Recipes and Cooking Desserts & Baking Ice Cream 21 Healthy Ice Cream and Frozen Dessert Recipes to Beat the Heat These healthy-ish dessert options contain fresh fruit, Greek yogurt, veggies, and more. By Sheena Chihak, RD Sheena Chihak, RD Instagram Sheena Chihak is a registered dietitian, former food editor and current edit lead for BHG with over 15 years of writing and editing experience for both print and digital. Learn about BHG's Editorial Process and Sarah Martens Sarah Martens Instagram Sarah Martens is the Senior Editor overseeing food at Better Homes & Gardens digital. She has been with the BHG brand for over 8 years. Learn about BHG's Editorial Process Updated on June 7, 2023 Fact checked by Marcus Reeves Fact checked by Marcus Reeves Marcus Reeves is an experienced writer, publisher, and fact-checker. He began his writing career reporting for The Source magazine. His writing has appeared in The New York Times, Playboy, The Washington Post, and Rolling Stone, among other publications. His book Somebody Scream: Rap Music's Rise to Prominence in the Aftershock of Black Power was nominated for a Zora Neale Hurston Award. He is an adjunct instructor at New York University, where he teaches writing and communications. Marcus received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Learn about BHG's Fact Checking Process Share Tweet Pin Email Trending Videos Photo: Blaine Moats There's no avoiding it—hot summer days make you crave a frozen dessert. Our healthy ice cream, frozen yogurt, and ice pop recipes will help you cool off and indulge nutritiously. Most of these healthy frozen desserts have fresh fruit or other good-for-you ingredients like Greek yogurt and even veggies in the mix, so you'll get some nutritional benefits with each of these healthy frozen dessert recipes. Clear some freezer space! You just might want to make them all. 01 of 21 Banana Ice Cream with Peanut Butter, Chocolate, or Berries View Recipe Brie Passano Because you're already here looking for healthy ice cream recipes, you likely know about healthy banana ice cream as a lighter alternative to traditional ice cream. But if you'd rather have a bit more flavor variety than plain banana ice cream, you need to try all the variations of this dessert. Get your bananas in the freezer now so you can make your chosen version as quickly as possible. Test Kitchen-Approved Methods for Freezing Bananas 02 of 21 Raspberry Sorbet View Recipe Karla Conrad Transform a carton of market-fresh raspberries into a slushy-smooth sorbet. The refreshing summer dessert recipe calls for only five ingredients and has zero grams of fat. The only topping this raspberry sorbet recipe needs is a few more fresh berries, though if your eating plan has wiggle room, just a bit of whipped cream or melted chocolate would be a yummy indulgence. Test Kitchen Tip: Love mangoes? Substitute the blushing island fruit for raspberries. 03 of 21 Banana Ice Cream View Recipe Blaine Moats You don't need milk, cream, or sugar to make ice cream. In fact, for this healthy banana ice cream, you need only three ingredients. Grab a bunch of ripe bananas and blend them together with unsweetened coconut milk and a splash of vanilla, then freeze and enjoy (maybe with a few extra banana slices on top). 04 of 21 Rainbow Fruit Pops View Recipe Carson Downing If you're on the hunt for low-calorie frozen desserts with zero added sugar that actually tastes good, this fruity ice pop recipe with only 35 calories will end your search. Fresh fruits are the only ingredients, so there's not a darn thing to feel guilty about when eating these healthy frozen desserts to cool off. 05 of 21 Dessert Pizza with Banana Ice Cream View Recipe Blaine Moats Turn pizza into a yummy frozen dessert with a chocolate crispy cereal crust and healthy banana ice cream. Finish off your dessert pizza (and make it even healthier) with fresh fruit and chopped nuts. This dessert is also easy to tweak to satisfy different tastes—if everyone in your family has a different favorite, they can each top their own slices for one of our most customizable healthy frozen treats. 06 of 21 Kiwi-Strawberry Rooibos Ice Pops View Recipe Jason Donnelly These pretty ice pops get their gorgeous pattern (and yummy flavor) from slices of fresh fruit frozen in the center. But rather than using just juice to make up the rest of these healthy ice pops, we gave them a twist by using a mix of apple juice and freshly brewed vanilla rooibos tea. It's a much cooler way to enjoy the taste of tea in the summer than a steaming mug. 07 of 21 Lemon-Avocado Sherbet View Recipe Blaine Moats Avocado might sound like an unusual addition to this healthy sherbet, but trust us: It's delicious. It makes each bite extra creamy and helps balance the light, citrusy lemon flavor. This homemade sherbet recipe will prove to you once and for all that avocados are good for much more than just topping toast. 08 of 21 Berry-Yogurt Rocket Pops View Recipe Carson Downing With only 2 tablespoons of added sugar for eight servings (that's less than 1 tsp. per serving), most of the sweetness in these under-100-calorie pops comes from fresh fruit and Greek yogurt. The mix of fruit and creamy yogurt offers refreshing indulgence all summer long. 09 of 21 Shortcut Pumpkin Ice Cream View Recipe Andy Lyons This fall-spiced frozen treat made the cut for our list of healthy ice cream options thanks to a generous dose of vitamin A-rich canned pumpkin in the mix. (See, veggies and dessert can totally go together.) Cut calories and fat further by substituting frozen yogurt for the ice cream or using reduced-fat ice cream. Or, if you're avoiding dairy, start with a nondairy or vegan ice cream for the base. The options are as limitless as the frozen aisle. 10 of 21 Lemondrop Melon and Chile Granita View Recipe Carson Downing Chile-lime seasoning is the perfect topper for this serrano-spiced granita recipe. If you can't find lemondrop melons in your local store, honeydew makes a great substitute. 11 of 21 Citrus Granita View Recipe Blaine Moats Whether it's orange, lemon, lime, or all three, sun-kissed citrus makes a totally tart (and refreshing) summer treat. Freeze the mix in a pan, then scrape a metal spoon across the surface to create the signature shaved-ice texture of this healthy frozen dessert. 12 of 21 Chile-Mango Pops View Recipe Carson Downing This sweet and smoky treat is the perfect ending to a summer grill out. Simply toss the five ingredients into a blender (here's a refresher on cutting mangoes, if you need it), spoon the blended mixture into ice pop molds, and freeze overnight. You'll have DIY healthy ice pops on hand for days. 13 of 21 Watermelon-Kiwi Pops View Recipe Karla Conrad Sweet watermelon and tangy kiwifruit are pureed into a smooth texture then frozen in paper cups for a simple yet gorgeous 70-calorie dessert. (No ice pop molds required!) The sweet-tangy flavors make it one of our best-loved low-cal frozen desserts. Test Kitchen Tip: This ice pop recipe is easy to make with almost any fruit you have on hand. Try our pineapple-blueberry and mango-raspberry variations to discover your favorite. 14 of 21 Strawberry Granita View Recipe Blaine Moats A granita is a flavored ice often made with berries, melons, or stone fruit. Here, we've blended fresh strawberries with lemon and a touch of sugar. If you're berries are extra sweet, you can adjust the amount of sugar you add. Serve it up with a homemade lemon cream. 15 of 21 Mint Greek Frozen Yogurt View Recipe Jason Donnelly You love Greek yogurt for breakfast, but have you tried it as a healthy homemade ice cream? Two hours of freeze time and a few summery mix-ins, like vanilla and fresh mint, turn plain yogurt into a protein-packed dessert. If you want to make this healthy frozen yogurt recipe a little more indulgent, try topping with a drizzle of chocolate sauce. 16 of 21 Dark Chocolate Banana Nut Pops View Recipe Karla Conrad Take bananas from breakfast food to healthy frozen treat in under an hour. A layer of almond butter hides beneath a layer of chocolate, and a quick dip in chopped almonds adds satisfying crunch. 17 of 21 Chocolate Sherbet View Recipe Scott Little Get your chocolate fix without blowing your healthy eating plan. This decadent, easy sherbet recipe has just six ingredients, including rich dark chocolate, so you can mix it up in a flash. Just be sure to allow a few hours for freezing. 18 of 21 Roasted Strawberry Frozen Yogurt View Recipe Carson Downing For the most intense strawberry flavor, roast the berries before adding them to a creamy mix of whole milk yogurt, vanilla, and honey. Add freeze-dried strawberries and crushed pretzels for crunch. 19 of 21 Sour Cherry Sorbet View Recipe Blaine Moats You'll need just 10 minutes of hands-on time to whip up this healthy frozen dessert recipe. Look for frozen tart red cherries alongside the other frozen fruit in your grocery store. The juicy red fruit ensures this sorbet recipe is equal parts tart and sweet. 20 of 21 Stone Fruit Granita View Recipe Blaine Moats Customize this healthy summer dessert recipe with your favorite stone fruit. We recommend either peaches, nectarines, plums, or dark sweet cherries. Flavor the mix with either vanilla or almond extract and fresh lemon juice. 21 of 21 Blackberry Icebox Cake View Recipe Plump, juicy blackberries star in this freezer dessert recipe. Stash this layered icebox cake in the freezer up to 24 hours before you plan to serve it. Garnish the cut slices with fresh blackberries, lemon zest, and mint. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit