Frozen Banana Sundae Pops and Chocolate Pretzel Coconut Bark

Given the recent slew of triple digit temperatures, we can't eat our ice cream fast enough. After losing one too many scoops to the deck monster who yanks them off cones every time I turn my back, we decided to give frozen bananas a try. Slower melt time, nice creamy texture, a few additional nutrients, dark chocolate coating and we could choose our own toppings!

I skewered bananas, froze them for a bit, dipped them in melted dark chocolate and handed them off to the troops who slathered them in crushed pretzels, freeze dried strawberries, rainbow sprinkles, graham cracker crumbs, and flaky coconut. I meant to take pictures of that part but a giant bowl of melted chocolate and six little hands didn't lend itself to a leisurely photo shoot. So, you get the finished product instead.

Frozen Banana Sundae Pops
(serves 10)

5 large, firm bananas
1 10-ounce package chocolate chips
10 skewers or Popsicle sticks
Assorted toppings of your choice. We used rainbow sprinkles, graham cracker crumbs, crushed pretzels, freeze-dried strawberries, and flaked coconut but the options are endless (M&Ms, white chocolate chips, crushed cookies, mini marshmallows, candy corn, popcorn, nuts, crushed saltine crackers, hot cinnamon candies, crushed candy canes, you  name it!)

1. Peel the bananas and cut them in half crosswise. Skewer the bananas and place on a parchment lined baking sheet in the freezer for an hour so they'll be nice and firm for dipping. Crush graham crackers, cookies, or pretzels in plastic baggies using a mallet (great kid job) and lay each topping out on a plate.
2. When the bananas are firm, pour the chocolate chips into a microwave-safe bowl and heat in 20 second intervals, stirring often, until melted. Carefully dip bananas one at a time and coat with desired toppings. Return to parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze until hard, about 2 hours.

The coconut was a revelation for the girls who up to this point had flat out rejected it on top of granola, in cookies, and anywhere else they encountered it. Suddenly they couldn't get enough and emptied our topping bowl before the bananas were done. For a minute there Looly truly believed she'd discovered the epic combo of coconut and chocolate.

Roo, for the record, did sample a coconut flake but the texture was too much for him and he spit it out. And sadly, we had another sprinkles incident you can read about here. For few moments, though, he was totally digging his banana.

All tasty indeed but the real star of the show turned out to be the frozen chocolate pretzel coconut bark I made with the leftovers. As tasty as any candy bar and so incredibly easy!

Chocolate Pretzel Coconut Bark

1 bag chocolate chips (we used Ghiradelli Bittersweet Baking Chips)
1 cup pretzels, any shape, crushed or chopped
1/2 cup flaked coconut

Melt the chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl, heating in 20 second intervals and stirring in between until just melted. Lay a piece of parchment paper on a rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle half the pretzels on the parchment. Pour chocolate over the pretzels. Top with remaining pretzels and sprinkle coconut on top. Place baking sheet in the freezer for an hour or more. Remove and break chocolate bark into pieces. Store in the freezer for an extra refreshing summer treat.