Since getting married, my husband and I have been making a conscious effort to eat healthier. Its funny, because just a year ago I still kept a personal stash of my favorite treats (aka junk food, like chocolates, chips, etc) so I could indulge whenever I felt like it. I used to love all these sweet and salty things, and actually couldn’t last a day without them. But, after a serious discussion about health and our future, we’ve decided to turn things around for us and get more into healthy stuff like eating right and exercising regularly. Times certainly have changed, and its for the better. Now, if you check our pantry you’ll see an assortment of fruits and veggies instead, and the occasional jar of Nutella and maybe a box of cookies. The bottom line is, we’re not getting any younger, and we both want a long and happy life together, minus the sickness/expensive medical bills. Of course, we know this is all inevitable, but if we can make that effort to avoid it why not start today, right?

So when my good friend, Patty Laurel-Filart (www.pattylaurel.com) told me about this super healthy soft-serve ice cream/yogurt machine that uses frozen fruit, I immediately snapped up the chance to learn more it. Here’s what it is: the machine is called YONANAS (distributed by the good people of DOLE Philippines, only P2950, available at all leading supermarkets) and it transforms frozen banana into a creamy, ice-cream-ey treat without adding anything else (no sugar, no preservatives, no milk), its just the fruit in there. Where does the sweetness come from? Well, this is where they recommend you use overripe bananas. Yup, all you need to do is to stick your overripe bananas in the freezer and when they are completely frozen, you just put them in the machine’s chute and out comes Yonanas! You can also add other yummy fruits in there, like strawberries, peaches, mango, etc and if you want a chocolate fix you can add Nutella, Oreo, and even nuts! This machine is great for those who want to cut down on their sugar intake and for those who are lactose intolerant. You can do so much with it, check out these yummy concoctions!

Berry bon bons.

Mint chocolate chip.

Mixed berry pie with chocolate crust.

Pumpkin pie with gingerbread crust.

Strawberry Yonanas cone.

Tiramisu Yonanas.

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I was happy to attend the Dole-Yonanas event with super moms Amanda Griffin-Jacob and Nicole Hernandez-de los Angeles and fellow newly-wed/cooking newbie Patty. We definitely had lots of fun coming up with our own recipes based on our favorite ice cream flavors!

Trying out the Yonanas machine.

So far, these are my favorite Yonanas ingredients: banana, strawberry and Oreo. Yum!

Nicole and Patty checking out the Yonanas recipe book.

Amanda with her bundle of joy, Kalon.

With Amanda, Patty and Nicole.

Our Yonanas workstation.

Notice the number of cups in front of us, yes, those are all ours! Healthy never tasted this good!

Photo with the Dole Philippines team.

The many Dole products available at your nearest supermarket.

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Aaaaaaand its CONTEST TIME!!! Yes, you get a chance to WIN your very own Yonanas machine! Patty and I are running a special contest for you guys and its super easy! Join, join, join and lets be healthy together!!! 🙂

Here’s what you have to do: