Banana Pistachio Soft Serve

This easy Banana Pistachio Soft Serve is super sweet, creamy, and only contains TWO ingredients! Simple Summer dessert, here we come!

Banana Pistachio Ice Cream

I want to tell you a story. Right now, I’m sort of surrounded by people who are looking for jobs. Christian, of course (he graduates from grad school soon!), in addition to a few friends. It brings be back to my college graduation and job search (it took me a whole seven months of active applying and interviewing to land a job).

So, because of this, I want to talk about two points. The first…

If you want something, don’t give up

Here’s my first story. When I was a senior in college, it was required in my Sport Management program that we finish our Spring semester with a 3-month internship. The Fall semester was coming to a close, and I was frantically searching for a place to get my internship credits.

My parents were simultaneously on their way to Italy for a vacation at that time. I remember, I was in my college apartment when I got a call from my dad. He told me he met a man on his airplane to their connection in Atlanta, and was speaking to him about me, how I was looking for an internship, what I studied, etc. It turned out that this man was a former NFL football player that was now the VP of Business Development for EXOS, a world-class athletic and tactical training facility. He sent me a photo of the man’s business card, told me to email him, and was off to Italy.

I researched this company for days, and fell in love. I knew I had to intern there. It was absolutely perfect for me.

I’d heard back after reaching out to them, and scheduled an interview. It was a five hour drive away, and I didn’t care.

Banana Pistachio Soft Serve

My interview went incredibly well. I felt comfortable, confident, and ready to come back to [hopefully] work. Plus, the VP seemed to really like me, and could tell I was ready to work my butt off to contribute to the company. They’d never had a business development intern (their interns were usually physical therapists, trainers, and nutritionists), but I was ready to show them what I could do.

So, great interview, I’m feeling good, I’m feeling confident. My dad and I go back to Gainesville (he was nice enough to accompany me on the drive to Pensacola from Gainesville) and celebrate that night for the interview going so well. I send the VP a thank you email, toast to a great day, and stuff my face with a celebratory meal.

A week goes by, I hear nothing. Another week, nothing. Two more weeks, silence. At this point, I’ve emailed countless times, even called the office – still haven’t gotten in touch. My father had even told me to move on and find something else before it was too late. But, I refused. I wanted this so badly that I could not envision myself going anywhere else. This was going to happen. 

Banana Pistachio Soft Serve

Long story short, he finally emailed me back offering me the position.

Friends: if you want something bad enough, so bad that you physically cannot imagine yourself doing anything else, so bad that you simply know that it will happen… don’t ever give up. I understand that this was just an internship, but at the time it was a huge deal to me. And I proved to myself that if I really want something, dammit I can make it happen. A little perseverance can take you a long way.

[Tweet “A little perseverance can take you a long way.”]

Banana Pistachio Soft Serve

And the second point…

What’s meant to be will find it’s way

As you’ve read (or haven’t read) in this post about my first job, I completely hated my first job. I hated it so much that it left me depressed and riddled with negativity. But in hindsight, I am so thankful for that job because among other things, it showed me what I didn’t want, and lead me to where I am today.

So while my first point spoke to those who know exactly what they want, this is for those who feel lost.

I went from having 100% clarity in what I wanted (my internship) to graduating from college and being utterly and completely lost. I actually wanted a job with that company, applied a few times, but realized that maybe moving across the country wasn’t meant for me (on top of the fact that I was rejected). And as I went through my daily job search, what I wanted to do became more and more unclear.

So, for those feeling lost with their job search, my advice to you is: choose something over nothing, because you’ll learn more from something you hate than from never taking a chance.

[Tweet “Choose something over nothing, because you’ll learn more from something you hate than from never taking a chance. “]

Banana Pistachio Ice Cream

So, about this soft serve…

You guys, this Banana Pistachio Soft Serve is TWO INGREDIENTS. How about you just guess what they are…

Yeah. Banana and pistachio. But really, can you believe that?! I remember when I first discovered the phenomena that is “nice cream”, aka soft serve made of bananas. Straight up, bananas. What makes this such a delectable dessert? Well, when bananas become overly ripe, their sweetness is amplified. That’s why banana bread requires ripe bananas, beyond the soft texture. When it comes to soft serve, you’ll need over-ripe bananas that have been frozen.

Including pistachios in the equation adds a nutty, savory note to the soft serve. If you prefer more of the pistachio flavor, I recommend upping the pistachio serving to 1/2 cup.

Banana Pistachio Soft Serve

Banana Pistachio Soft Serve

Banana Pistachio Soft Serve
Recipe Type: Dessert
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Ingredients
  • 2 overly ripe bananas, frozen and cut into chunks
  • 1/3 cup shelled pistachios
Instructions
  1. Add half of the banana chunks to your food processor. Blend until made into small chunks or crumbs.
  2. Add remaining banana and blend until completely smooth.
  3. Add in pistachio. Blend until pistachio is broken into small pieces, or completely blended it (depending on preference).
  4. Pour banana-pistachio mixture into a loaf pan and freeze for at least an hour.
  5. Using an ice cream scoop, scoop out soft serve and serve topped with crushed pistachio.
Notes
It is best practice to freeze your banana peeled and cut into chunks.

Banana Pistachio Soft Serve

Join the conversation:
What was it like for you on the job search?
What was your first job?

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Banana Pistachio Soft Serve

Comments

  1. says

    Such a perfectly easy and creamy summer treat, I love it! I’m one to talk since I still have 1 year of college left, but my first job (besides babysitting) was working at a deli. Picture it, the girl who DIDN’T eat meat at the time was working in a deli. Haha! I already know the job hunt will be difficult for me because the dance world is so competitive, but I’m determined to find one that I’ll love. :) Maybe I’ll check out Florida! 😉

  2. says

    I hear you! i wanted internship at a particular hospital SO BAD and did everything above beyond and actually got it. I don’t know what it is but sometimes its the combination of luck, hard work, and true desire for something that just works. i have been doing more popsicles lately but nice icecream sounds delicious!!

  3. says

    I will say I got a little lucky with my first job. I had an internship with the company the summer before and they happened to have an opening when I graduated in the winter. But like you I was also very persistent (who would have thought? 😉 ) and I called and emailed several times and showed them I truly wanted both the internship and the job. Persistence and perseverance will pay off somehow for sure.
    And this combo sounds sooo good. I think I need to stock up on bananas because I don’t make this stuff enough!

  4. says

    I still have yet to get my first real job since I’m still in college but that is some wonderful advice! Perseverance in anything is good! I also love the sound of that banana ice cream because I love pistachio gelato so I know i would love this :)

  5. says

    Well said, girl! I’m nearly 30 (gasp!) and still feeling a bit lost in my career but with each day and with each different job, I’m finding my balance of what I’m really looking for and realizing more and more, it’s a job that I need (and WILL) create for myself someday. Also, that ice cream looks AMAZING but I always end up adding a splash or two of almond milk because I’m not patient enough to wait for the bananas to really do their magic. ha!

    • says

      My sister is going through something similar. She studied education, got her Master’s in education, taught for 3 years, and is now like wait a minute – I hate this! haha so she’s trying different things to figure out what she wants to do. And nothin’ wrong with a little splash of almond milk to speed up the process!! ;D

  6. says

    LOVE this, cause you persevered, and you didn’t give up, and we get to celebrate with you now that you got the job. :) I really can’t wait to hear what you learn from it.

    This is pretty neat that you included both ingredients in the name of the ice cream. :) This would make a good breakfast.

  7. says

    Wow, what an amazing story!! So true, though, and I love what you wrote about your first job teaching you what you didn’t want to do. I just graduated in June with a bio degree and won’t be using it AT ALL in the future. I loved bio, but learned throughout the 4 years that medicine just wasn’t for me. Serious guilt about “wasting” those years, though, which is totally untrue.

    But anywho, this recipe!! I’ve always been so intrigued by the banana soft serve recipes floating around but have never tried them. I love love love the chunks of pistachio in this! Texture in foods for me is a must!

  8. says

    I am sooooo into this!! Love that story, your advice, and just you <3
    When I moved after I graduated high school it seriously took me FOREVER to get a job. I applied to at least 100 and got called in for like 3 interviews. It was so discouraging. I really had my heart set at working for this one vegan place and applied, interviewed, didn't get the job. Then applied 4 more times for different positions. Eventually I got a dishwashing job there. And now I'm one of the sous chefs! At the time I remember feeling weird about applying so many times after being turned down, but I'm so happy I kept going because it was so worth it.

  9. says

    Good on you for fighting for what you wanted! I really love your story because so often we get told the opposite advice…just to move on and let go. Thanks for the encouragement, also pistachios are my favourite :)

  10. says

    I’ll never forgot getting my first job out of college I didn’t hear from the company for a few weeks so I decided to march right into their office to check on the status of my resume. GUESS WHAT…2 days later I got the job. ALWAYS fight for what you really want :)

  11. says

    Love (and have experience with) both of these points. I’ve gotten most of my opportunities by following up and repeatedly expressing interest in them. And that makes sense, since companies want to work with truly engaged people. On the opposite end, right now I’m in a place I don’t love, and I’ve started making steps toward very different goals I had never seriously considered, but that are completely calling me right now. In the end, it’s a lot of trial and error and hard lessons, but if it leads you to a place you’re happy with, I’d say it’s all worth it.

  12. says

    This looks sooo good! I love pistachio anything! 😀 I haven’t graduated from college yet, but I’ll be the first to admit that I’m nervous for the job search ahead of me. My first job (that wasn’t babysitting or tutoring) was as a hostess at Chili’s. Pretty humble!

  13. says

    It is so funny how blogs have a way of hitting home right when you need it most. I could not agree more with what you are saying about making something happen is always possible! I loved this post from your internship story to your banana soft serve! Thanks for the inspiration just when I hit the point of wanting to give up!

  14. says

    I’ve had quite a few jobs that weren’t for me. Almost immediately upon graduation from college, I knew I wanted to go back to get my degree in dietetics to become a Registered Dietitian. It took a bit of waiting, since my husband is still in school completing the last leg to become an orthodontist, but now I am finally back in school and it feels so good. I know I won’t have a traditional job once I become an RD, which is exciting but makes me a bit anxious, ya know!? Question about the banana soft serve: How do you get it to blend and be smooth without adding liquid like almond milk or water? Mine never gets smooth without a splash to get things moving. Would love to know you trick!

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