Whenever my parents come to visit Logan and I go into full on tidy / cleaning mode. My dad is a bit of a neat freak and is very observant. It's a gift and a curse. I’m less observant. No, scratch that. I pretty much experience life as an impressionist painting, with no hard lines. For example, when I walk into a party I more feel the energy of the room. I might not notice the dust on the windowsill. Or the color of the curtains. I'm more interested in connecting with people. I want to get deep into conversation, dance around, belly laugh. All my ENFP's hola back. So getting my place “ship shape” (as dad would say) has always been a challenge. One that — so far — has resulted in my total freak-out-meltdown on the morning that they’re coming into town. Including the cries. Including the temper-tantrum. Including the trying-to-blame-other-people-for-my-mess.

But no more, my friends. I’m done with that. I figured out — with Logan’s help — that I’m golden if I 1. very simply plan out when I’m going to clean, and 2. ask for help. No stress. It helps that our house is more organized than it used to be, too. I can manage the mess when I know where everything goes.

I’m proud to say that were NO meltdowns this past weekend. In fact I even had time to make a coconut cream pie! My papa freaking LOVES coconut. More than me, probably. And yo me and coconut are practically in a relationship. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, my friends.

Vegan Coconut Cream Pie

This vegan coconut cream pie is everything I dream of in a coconut confection. It’s silky, pure coconut flavor with dreamy overtones of vanilla. The filling is creamy and decadent. Sticky medjool dates round out the light flavors with brown-sugar-like depth. The crust is oat and pistachio, sweetened with maple syrup. It’s lightly sweet and dense, like biscotti.

Best of all, it’s easy. Both the crust and the filling come together in the blender (or food processor). You bake the crust, spoon in the filling, and pop it in the freezer. Top it with toasted coconut and voila. A (totally healthy) rad treat.

It should be noted that I also made this pie out of frustration. I couldn't find a reliable, delicious, healthy vegan coconut cream pie on the internets. And that, my friends, is like a bat-signal. The absence of information on the web is like a beacon in the sky saying please god someone make this thing. So I did!

Be careful. You’re friends and fam might keep asking for it again and again (mine already are). Ye be warned.