Healthy Treats to Beat the Heat

Hi All!  I know I have been pretty dormant lately but I totally have a good excuse!  OK, so maybe I don't, but the important thing is I'm back and excited about getting started writing again.

So since my last post, I have made the move back home to good ol' Las Vegas...and boy is it hot! To keep cool, I've have been posted by the pool with a jug of water by my side at all times (hydration, hydration, hydration!) I've also noticed that since I've been back in the desert, the call of ice cream and popsicles from the freezer has turned more into a scream - I now understand the song "We All Scream for Ice Cream".  This got me thinking of some ways to keep cool and fulfill that craving for a frozen treat, all the while sticking to a healthful diet.  Below are some of my favorites:

Frozen Sour Grapes
Alright, it can't get easier than this guys.  Two ingredients: seedless grapes (green OR red...I prefer green)

and sugar-free Jell-O mix (again, flavor of your preference).  The first step is to remove all the grapes from the vine.  Next, rinse them off in a colander, but don't dry them off. Lastly, you're going to coat the damp grapes in the Jell-O mix.  You can either do this by pouring the powder in a large zip-lock bag and utilizing the "shake-n-bake" method, or you can put the powder on a plate and using a fork roll the grapes around in the mix.  Now, put your freshly coated grapes in the freezer for a couple of hour to freeze up, and enjoy!

The variation I've made (and actually remembered to take photos of!) was using green grapes and lime Jell-O. However, I've heard red grapes and cherry Jell-O is also a good combination. 


Banana "Ice Cream"
LOVE this one!  This is truly one of the best  fake-out recipes I've had.  This so-called "ice cream" is (almost) entirely from frozen ripe bananas, yet has the exact texture of soft serve - picky eaters both young and old will never know the difference. Now, the only down-side of this recipe is that it does take a bit of forethought, because

Photo courtesy of theKitchn because I always forget to photograph my food

you have to have the frozen bananas on hand.  So whenever I notice my 'nanners getting a little too ripe, I'll slice them up and pop them in a container I keep in the freezer specifically for this purpose, this way I always have some on hand.  

To make your "soft serve", toss some of your frozen banana slices into a blender or food processor and blend, blend, blend!  I've found the blending goes a little smoother if I let the bananas thaw just slightly.  Now, get creative with your mix-ins!  Walnuts and cinnamon are a good addition, as is peanut butter and chocolate chips, but my favorite is a little bit of unsweetened cocoa powder (a little bit goes a long way) and Stevia.  Eat immediately after blending for more of a soft serve ice cream, or store in the freezer for more of an ice cream consistency. 

Whole-Fruit Popsicles
This treat follows more of a traditional recipe, but you can always get creative with the types of fruits you use. Before beginning these, I suggest buying a popsicle mold and swiping a handful of tongue depressors from your next doctor's appointment (just kidding...kind of...). 

Photo courtesy of The Whole Life Nutrition Kitchen

After you have your hardware on hand, begin by pureeing 3 cups of any type of melon you prefer, but watermelon is particularly nice for this, just remember to remove the seeds (3 cups will make roughly 12 pops). Next, fill your popsicle molds with any fresh fruit of your choice; blueberries, strawberries, kiwi, mango, peaches...the world is your oyster.  Now, pour the melon puree over the fruit, and place a tongue depressor stick down the center of each mold.  If your mold does not come with a lid to keep the tongue depressors sticks straight, using tin foil works just as nicely. Freeze 6-8 hours before serving.