I'll admit it. I got strep throat last week and after careful deliberation, I decided to go on antibiotics. The naturopath goes on antibiotics, for shame. Unfortunately, it is the standard of care for strep throat due to the very serious potential sequelae, and my symptoms were severe already. My throat was on fire, all abrasive textures scraped their way past my enormous tonsils and erythematous pharynx, and all I wanted was ice cream. But ice cream is full of refined sugar, which paralyzes the immune system- not what I was going for at the moment. In addition, it is mucus-forming due to the dairy, and I needed no help in the mucus-production department. So for a day I simply dreamed of ice cream and ate very little. Until, in a feverish fit of brilliance, I remembered banana ice cream! One, healthy ingredient that delivers beautiful, smooth, cold deliciousness.

It is so mind-blowingly simple and such an incredibly healthy alternative to ice cream. This is adapted from the website http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-make-creamy-ice-cream-w-93414.

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5 bananas, as ripe as you can get 'em.

1 tbsp ground cardamom (optional, but really, really nice!)

Peel the bananas and slice, then lay out on a pan. Put pan in freezer for 1-2 hours, until solid.

Put frozen banana slices into a food processor and add 1 tbsp. of ground cardamom. Process until it looks like luscious whipped cream. It actually blows my mind how divine it is.

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Mix it up! Feel free to add nuts, cacao nibs, cinnamon/allspice/nutmeg, fruits, coconut flakes, etc.!

This iced cream is by FAR the best when fresh, for when you re-freeze it actually goes much more solid. If it melts completely , you can still re-freeze. Also, if it melts completely, you can pour it into popsicle molds to make easy-access pops!

I should add: Yes, bananas are still full of sugar, but they also contain all the co-factors for sugar metabolism, thus reducing the negative effects of fructose.

Enjoy, and let me know how it goes!!