes to kids. I don't want them leading a life devoid of kid things or feeling like outcasts but I also don't want them to be unhealthy.
That's why I often experiment with recipes that are packed with nutrition but can be easily passed off to my kids as a kid-friendly food. Like this blueberry “ice cream”. Is it really ice cream? No. It's a mixture of coconut cream and frozen blueberries with an avocado to make it creamy. But they don't know that. They just see this beautifully colored purple, yummy looking cold dessert/snack coming towards them and smile!
It's also not heavy on the sugar. It only uses 2 tbs of maple syrup over 4 servings. Otherwise, it's just the blueberries lending a natural sweetness. So I can feel really good serving this to my kids as either a dessert OR a snack.
It literally is one of those recipes where you dump a bunch of stuff into a blender and blend, so it also doesn't get much easier than this. You can serve it as is, which is what I usually do when it's a snack, or you can add some fun toppings like shredded, unsweetened coconut or Enjoy Life Mini Chocolate Chips (they are dairy- and soy-free). I did also add some India Tree Naturally Colored Sprinkles on the ice cream pictured, but they do contain a bit of corn and soy, so not necessarily a Paleo option but one I let slide for the kids again keeping with the balance thing.
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2 Minute Dairy-Free Blueberry Ice Cream
If you make this ice cream, I'd love to hear how it turned out! Either comment below or share a pic on Instagram and tag me @thrivingautoimmune!
2 Minute Dairy-free Blueberry Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 1 x 5.4 oz can coconut cream
- 1 cup frozen blueberries
- 2 tbs maple syrup
- 1 avocado
- 1 tsp vanilla extract (omit for AIP)
- Optional toppings (not AIP: Enjoy life Chocolate Chips, India Tree Naturally Colored Sprinkles)
- Optional toppings (AIP-friendly: Coconut Flakes, Crumbled Sugar-free Banana Chips)
Instructions
- Blend all of the ingredients in a blender until smooth, about 30 seconds. Serve immediately.
Delicious! I add fresh blueberries, whole-fresh or frozen-while it’s mixing. Also, I shave a few blocks of Lilly’s Dark Chocolate Baking Bars and throw into the mixing ice cream reserving shavings for the top before serving. Love it!
Oh yum, adding dark chocolate sounds fantastic!
Does this freeze well?
That is a great question – I’ve never had the opportunity to freeze it because we eat it all each time. I’m thinking probably not, at least I’d imagine the texture would be different once frozen and thawed somewhat. If you do go ahead and try it please let me know how it comes out!
What would you suggest to substitute for the avocado.? I’m not a big fan of them.
Do you not like them because of the taste? I ask because you don’t taste it once you mix everything together. But I think you could use a banana instead and still get a somewhat similar texture.
This looks incredible! What ripeness should the avocado be? Totally ripe, medium ripe, or paleo chocolate mousse pretty hard with only a slight spring to touch ripe?
Thank you!
Every time I’ve made it I’ve used either totally ripe or medium ripe avocados. However, I’d imagine a blender would do a good job with slightly ripe ones as well. So I guess all of the above? How’s that for the most ambiguous answer ever, haha 🙂
Perfect! Thank you! ?
Is this Whole30 approved?
Hey Tammy – unfortunately not because it includes maple syrup. But I think if you remove that and don’t add the chocolate chips and sprinkles it would be. Maybe call it a “smoothie bowl” instead of “ice cream” though, since you aren’t really supposed to be re-creating treats on Whole30 either. 🙂
Been dying to make ice cream with coconut cream! Love this and can’t wait to try!!
Hope you enjoy!
I have everything I need to enjoy this right now, plus you can’t beat an ice cream that only takes 2 minutes!
That’s one reason I love this recipe – I always seem to have what I need on hand.
This looks so delicious and refreshing!
Thanks Carrie!
I love the color of this beautiful treat!
Thanks Hannah!
Oh my goodness ! It takes only 2 minutes ? I’m in !! :))
Two minutes, including gathering your ingredients 😉