Fancy Banana Bites

For some reason after I finish a run, I really like to eat peanut butter. Almost every morning this summer when I would come home from a run, I would make myself either toast with peanut butter, or a banana with peanut butter. And to be honest, even when I'm not running I love peanut butter on toast and bananas. It has good protein, healthy fats, and is so satisfying. There is just something about peanut butter on a hot piece of toast when it gets all melty and gooey. Or a perfectly ripe banana slathered with a little peanut butter. It is just one of those combinations that makes sense and you wonder if you could ever really live without it? Like raspberries on your yogurt at Red Mango, or really really good French Onion Soup. I'm obviously hungry right now.

I feel like peanut butter seems to be a kids staple - good old PB & J. (Unless of course your child has a nut allergy........then it is probably your worst enemy) My kids like peanut butter just fine, but I wouldn't say they are in love with it. Aside from lunch, it is a great snack to keeps your kids tided over until dinner. Today I thought it would be fun to get a bit creative with the bananas and peanut butter. My 3 almost 4 year old is really into things being fancy right now. She has started reading the Fancy Nancy books which I think are really cute and quite entertaining. If I was a 4 year old girl, I would want to be just like Fancy Nancy. Before having girls I was never the frilly, pink, fancy type girl, but now I actually love it. Like a lot. I knew before I had even finished these fancy bananas that my girls would love them. And I was right.

The ingredients. Now the first thing to remember is just because something is fancy doesn't mean that it will take a long time or require lots of fancy ingredients. And Fancy Bananas will prove that point.

Peel your banana, and cut into 3 or 4 sections. Next take a small pairing knife and core your banana sections.

This is the fun part. Fill your banana with peanut butter. I put mine into a pastry bag with a tip, but you definitely don't have to get that fancy. You can put it in a ziploc bag and cut the corner off to squeeze it into your banana if you want. A tip just makes it look a little more fancy. You'll see.

Someone was getting a little antsy for these to be done and so she ate one after this phase.

For the last step, I dipped the bottom part of the banana in yogurt and then rolled it in my crunchy topping. Our crunchy toppings were Grape-nuts (yes I am a lover of them - and think of the fiber!) and granola. You could also do mini-chocolate chips, crushed graham cracker, wheat germ, chia seeds.........you get the idea.