August 25 is National Banana Split Day! Scoop up a classic for dessert or start the day with some extra fun by serving our more nutritious (but still delicious) version for breakfast!
Banana splits have been a favorite treat for more than a century. They were first served up in 1904 by David Evans Strickler, a young apprentice who worked at a pharmacy in Pennsylvania. This decadent dessert quickly became a favorite of local college students.
Its popularity spread when Walgreens adopted the "banana-based triple ice cream sundae" as its signature dessert and sold it for 10 cents, which was twice the cost of the other sundaes on the menu!
The classic banana split is made up of a banana cut lengthwise (hence the name) and a scoop of vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry ice cream topped with pineapple, strawberry, and chocolate syrup. Then it's garnished with whipped cream, chopped nuts, and a maraschino cherry. It is typically served in a long dish called a boat.
Breakfast "Banana Split"
- Vanilla Greek yogurt
- Bananas, strawberries, blueberries, and pineapple
- Sprinkles, whipped cream, and maraschino cherries (optional)
Slice a banana lengthwise and place it in a boat (if you don't have a boat, a bowl will work just fine). Add three scoops of vanilla yogurt.
NOTE: I thought that freezing the yogurt first would make it more like ice cream. Turns out Greek yogurt freezes rock solid so I had to let it sit on the counter for a good 30 minutes before it got soft enough to scoop.
Coarsely chop the strawberries, pineapple, and blueberries and spoon the fruit on top of the yogurt.
Adding a few sprinkles makes it really look like dessert without adding much sugar. You can also add a tiny bit of whipped cream and a maraschino cherry if you have them on hand — but even without these, my boys were more than thrilled to eat this treat for breakfast and I was pretty happy to start their day with yogurt and fresh fruit!
