When I tell somebody I’m vegan, I get one of two questions: “where do you get your protein?” and “how do you live without ice cream?” Well, folks, I get my protein from plants, and I don’t live without ice cream. What kind of life would that be?!

Luckily, we live in a world where it is possible to eat ice cream that is cruelty-free without sacrificing any of that creamy, delicious flavor. I get my fix from New Barn’s Banana & Chocolate Chip Almondcreme, which is an almond-based ice cream (aka non-dairy frozen dessert). Since New Barn actually uses real almonds (shocker, right!), the flavor and texture are on-the-money. And what other vegan ice cream has only 8 ingredients?! (And one of them is water.) They also use super premium ingredients like organic chocolate from TCHO chocolate makers.  No artificial flavors or weird gums here, plus organic ingredients means the calories don’t count, right? Kidding! But for real, I love knowing that I can indulge a little bit but still know that I’m eating quality organic ingredients that I can pronounce!

Side note: this ice cream also makes INSANE smoothies (breakfast? no judgment) and vegan milkshakes. Just blend up a few scoops with some almondmilk (I recommend New Barn Vanilla) and you’ve got yourself a delicious vanilla chocolate chip shake (add some extra cacao nibs and peanut butter if you’re feelin fancy!).

Here’s a recipe for when you want to impress your guests, or when you just need a little extra special dessert for you and your honey. “Technically,” this dessert serves two, but I won’t judge you for keeping it to yourself.

MASON JAR BANANA SPLIT PARFAIT

Serves 2 | Takes 10-15 min to assemble

INGREDIENTS FOR PARFAIT:

1 cup New Barn Organic Banana Chocolate Chip Almondcreme

1/2 organic banana, sliced

5-6 organic strawberries

1 can organic coconut milk (full-fat, the real stuff! chilled in fridge overnight)

stevia extract or maple syrup, to taste

1 tsp vanilla extract

cacao nibs for garnish

peanut butter choco drizzle (recipe below, do it!)

DIRECTIONS:

Chill your can of coconut milk in the fridge overnight. If you forget to do this you can try putting it in the freezer for an hour, but don’t leave it in there too long! As long as you are using real coconut milk, chilling the can will make the creamy fat separate from and sit on top of the water. This is good! We are going to scoop the delicious cream off of the top to whip for our cream and keep the water for later.

Combine your coconut cream, vanilla extract and sweetener of choice in a bowl and whip it with a fork or blend in a Vitamix if you have one. (I used 100% stevia extract and used two of the tiny little scoops. If you’re using maple syrup, I would recommend starting with 1 Tbs. Taste it and add more if you want it sweeter!) Don’t over-blend, but whip until it’s creamy and smooth and starts to look like fluffy whipped cream! Don’t worry if it feels too hard to whip at first; it will start to soften at room temperature! You should have about a cup’s worth of cream here. It will continue to soften if you leave it out, so throw it back in the fridge while you assemble the rest of the parfait so it stays nice and fluffy.

Put about one scoop or 1/2 cup of Almondcreme ice cream in the bottom of your mason jar. If it’s soft enough, you can flatten it out with the back of your spoon.

Next, add a layer of chopped banana. (You can use fresh or frozen! I love the texture of frozen banana but it’s up to you.) I like to do some slices in the round along the edge of the jar and then big bite-sized cubes in the center, using about half of a banana total.

Time for another layer of ice cream! Another scoop or 1/2 cup should do it. Flatten it with the back of your spoon again.

Add a layer of chopped strawberries. (Again, fresh or frozen will work!)

You should be towards the top of your jar now! Grab your coconut cream from the fridge and put a generous scoop on top of your parfait.

Garnish with cacao nibs and a peanut-butter chocolate drizzle (recipe below!).

INGREDIENTS FOR PEANUT BUTTER CHOCO DRIZZLE:

1/4 C leftover liquid from can of coconut milk

2 Tbs peanut butter

2 Tbs cacao powder

2 Tbs maple syrup

2 tsp vanilla extract

a pinch of salt

DIRECTIONS FOR PEANUT BUTTER CHOCO DRIZZLE:

Combine all ingredients in your blender until smooth! If your peanut butter is too solid, feel free to whisk it all over the stovetop for a few minutes to soften. Just make sure that whether you whisk or blend, that you get out those clumps of cacao powder!

It’s an extra step, but I like to heat it up and whisk, then blend in the blender, so it’s smooth AND warm. If your sauce seems too thin, you can put it back on the heat for a few more minutes to thicken up!

Drizzle over your finished parfait, garnish with extra cacao nibs and devour! (Leftover sauce can be kept in the fridge and used up within a few days. I recommend just drizzling it over your remaining Almondcreme for an easy dessert later in the week! Nothing better than a banana-chocolate-peanut-butter combo!)

Let me know if you try this recipe by taking a pic and tagging me on IG (@hashtagvegan). I can’t wait to see your creations!

P.S. A big thank you to New Barn for sponsoring this post! Recipe and opinions are 100% my own and I only work with companies whose products I genuinely use and love.

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