Mint Chocolate Chip Nice Cream

This creamy, vegan nice cream recipe will have all the mint chocolate chip lovers swooning! All you need are six simple ingredients and a high powered blender (or food processor) for a quick, one-minute blend.

I’m a huge fan of all things mint chocolate chip. It’s been a part of my birthday tradition since I was a kid (though back then it was always mint chocolate chip ice cream cakes). Now, in gluten-free Downshiftology-land, I get creative each year with unique birthday desserts that are a bit healthier and maintain that fun and special mint chocolate chip theme. You can check out previous birthday recipes below!

So let’s chat about this mint chocolate chip nice cream. It uses the simplest ingredients (no green dyes or powders are needed to make it green), it’s fast and easy (literally one minute in a blender), and it’s got the most refreshing peppermint-y flavor (with lots of chocolate chunks for good measure!).

Ingredients for mint chocolate chip nice cream

Table of Contents

What You Need For Mint Chocolate Chip Nice Cream

The beauty of nice creams is that you don’t need to add extra sugar – all thanks to frozen ripe bananas that are perfectly sweet on their own! The banana serves as a sweet and creamy base, and then there’s just a few extra ingredients to make the perfect ice cream-like dessert.

Bananas: Frozen sliced bananas are key! I’ve got a few tips on how to freeze bananas, but just make sure to use ripe bananas that have just started to brown for a sweeter nice cream. Then you don’t need to use any honey or maple syrup, though you can always add that if you’d like.
Avocados: A ripe avocado not only adds to the ultra-creamy texture, it’s adds a natural green color without the need for dyes or special powder colorings like matcha powder or spirulina. Bonus – avocados are neutral in flavor and take on whatever flavor you add, like peppermint! If you’ve made my chocolate avocado pudding, you know!
Almond Milk: Feel free to use almond milk, oat milk, cashew milk or your favorite non-dairy milk.
Peppermint Extract: Just a teeny bit is needed for the right amount of peppermint flavor. Tip – start with less and add more so the peppermint flavor isn’t overpowering.
Vanilla Extract: Just a smidge of vanilla extract sweetens the nice cream and balances the peppermint flavor.
Chocolate Bar: Grab your favorite chocolate, whether that’s milk chocolate or dark chocolate. Your choice!

Find the printable recipe with measurements below.

How to Make Nice Cream – with a Mint Chocolate Chip Twist!

Freezing bananas and avocados for mint chocolate chip nice cream

Freeze the bananas and avocado. Peel and slice the bananas into chunks, and place on a parchment lined baking tray. Peel and dice the avocado, and add to the baking tray. Place both in the freezer for at least 2 to 3 hours. You want them nice and frozen!

Blending mint chocolate chip nice cream in a Vitamix

Blend the base up! Add the bananas, avocado, almond milk, peppermint extract and vanilla extract to a high-powered blender or food processor. Blend for one minute, until it’s smooth. If your blender has a tamper, make sure to use that!

Chopping chocolate on a board for mint chocolate chip nice cream

In goes the chocolate. Add the chopped chocolate to the blender and either stir together (if you’d like to keep big chunks of chocolate) or pulse a couple of times (to get small flecks of chocolate).

Mint chocolate chip nice cream in a container with a spoon

It’s ready to enjoy! Serve immediately for a soft texture or place in a loaf pan and freeze for a couple of hours for a firmer texture.

A Few Tips For the Perfect Nice Cream Recipe

Make sure you have enough in the blender. Don’t try to reduce this recipe at all. You need a minimum amount of “stuff” in a high-powered blender in order for it to churn into nice cream. If you find that it’s not blending properly, you may need to grab larger bananas next time.
Don’t be shy with the tamper. You’ve really got to push the tamper down hard. It’s a little bit of an arm workout… but it’s only a minute!
Scrape down the sides as you blend. Since you’re working with mostly frozen ingredients, you may need to scrape down the sides or move around bigger frozen clumps as you go.

A bowl of mint chocolate chip nice cream with a candle

How To Store Nice Cream

Any leftover nice cream can be stored in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Just keep in mind it will be rock solid once you take it out of the freezer. So let it thaw at room temperature for about 15 minutes, or until it starts to soften.

More Mint Chocolate Desserts

Craving more mint chocolate dessert ideas? I’ve got you covered with lots of previous birthday recipes! And with that in mind…what mint chocolate dessert should I make for my birthday next year?

For all my mint chocolate lovers, I guarantee you’ll be making this pretty often. Once you give this recipe a go, let me know your thoughts in a comment below!