Prep 

Cut 6 (6-inch) small bananas or 4 (9-inch) large bananas into 36 (2-inch banana chunks). Freeze not touching in the freezer until solid – preferably overnight. 

Submerge dates in clean water; refrigerate overnight. The next day, rinse and pit them.

 Line an 8-inch by 4-inch loaf pan with parchment paper.

Make Ice Cream 

Remove the 36 (2-inch) banana chunks from the freezer, spread out on a cookie sheet or parchment, and allow them to thaw for 20 min so as to not break your blender. 

Use a high-speed blender OR a food processor. Blend up thawed bananas, dates, cacao powder, milk, and almond butter until creamy. The texture will be that of pourable cake batter. 

Taste test and add a touch of maple syrup if you think it needs more sweetness. 

Pour into the 8-inch by 4-inch loaf pan and freeze for at least 2 hours before scooping into bowls. Freeze longer to make it solid enough for ice cream cones.

Add Fudge Ripple 

Blend up cacao powder, maple syrup, coconut oil. This makes about 1 cup. I use ½ cup in this ice cream recipe and save the rest in the refrigerator for other recipes or to blend into smoothies. 

To add in the fudge ripple, wait until it is frozen for about 1 hour, and see if it is solid enough to swirl and keep its shape. If not, wait longer. 

Make the chocolate sauce so it is ready and at room temperature or cooler. Drizzle the chocolate sauce on top of the semi-frozen ice cream in swirls and with a small spatula cut it into the ice cream, pushing deep and into swirls without actually mixing it in. 

Then return the loaf pan to the freezer for another 4 hours – to retain the swirl, you'll want it fairly frozen, not soft-serve texture.