Vegan Chocolate Ice Cream

When I received my ice-cream maker for my birthday a few weeks ago, I just wanted to put everything aside and make chocolate ice cream. Well, tonight I did. Never mind that I’m completely swamped in grading (you can only see a tiny clear square of my desk at school, and that’s usually where my forehead rests when my brain can’t process any more corrections), chocolate ice cream is happening tonight!

Here is what you need:

• 2 cups walnuts
• 8 medjool dates, pitted
• 2 cups almond milk
• 1/2 cup raw unsweetened cacao powder
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Here is what you do:

1. Soak the walnuts overnight.
2. Drain the nuts and place them in your food processor. Add the dates, 1 cup almond milk, cacao powder, maple syrup and vanilla extract. Process and add the remaining cup of milk little by little until you reach the right consistency.
3. Process until you get a smooth paste. Remove from the processor and place your mix in an air-tight container in the fridge for one hour. This will help your ice-cream maker.
4. Transfer your mix into the bowl of your ice-cream maker and churn for 30 minutes or according to your machine’s instructions. Place in an air-tight container in the freezer and enjoy!

This recipe is very simple and yields the most unctuous of chocolate ice creams. The texture is smooth, the flavours are rich and the consistency is thick and satisfying. Not too sweet, it is sure to satisfy all of your chocolate cravings. If you’re anything like me, you’ll have to control yourself not to eat the whole batch at once!

Let me know if you try it out, and what ice cream flavours I should try out!