Apparently These Bananas Taste Just Like Ice Cream

If you thought bananas were only good for slicing over some cereal or added to a smoothie for a thickener, then you are wrong, my friends. So very wrong. Bananas are made for dessert, like in pudding and cream pies! As if to prove this point even further, we just heard about the Blue Java banana, which is this beautifully-hued banana which grows mostly in Asia, Australia, and Hawaii. The name comes from the near-turquoise wax that coats the banana peel, but it goes by another moniker: The Ice Cream Banana.

Apparently the Blue Java has a wonderfully sweet taste, and a soft, almost creamy texture, which is reminiscent of vanilla ice cream or custard, hence the nickname. Like its larger, more popular and more common cousin (otherwise known as the Cavendish banana) the Blue Java is the perfect base for a smoothie (bananas typically pair well with dates, almond butter, and other fruits like strawberry and mango).

Another way to enjoy the Blue Java is in so-called “nice cream,” a dairy-free ice cream alternative that contains nothing but frozen bananas and sometimes a splash of almond or coconut milk (unless you want to eat it raw, which is also totally acceptable). The flavor of the Blue Java is especially suited to this quasi-healthy dessert.

Unfortunately the Blue Java is a bit tough to find outside of Asia and the South Pacific. While it’s available on a few Hawaiian islands, you might have to go abroad to taste it otherwise. That is unless you want to plant a Blue Java tree in your backyard; the plant is available to purchase on Amazon. You could also order a box, but it would cost you about $100. That’s a fair amount of money to dish out for a simple fruit. But you know: you do you.