Make your summer sweet with these three summer treats!

 

Lighten up your summer with this creamy, versatile treat — with no guilt included. Courtesy of Flickr

Banana Ice Cream

Banana ice cream is a newly popular phenomenon that allows you to eat your favorite frozen dessert without the guilt. Eating banana ice cream is literally just eating frozen bananas, so each serving is no more than around 130 calories. The possibilities with it are also endless, as the muted, creamy taste of bananas pairs well with almost anything; however, here are two flavors that are classic for the summer.

Strawberry

Serves 2

• 2 ripe bananas
• 5 medium strawberries
• Food processor

1. Peel the bananas. I highly recommend doing this before freezing them because peeling the bananas when they are frozen is a pain in the ass.
2. Cut the bananas into half-inch pieces; the smaller the pieces, the easier it will be to blend them to a puree.
3. Freeze the banana slices overnight or until they are completely hardened. You don’t want to blend them when they are mushy or moist in any way.
4. Put five medium strawberries, washed, in the freezer as well.
5. Once completely hardened, put the bananas and strawberries in the food processor and blend until everything is pureed.

Coconut

Serves 2

• 2 ripe bananas
• 1/2 cup coconut shavings
• 1/2 cup coconut milk
• 1/2 teaspoon coconut extract

1. Follow steps one, two and three from the previous recipe
2. Blend the coconut shavings and coconut milk for approximately five minutes to extract the flavor of the shavings onto the coconut milk to make it even more flavorful.
3. If you want, you can put some of the shavings into a sifter and press it down with a spoon to remove the pulp from the milk.
4. Put the bananas and coconut milk in the food processor and blend until everything is pureed.
5. Garnish with coconut shavings or chocolate syrup on top.

Considerations:

1. If you do not have a food processor, you can also perform this recipe with a blender. However, if you choose this option, you may need to freeze the contents afterward since a blender could turn the consistency into a fluid.

 

A delectably soft, fluffy cake that is effortless to make. Jasmine Yamanaka/Highlander

Honey Rice Cooker Cake

This might be the easiest and fluffiest cake you’ll ever make! It’s so cute and light –– perfect for the summer — and it’s even more effortless to make than pancakes; all you have to do is combine the ingredients, pour the mixture into a rice cooker and wait for 20 minutes, after which you’ll be given an irresistibly soft and delicious honey cake.

Serves 4

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 and a half teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 egg

3/4 cup milk

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 and a half tablespoon honey

Non-stick cooking spray

1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and stir until well-blended.
2. Spray rice cooker pan with an even coat of nonstick cooking spray.
3. Pour mixture into pan.
4. Set your rice cooker to the “Bake” option.
   1. If your rice cooker does not have this option, select “white rice.”
5. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until nothing sticks to a chopstick when you poke it through the cake.
6. Flip the cake over onto the plate so that the browned side faces up.
7. Top with strawberries and a dollop of honey.