“There’s always money in the banana stand.”

Tonight is a big night for television lovers. In case you don’t get the reference in the first line of this post, tonight is the release of Season 4 of “Arrested Development“.

This season has been seven years in the making. You see, originally the comedy aired on FOX back in 2003. It ran 3 amazing seasons before it was cancelled by the network. There was always speculation of the show returning to tv, or possibly to the big screen with a feature film, but it always got pushed back. However, Netflix announced that they were picking up the show for a 4th season and would have all 15 episodes available for streaming at once. Starting at midnight tonight, one of the greatest dysfunctional families to ever be created will come to life once again, bringing along: con artists, chicken impersonations, accidentally racist puppets, and their family banana stand.

I decided to pay tribute to this hilarious show by creating snacks that George Michael (Michael Cera) would serve at Bluth’s Original Frozen Banana Stand. I topped my bananas with shredded coconut, walnuts, and multi-colored sprinkles. If you are a Tobias Funke fan, you know why there’s one banana that only has blue sprinkles! Feel free to use whatever toppings you want; they’re your celebratory bananas after all. “I made a terrible mistake” by jamming the pink/red sprinkled banana in my mouth too quickly after taking these pictures and ended up with a rose-stained face for a few hours. Be aware, these are messy but they are worth it.

Recipe: Chocolate-Covered Frozen Banana Pops

What You Need:

• 3 large bananas, cut in half
• 1 bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
• popsicle sticks
• toppings of your choice
• several small bowls

What To Do:

1. Carefully slide the popsicle sticks into the bananas, being careful not to pierce through the sides. Place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Freeze for 2 hours.

2. When bananas are frozen, melt chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl in 45 second increments, stir until smooth.

3. Pour each desired topping into its own small bowl. Set aside.

4. Hold banana over the chocolate bowl and spoon the melted chocolate onto the fruit until it is covered. Do not try to use your fingers or press hard with the spoon to smooth out the chocolate. It will clump and fall off the banana.

4. Due to the extreme differences in temperature, the chocolate will harden within seconds. You must work quickly! Move your banana over the the desired topping bowl and sprinkle topping onto the banana. Do NOT roll the chocolate-covered banana in the topping or you’re going to have one big brown mess and zero topping on the banana.

5. Eat immediately. If you are planning to eat all 6 of them by yourself one at a time (don’t judge me!), you can store them in a tupperware container in the freezer.

Have a great Memorial Day weekend and don’t forget to check out the newest season of “Arrested Development”!

I love banana bread. That’s probably because it’s so easy to make. You just mash up bananas you have on hand, add a little flour and sugar, and then you can add anything you want from nuts to fruits, to candy. I love coming up with new combinations. It’s also a good way to sneak a little more fruit into your daily mealplan.

Recipe: Coconut-Almond Banana Bread

What You Need:

• 3 bananas, mashed
• 1 & 1/4 cup flour
• 3/4 cup slivered almonds
• 1 cup coconut, shredded
• 1/3 cup butter
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 eggs

What To Do:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. Mix together flour, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg.

3. Add butter and eggs.

4. Add in bananas, almonds, and coconut and mix until will incorporated.

5. Pour into greased bread pan.

6. Bake 55 minutes and let cool before slicing.