Banana Split Dessert

This recipe is from one of those community cookbooks where everyone submits their favorite recipes. It uses Neapolitan ice cream, which sounds like a fun & colorful ingredient for a banana split! This would be a neat substitute for cake at a kid's birthday party, or a cool, festive dessert for a summer barbecue. We ate Neapolitan ice cream often when we were younger, and I hope it's still readily available because I'd like to try making this myself. For now, I'm posting it here for safekeeping.

• Ready In: 1 hr
• Serves: 10-12
• Yields: 1 Dessert

Ingredients

• 3  firm ripe bananas
• 1⁄2 gallon  neapolitan ice cream
• 1  cup chocolate chips
• 1  sleeve graham cracker, crushed into crumbs
• 1⁄2 cup butter or 1⁄2 cup margarine, melted
• 2  cups powdered sugar
• 1 1⁄2 cups evaporated milk
• 1  teaspoon vanilla
• 1 (8 ounce) carton Cool Whip
• 1  cup  chopped walnuts

Directions

1. Combine melted butter and graham cracker crumbs. Reserve 1 cup. Pat remaining mixture into the bottom of 11x15 inch pan to form the crust. Slice bananas crosswise and layer over crust. Slice ice cream into 1/2 inch thick slices and place over bananas. Sprinkle ice cream with 1 cup of chopped walnuts. Freeze until firm. Melt 1 cup of chocolate chips and 1/2 cup butter; add 2 cups powdered sugar and 1 1/2 cups evaporated milk. Cook mixture until thick and smooth, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and add 1 teaspoon vanilla. Cool and pour over ice cream. Freeze until firm. Spread Cool Whip over chocolate mixture and top with reserved crumb mixture. Store in freezer. Will keep several weeks if you don't devour it first!