Guanabana Coconut Ice Cream

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Happy first day of Summer! I am celebrating with a homemade ice cream. This is a simple recipe and you do not even need to use an ice cream maker. 

For this recipe I used guanabana (Annona muricata), also known as graviola or soursop, whipping coconut cream, and some lime juice. I wanted to make this ice cream as refreshing as possible. Some Caribbean recipes use spices such as nutmeg, cinnamon and vanilla. I wanted to taste as much of the guanabana as possible so I did not use any, but you can add whatever you feel like to make your ice cream taste nice. 

I am aware that you may not be able to get fresh guanabana where you live. You can still make this ice cream using atemoya, cherimoya or even a pear. Instead of using whipping coconut cream you can use Thai style coconut milk or cashew nut cream. If you have an ice cream maker, this should be very easy. Simply follow the manufacturer's instructions. I made this delicious ice cream without an ice cream maker and it turned out fine. 

Ingredients:

  • 2 - 2 1/2 cups of guanabana fruit flesh (make sure you removed all the seeds since they are toxic)
  • 1 can of whipping coconut cream
  • freshly pressed juice of 1 lime 
  • tiny pinch of sea salt to balance the flavors

Method:

  • Place the whipping coconut cream can in the fridge for at least eight hours. When ready, whip the chilled coconut cream using a hand held mixer. You could probably use a blender but I preferred the more traditional way. 
  • In a high speed blender whiz the guanabana with lime juice and a pinch of salt. 
  • Transfer the blended guanabana into a bowl with whipped coconut cream and gently mix together make sure that you do not completely "deflate" the whipped cream. 
  • Cover the bowl with a lid or a nonstick wrap and place it in the freezer for at least four hours or overnight. If your bowl is too large for your freezer, transfer the mass into a smaller freezer-safe glass dish, cover it with lid and put into freezer. 
  • If you are making this ice cream without an ice cream maker you may want to stir the mixture with a fork every 30 minutes or so for the first three to four hours of the chilling time. This process will prevent large ice crystals from forming in the ice cream and result in a much smoother final product. Set a kitchen timer so you don't forget. 
  • When ready, portion out the ice cream using your favorite scooping tool and serve right away. Enjoy it in good company!   

This was the first time I worked with the fresh guanabana. Guanabana fruit (Annona muricata) comes with "spikes". I was lucky the "spikes" were removed by the Peruvian exporters from the fruits I purchased otherwise it would have been a little more difficult to handle them. One large fruit was quite enough to make this ice cream.  

Wishing everyone a very happy start into Summer - in radiant health, passionately raw - Dominique


Dominique Allmon©2025