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Anybody else remember those “Choose Your Own Adventure” books? Man, I could get DOWN with those things. Pretty sure I’d read one tomorrow if it showed up in my neighborhood’s Little Free Library.

Well, this build-your-own yogurt bar is the food equivalent of one of those books. Want all healthy yogurt toppings? Load up on fruit and lemon cardamom granola. Want more decadent toppings for yogurt? Some chocolate chunks and waffle cone bits are waiting for you.

The recipe card below includes approximate amounts for a yogurt parfait bar for 8 people, but you can set up all of these ingredients in any quantity for any number of people. Just change your serving bowl sizes accordingly.

Round out your brunch buffet with vegetarian quiche and some bacon in the oven, and you have the perfect Mother’s Day or bridal shower morning meal.

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The last carrot cake I made was for my daughter’s first birthday. Her favorite food at the time was glazed carrots, so my husband and I took the day off work and lovingly made her a homemade carrot cake, complete with cream cheese frosting and decorations we piped on ourself.

She took one small lick and didn’t care about that cake at all. It wasn’t one of those pictures of a one-year-old just covered in cake. It was a perfectly clean toddler turning her nose up at a cake we had worked so hard on! Who knows, maybe she would have liked lemon curd cake better?

She’s 4 now, and I told her this story while serving her one of these Carrot Cake Smoothies last week and she said “Yeah mom, I don’t like cake!”

But she DID like this carrot smoothie. Like my lemon smoothie and blueberry lemon smoothie, I pack a lot of good-for-you ingredients into a creamy, portable and utterly sippable breakfast or snack.

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Earlier this month, I finally shared my recipe for the 100% classic vanilla bean creme brulee. You can absolutely never go wrong with this dessert, and it’s loved by all ages.

BUT, I also love playing with tradition once in awhile. I’ve been known to whip up creme brulee flavors like grapefruit creme brulee or lemon creme brulee when it’s citrus season, pumpkin creme brulee for Thanksgiving, and even Christmas creme brulee featuring gingerbread spices.

But one thing I haven’t done until now is experiment with the dairy base of the custard. I’ve always used heavy cream for a rich, traditional flavor.

Today, I’m changing things up by combining cream and coconut milk for a tropical twist on this classic dessert. This coconut creme brulee is an amazing way to end a summer meal, or a perfect dessert for Easter.

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“There’s always money in the banana stand!!!” Who’s an Arrested Development fan out there? I treasure the original series on DVD, and re-watch the whole show every few years (or, in a pinch, just watch the “Pier Pressure” episode (The Hot Cops!)).

From The Cornballer to Lucille Two’s vertigo. From “It’s an illusion, Michael” to life lessons with J. Walter Weatherman. From Tobias being a Nevernude to “No Touching!,” I love it all.

However, anything involving the frozen banana stand is my favorite bit of the show. Sadly, I don’t have a banana stand lined with hundred dollar bills, but I do have a bunch of chocolate chips and some frozen banana chunks (I used some bananas to make caramelized banana splits, and a few for banana pancake ice cream, and then froze the rest). 

I’m a sucker for cold desserts in the summer, like frozen yogurt pie and peaches and cream ice cream bars. And, I’d been wanting to make my very own chocolate covered bananas for pretty much as long as I’ve been watching AD, so I finally crossed it off my bucket list.

These frozen chocolate covered bananas are the perfect treat to eat while you’re on a TV-watching binge, no matter what show it is.

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Do any kids like coconut? I know I sure didn’t when I was young. Any coconut-related Halloween candy went directly to my parents as soon as I got home from trick-or treating.

But, I now understand coconut’s charm and adore it. Coconut shrimp with creamy sauce is on our menu at least once a month, and frozen chocolate bananas covered with coconut flakes and coconut creme brulee are some of my favorite sweet treats. Shredded coconut is essential in my carrot cake smoothie.

As an adult, I now take advantage of children’s distaste for coconut. Every year at Halloween, I buy a big bag of Almond Joys or Mounds bars “for the trick-or-treaters,” (wink wink nudge nudge) as well as other candy.

In the “before times,” we always passed out candy by holding out the bowl and letting the kids pick which piece they want. Shockingly – at the end of the night, we’re left with a big bowl of Almond Joys. Then I’m forced to eat them. It’s a curse, I tell ya.

This coconut risotto with lime shrimp is my way of making up for those childhood years where I didn’t like coconut. Just like my mushroom and kale risotto and goat cheese risotto, it’s a fun little kitchen project that works well for Sunday dinner.

And it satisfies my coconut craving all year around!

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I’ve been sharing a little bit about about my husband and I’s recent 10th anniversary trip to Maui on my Instagram account. It was an amazing trip, with lots of relaxation, snorkeling, golf (for him), shave ice (for me), driving around the island and beach hopping.

We also tried açaí bowls for the first time, and fell in love with them.

An açaí bowl is basically just a smoothie in a bowl, topped with stuff. The smoothie should, of course, contain açaí berries (usually in a dried powder form blended into the smoothie).

Açaí is a South American fruit that is considered a superfood thanks to it’s crazy amount of antioxidants and other nutritional benefits.

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I know I talked on Monday about how I’m really more of a savory vegetable person, with fruity detours only rarely. Well, it turns out that the pineapple sangria really whetted my appetite for fruit, because I’ve been craving fruits of all kinds ever sense.

My breakfasts for the past few weeks have been bowls of creamy Greek yogurt, mountains of fruit, drizzles of honey, and this Lemon Cardamom Coconut Granola for crunch.

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Happy September! Ugh, it feel so strange to be saying that, because it’s still so warm here in Michigan that you wouldn’t know it wasn’t still July.

And there’s plenty of things I’m looking forward to this month, including college football (as a University of Michigan alumna, I am of course itching to find how out the new coach fares), my husband’s birthday (I always forget to get him a gift on time), and a few small trips I have planned.

September is also Better Breakfast Month, so all of the Milk Means More ambassadors will be sharing lots of smoothies and other ideas for quick, healthful morning meals.

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I feel like possibly with the exception of olives, no food is more polarizing than coconut. I think you either love it or you hate it. Sometimes you can love it and hate it in the same lifetime.

I remember shunning all coconut-based Halloween candy as a kid, but now I make coconut risotto and coconut creme brulee, and buy tons of coconut goodies for the trick or treaters coming to my house, in hopes that those kids shun them like I used to, and they’ll all be left for me to eat.

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