It’s tempting to reach for the cartons of ice cream when you want a cool treat for a hot summer day and certainly for once in a while, it won’t hurt. But if your kids are anything like mine… they play so hard outside all day long the requests for cool treats are quite frequent and thus healthier options are important. Here are some ideas.
Frozen Fruit
* Blueberries, strawberries, grapes, watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew, and pineapple make great snacks right out of the freezer. You can even find a you-pick farm near you so that your kids can pick their own treats to. Right now in our area, blueberries are easy to find. You can also blend them into fruit smoothies or green smoothies too.
* Sliced peaches, nectarines, and kiwis can be frozen on wax paper-covered trays. Then you can pull the slices off and freeze them in your favorite freezer storage containers, we use glass mason jars.
* Frozen fruit-kabobs are always fun! Thread chunks of fruit onto skewers and freeze on a wax paper-covered tray. You can also dip them in yogurt and sprinkle with nuts or shredded coconut.
Cool Drinks
* Try freezing fruit juice or fruit puree into ice cube trays. Pour soda water over a glass full of them for a fizzy drink. We use our Soda Stream for this quite often. Take a glass and squeeze a whole lemon or lime into it, add a tablespoon or so of raw honey, your fruity ice cubes, and soda water… voila!
* Fruit sorbet is far healthier than ice cream. Put a scoop or two in a glass and pour soda water over it. Yum!! We even make our own sorbet in our beloved Vita-Mix. It is truly the most valuable kitchen tool I will ever own.
* Homemade fruit purees or smoothies can also be mixed with soda water for a refreshing drink.
Popsicles
Who doesn’t love popsicles? Making healthy ones is good for grown-ups and kids alike. A popsicle mold may be your best purchase!
Home-made popsicles are a great way to get fresh fruits and fruit juices into your kids – you can even sneak some veggies, we do! You can freeze fresh squeezed fruit juice into popsicles (like the orange juice pop in the top picture), or blend carrots or some greens into your favorite green smoothie and then freeze in molds.
Try pureeing fruit, yogurt, vanilla, and honey to freeze into creamsicles. Delish!
Frozen Yogurt Sandwiches
Frozen yogurt often contains dormant cultures that will become active in your body. Soften some of your favorite flavor of frozen yogurt, or make your own, then dollop some between two whole-grain graham crackers. Freeze for a few hours or overnight and enjoy. (The longer they’re frozen, the softer the crackers will become.)
Enjoy!!
