Pluot and Plum Perfect Parfait. Plumb Delicious!

Sometimes a fresh fruit and nut parfait is all I need in the morning. Plus, it's kinda like eating a sundae for breakfast! In the summer months, I adore my Pluot and Plum Perfect Parfait. Creamy vanilla soy yogurt, seasonal plum and pluot diced fruit, chopped raw Brazil nuts and a drizzle of real maple syrup. This recipe is super kid-friendly to eat and make! And my 'plumb perfect' parfait has another childhood twist to it: I call it my "Tom Sawyer" parfait. Find out why and get the recipe ahead...

Granola Fatigue. I'm really bored by granola in my yogurt parfaits. I'm not a huge fan of granola cereal, so why mush it in my yogurt. You may feel differently, but give this recipe a try and see if you go back to grains. I find that simple chopped nuts add all the crunch I need to get me through the yummy layers. Dry granola just makes me thirsty! Granola free parfaits are the answer to a hydrating yet satisfying yogurt-based breakfast.

Healthy Parfait. What do you get (nutritionally speaking) when you munch this parfait? Antioxidants and fiber from the fruit. Protein and probiotics from the yogurt. Fiber and healthy fats from the nuts. Nutrition approved!

My Tom Sawyer Parfait. I have such fond childhood memories of the classic American novel "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" written by Mark Twain. In fifth grade I was in my first big school play, Tom Sawyer. I played Amy Lawrence, Tom's sassy ex-girlfriend. I loved it. I got to wear a poofy blue gingham dress (complete with bloomers). My hair was done up with large bouncy curls. And I got to talk in a sweet southern girl accent. And one of the catchy sayings found throughout the play and novel is the southern slang term "plumb". It's a way to exaggerate your point. Try it:

Instead of saying: "It's so hot outside."
You say: "It's plumb hot outside!"
Instead of saying: "We ran all the way to the river and back in five minutes. We were really tired."
Say this: "We ran plumb to the river and back in five minutes! Golly we were plumb tired!"
Fun, right? :)

Now that you have the lingo down, here's the recipe for this summer sweet parfait that tastes as pure and gleeful as childhood.

Pluot and Plum Perfect Parfait
vegan, makes two parfaits
*Super kid-friendly breakfast or treat

1 ripe purple plum, diced
1 ripe yellow, purple or red pluot, diced
3/4 cup whole raw Brazil nuts, rough chopped by hand
2 cups Vanilla Soy Yogurt (1 cup per parfait)
*I used the Wildwood brand of yogurt
1 tsp maple syrup (1/2 tsp in each parfait)

Directions:
1)This is super simple. Yay. So step one is to grab a tall parfait glass and smile wide as you layer your ingredients!
2) Layer a scoop of the first fruit (about 1 tsp)
3) Layer a pinch of nuts (about 1 tsp)
4) Layer a scoop of yogurt (about 1 Tbsp)
5) Layer a scoop of the other color of fruit (about 1 tsp)
6) Repeat until you make it to the top brim of the glass!
7) Top with a few fresh fruit chunks, nuts and a 1 tsp drizzle of maple syrup.

After your first bite say: "Wow! This is plumb delicious!"

How classic Tom Sawyer of you.

BONUS LITERARY FUN: You can even recite lines form the classic Tom Sawyer novel. Here are a few passage to read aloud:

"Well, to cut the tale short, we never left there till plumb noon; and long before that I was hid in this stateroom; for before breakfast I see a man coming, away off, that had a gait like Hal Clayton`s, and it made me just sick. I says to myself, if he finds out I`m aboard this boat, he`s got me like a rat in a trap. All he`s got to do is to have me watched, and wait--wait till I slip ashore, thinking he is a thousand miles away, then slip after me and dog me to a good place and make me give up the di`monds, and then he`ll--oh, I know what he`ll do! Ain`t it awful--awful!"

"We waited plumb till dawn for them
to come back, and kept hoping they would, but they never did.
We was awful sorry and low-spirited. All the hope we had
was that Jake had got such a start that they couldn't get
on his track, and he would get to his brother's and hide
there and be safe."

Aunt Sally glad to see Tom:
"Where HAVE you been a-loafing to, you good-for-nothing
trash! I've been that worried about you I didn't know what
to do. Your traps has been here ever so long, and I've
had supper cooked fresh about four times so as to have it
hot and good when you come, till at last my patience is
just plumb wore out, and I declare I--I--why I could skin
you alive! You must be starving, poor things!--set down,
set down, everybody; don't lose no more time."

-Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain

Buy the Tom Sawyer book. It's one of my childhood favorites: