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Banana Cheesecake Ice Cream

Banana Cheesecake Ice Cream

This banana cheesecake ice cream proves that a genuinely rich, creamy summer recipe requires nothing beyond a ripe banana, a splash of cream cheese, and a Ninja Creami doing the actual work. You follow the full twenty-four-hour freeze, the softened cream cheese step, and the graham cracker mix-in timing, and the finished pint rivals any scoop shop version of cheesecake ice cream. Whether you top it with caramel or eat it plain, this recipe turns one sad banana into the best bowl of dessert in the freezer.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
1 day
Total Time 1 day 10 minutes
Servings: 3
Course: Desserts
Cuisine: American
Calories: 185
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 ripe banana mashed
  • ¾ cup whole milk
  • ¼ cup heavy cream
  • 2 tablespoons cream cheese softened
  • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon instant cheesecake pudding mix
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ⅛ teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons crushed graham crackers for mix-in
  • 1 tablespoon diced ripe banana for mix-in

Equipment

  • Ninja Creami machine
  • Ninja Creami pint container with lid
  • Mixing bowl
  • Whisk and fork

Method
 

  1. Mash the banana
    You peel the banana and mash it with a fork in a mixing bowl until mostly smooth, with only a few tiny soft pieces remaining.
  2. Mix the cream cheese and sugar
    You add the softened cream cheese and granulated sugar to the mashed banana and whisk until smooth and creamy. Unsoftened cream cheese turns this step into a genuine arm workout.
  3. Add the liquids and flavorings
    You pour in the whole milk and heavy cream, then add the pudding mix, vanilla extract, and salt, whisking until smooth. A few tiny lumps at this stage disappear once the machine spins the base later.
  4. Freeze the base
    You pour the mixture into a Ninja Creami pint container, place the lid on, and freeze it flat for a full twenty-four hours. Spinning it early at sixteen hours produces a soupy, unusable disaster.
  5. Spin the ice cream
    You remove the frozen pint and run it through the Ice Cream setting on the machine. A dry or crumbly result calls for a tablespoon of milk and a Re-spin cycle, and a powdery, sand-like texture at first resolves completely after that second spin.
  6. Add the mix-ins
    You create a small hole in the center of the spun ice cream, add the crushed graham crackers and diced banana, then run the Mix-In setting.
  7. Serve
    You scoop the finished banana cheesecake ice cream into a bowl and top it with extra crushed graham crackers if you want more crunch.

Recipe Notes

  • Banana: I only use ripe bananas with brown spots.
  • Cream cheese: I soften mine first to avoid lumps in the base.
  • Pudding mix: I use instant cheesecake flavor for the strongest taste.
  • Freezing: I freeze the base flat for the full 24 hours before spinning.
  • Graham crackers: I add these only during the mix-in phase, never earlier.