I think every teenager needs to read this book. And I think every adult should. After all, we've all done something that wasn't "us" in order to fit in.

It's about Stargirl Caraway, and her first year at a new school. It's about gaining popularity and losing it, then gaining it right back. It's about what we're willing to sacrifice for that popularity, and whether or not it's worth it in the end.

If you couldn't tell, Stargirl isn't what anyone would call normal. She changes her name whenever she feels like a certain name fits her more than others. She wears what she wants and does what she wants, when she wants. She doesn't follow social cues if she thinks they're stupid.

She does what makes her and the people around her happy.

A dessert for her should be just as bright as she is.

My first thought was lemon, but that's too cliché... and it just didn't fit. After thinking about it for a while, I realized that mango would fit. The whole fruit is so colorful, with a red and green skin and a bright yellow-orange inside. Ripe mango is incredibly sweet, but it can have a little twang to it, too.

She leaves everyone she meets confused and questioning what just happened, so I wanted to add something to chew on. Toasted coconut is warm and sweet and the texture is exactly what I wanted for this dessert.

It helps that coconut and mango go really well together.

You know what else goes?

Basil.

The same basil that you put in pasta sauce or with mozzarella and balsamic vinegar.

It shouldn't work, but it does, and it brings everything together.

Just like Stargirl.

I wasn't sure what to do with these ingredients at first. I thought about an ice cream or a trifle, but they didn't fit. I wanted something that you could eat with one hand, so you could do something else with the other (dance, maybe? Or draw? Write an Ode to your dessert?).

The whole book is told by a boy named Leo, and he's trying so very hard to be normal. He's sweet, but crumbles under peer pressure, and tries to get Stargirl to be a bit more normal.

Since he's our base for the story, it's only fair that our dessert has a shortbread base for him.

Which leaves me with mango bars.

Mango Purée

-2 c  ripe mango, cubed (the more ripe it is, the sweeter it'll be)

-1 tbsp  water

-1 tbsp  white sugar

1. In a small saucepan, mix the ingredients over medium-heat.
2. Stir occasionally until the water comes to a boil.
3. Lower the heat until it's simmering (medium-low/ low), and continue cooking for 10 minutes.
4. Remove the saucepan from the heat and let it cool.
5. Put the mangoes in a blender/ food processor and blend until smooth.

Shortbread Crust

-1 3/4 c  all-purpose flour

-1/4 c  confectioner's sugar

-1/2 tsp  salt

-1 1/2 sticks  unsalted butter, cold and cubed

1. In a medium-sized bowl, mix the salt, sugar, and flour together.
2. Add in your cubed butter.
3. Using your hands, squish the butter into the flour. This is going to take a while, but doing this ensures that your shortbread will be buttery and crumbly. When you're done, the dough should be sticking together in little clumps and there shouldn't be any chunks of butter left.
4. Pour the dough into a greased 9x13 pan, and press it down to coat the bottom of the dish.
5. Bake the crust at 350 degrees for 9-10 minutes. The edges should be turning golden brown.
6. Remove the pan from the oven.

Filling (You should start making this while the crust is in the oven!)

-5 eggs

-1 2/3 c  white sugar

-1 3/4 c  mango purée

-1/2 c  all-purpose flour

1. Whisk together the eggs and sugar until the sugar is completely dissolved.
2. Mix in the purée.
3. Add in the flour and whisk it all together until it's smooth.
4. Pour the filling mixture into the warm crust.
5. Bake at 325 (Make sure you don't leave it at the 350 from earlier!) for 22-25 minutes.
6. Remove the bars from the oven and let it cool.
7. Once it's cool, stick it in the fridge. It needs to stay there for AT LEAST two hours before you start cutting into it.

While it was cooling, I toasted some coconut. To do that, you put sweetened coconut flakes in a pan and let it sit until you see the sides turning golden brown. Then you stir it and let it get a bit more golden. You take it off of the heat when it's the color you want it to be. I only used 1 1/2 cups of coconut for this, but you can use as much or as little as you want.

I also cut about 20 basil leaves as small as I could, then I mixed them into the cooling coconut.

Once the bars were ready, I covered them in the coconut and basil, then I cut one piece out and took the rest to work.

Stargirl is all about making people smile, so I wanted to do the same.

(Nothing came home.)