Vegan Banana Pudding Ice Cream

Creamy, smooth, and delicious, this Vegan banana pudding ice cream is made with coconut cream, real bananas, banana pudding mix, and Golden Oreos. Delight your tastebuds with the silky sweet flavor of old-fashioned banana pudding, frozen and served for an elegant vegan ice cream dessert that everyone will remember!

(This recipe was developed for the Ninja Creami Ice Cream Maker. There is nothing like the Ninja Creami for smooth creamy frozen desserts! I have not tried this recipe using anything other than the Ninja Creami, but if you don’t have one and would like to make this to-die-for vegan banana pudding ice cream in a different ice cream maker, see suggestions below at the end of step 2.)

You could say that I’ve been a little obsessed with ice cream and frozen desserts this season! Click here for all of the delicious homemade vegan ice cream recipes, sorbets, and other frozen treats from Veggie Fun Kitchen.

Every summer I go on a quest to make the best vegan ice cream ever! Making vegan homemade ice cream can be a bit of a challenge. It’s often icy, refreezes hard, loses flavor when freezing, and honestly, can be disappointing.

Trust me! You won’t be disappointed with this highly flavorful, smooth, and creamy frozen banana pudding dessert. It’s everything you’ve been hoping for when you bite into that first heavenly taste of delicious banana ice cream!

Reasons to love this banana pudding ice cream:

• Creamy and smooth!
• Flavorful! Tastes like banana pudding.
• It is dairy-free – so no upset tummy if you are lactose intolerant.
• No egg yolks in this vegan ice cream recipe – yet still rich and creamy.
• I’ve found some “accidentally vegan” food products that make this ice cream vegan.
• Easy and quick – except for the time to freeze.
• No cooking involved.
• Simple enough that kids could help make this recipe (and eat it of course!)

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Ingredients needed to make vegan banana pudding ice cream:

• coconut cream – you will be skimming the cream part from the top of a can of coconut milk. You can use lite coconut milk, full-fat, or even a can of coconut cream. Do not use a carton of coconut milk. You will not be able to skim the cream from a carton or box of coconut milk.
• oat milk – I use oat milk for its neutral flavor and creamy texture. You could use any other plant milk though including almond milk or cashew milk.
•  instant banana pudding dry mix – Make sure to use “instant” pudding, not the kind you need to cook. Shockingly, Jello pudding mix is known as “accidentally vegan” meaning it does not have any animal products included. The sugar is processed using an unknown source and is questionable though. If sugar is your concern then this will not be the recipe for you. Unlike the wiggly fruit-flavored Jello mixes, the pudding mixes do not contain gelatin but use cornstarch to set. Do read the packing though before purchasing to make sure it works with your ethics.
•  granulated sugar
• vegan cream cheese – I have used Violife and Tofutti, and both work well. I do not recommend homemade vegan cream cheese made from tofu for this recipe. We need a little oil in this recipe for texture. You can sub in vegan mayo or sour cream if you don’t have vegan cream cheese. It just needs to have that tiny bit of oil.
• vanilla extract – For a really extra amazing vanilla taste, you can try using double-strength vanilla extract.
• sliced banana – You will also want to have extra slices for garnish.
• three Golden Oreo Cookies (plus more for topping) – That’s right – only three! I guess you will just have to eat the rest of the package… Normally I would recommend using vanilla wafers for a banana pudding recipe. However, Nabisco Vanilla Wafers aren’t vegan. If you are just here for the dairy-free ice cream, then use what you want.
• You will need the (recommended) Ninja Creami Ice Cream Maker or another ice cream machine. (See the bottom of step 2 for directions if you are using a different ice cream maker.)

How to make this recipe for banana pudding ice cream in the Ninja Creami

You can find the exact ingredients with measurements along with more concise directions in the printable recipe card below. Read on for some tips and tricks for making the best vegan banana pudding-flavored ice cream!

Step 1: Skim the cream

This dairy-free homemade ice cream uses coconut cream instead of dairy heavy cream. We skim the coconut cream from the top of the can of coconut milk. NOTE: You MUST use canned coconut milk for this recipe. If you try to skim the cream from the top of a box or carton of coconut milk…you won’t find any to skim!

Make sure the canned coconut milk is undisturbed for several hours so that the cream has a chance to separate from the coconut water. If you have just purchased your canned coconut milk, then set it in the freezer for 30 minutes to speed up the process.

You can use full-fat or lite coconut milk to skim the cream. You can even use a can labeled “coconut cream” – but you will still need to skim the cream from the top. The higher the fat content, the creamier your vegan homemade ice cream will be. Vegan ice cream tends to get a little icy because it’s not made with dairy heavy cream. Honestly, it’s not as much of a problem when processing your ice cream using the Ninja Creami Ice Cream Maker. So use what you have on hand.

Step 2: Measure out the rest of the ingredients

I measure and mix right into a two-cup liquid measuring cup. This is to ensure that I won’t go over the max line on the Ninja Creami pint freezer container. Measure out the coconut cream first and then add the rest of the ingredients except for the sliced banana.

On top of the coconut cream, measure and add the oat milk (or other plant milk), banana pudding mix, sugar, vegan cream cheese, and vanilla extract to a two-cup measuring cup.

It helps to melt the cream cheese first in the microwave. If you add it straight from the fridge, it is going to be solid and difficult to stir in. Just melt on high for about 20 seconds before adding. It doesn’t need to be perfectly melted and liquidy – just soft enough to easily stir in. If you don’t have vegan cream cheese, you can sub in vegan mayo or even sour cream. Weird huh…you won’t taste the mayo or the sour cream…and it works!

Make sure to use “instant pudding mix” and not the kind that needs to be cooked over the stovetop. ALSO, make sure to use the dry mix – not actual banana pudding (and please let me know if you ever find a decent vegan banana pudding!)

Stir everything together right in the two-cup measuring container. It doesn’t need to be super smooth. If you have a few lumps, the Ninja will take care of that when processing.

Once you have stirred everything together, you can slice your banana and add it to the top. You just need to be careful that you don’t go over the two-cup mark. The Ninja Creami pint container has a max level mark that you must not exceed.

It’s easy to get carried away using that last little bit of banana in a recipe so that you don’t waste any. You won’t be tempted to do that if you keep in mind that you can’t exceed the two-cup mark on your measuring cup. Just smoosh everything down and make sure you aren’t going over the level.

Using a different ice cream machine

But what if you want to make your banana pudding ice cream in a different ice cream maker? I will just say once again, there is nothing like the Ninja Creami Ice Cream Maker! Nothing! BUT I realize not everyone has one…yet. And you still have that craving for banana-flavored ice cream.

You will need to blend all of the ingredients in your blender until smooth and then process according to the manufacturer’s directions of the ice cream maker you are using. I don’t recommend making this ice cream without an ice cream machine of some sort. It will freeze too solid to use the freezer method.

NOTE: If you are using the Ninja Creami for processing then you don’t need to blend the bananas. The Ninja will take care of that during the processing.

Step 3: Freezing…and patience

The one and ONLY disadvantage to using the Ninja Creami is that the ingredients need to freeze for 24 hours before processing. So if you had planned on making this ice cream the day of, sorry, you are out of luck. This is why I keep several frozen pints in the freezer at a time so that I can pull one out and process it whenever the ice cream urge hits. You can buy extra Ninja freezer pint containers just for this purpose!

Pour the ingredients into the pint container – again, verify that the ingredients don’t exceed the max level line on the pint container. Secure the lid and freeze upright in your freezer for 24 hours.

Because I often have several pints in the freezer at a time, I place a piece of tape on the top of the lid and using a sharpie write the recipe name and date, and time I put it in the freezer. My son will be visiting for a while this summer and so I might even write the setting you need to use for processing so that he can pull a pint out of the freezer even if I’m not around.

Step 4: Finally process your luscious banana pudding ice cream!

Has it been 24 hours? Are you ready for ice cream? The following directions are based on my experiences. You should definitely consult the manufacturer’s directions in the owner’s manual that came with your Ninja Creami.

The first time you process using the Creami, you should watch the video recommended by Ninja. It will get easier the more you do it. Here is a recap:

• Remove the pint container from the freezer and remove the lid.
• Place the frozen pint container into the outer processing container or bowl that came with your device.
• Insert the blade/paddle device into the outer-bowl lid and lock the lid assembly.
• Place the bowl assembly onto the motor base pad. Make sure it is plugged in and twist it up until it locks.
• You will know it is locked because the lights will turn on when you press the on-switch. If you’ve not done it correctly then the “install” light will be flashing.
• Process this recipe using the “ice cream” setting. Remove from the device following the directions that came with your machine.

Now it’s time for the add-in Oreo Cookies. To give this ice cream recipe an authentic banana pudding vibe, I wanted to add in crushed vanilla wafers -because that’s how my grandma used to make her banana pudding.

As discussed above in the ingredients section, vanilla wafers are not vegan – unless you are able to find an off-brand that is. Oreo cookies however are! (Unless you are concerned about the unknown sugar source, in that case, this recipe is not for you.)

Crush the Golden Oreo cookies with a rolling pin. You don’t have to crush the cookies into tiny crumbs. In fact, it would be better to leave some chunks. This recipe calls for three oreo cookies which will go into the ice cream. Go ahead and crush another one or two to use as a topping.

Make a hole in the center of your frozen and processed ice cream pint. Add the cookie crumbs, reinsert the pint, and process according to the ice cream maker’s instructions using the “mix-in” setting.

Yum, it’s ice cream time! Top with sliced bananas, extra cookie crumbs, and even whole cookies. Enjoy your frozen banana dessert!

For some other delicious vegan ice cream and other frozen treats from Veggie Fun Kitchen, try:

• Orange Creamsicle Ice Cream made in the Ninja Creami
• Lemony Peach Popsicles
• Watermelon sorbet made in the Ice Cream Maker
• Lemon Ice Cream with Coconut Milk
• Blueberry Cheesecake Ice Cream made in the Ninja Creami

The printable recipe card