Popsicles = Health Food on a Stick

As a lactose intolerant gal, ice cream and frozen yogurt are sadly off limits. Boooo! Store made sorbet and popsicles are non-dairy options, but the ingredients are full of high fructose corn syrup, food colouring and other unpleasant unhealthy additives.

Healthy girl’s solution? Make your own! Gourmet, home-made popsicles have become my newest obsession       (they kinda bring me back to those university bartending days in Montreal). You will need a blender and a popsicle mold. I love the super cute Tovolo molds and picked some up at Home Sense for $9.99!

Here are some popsicle recipes that:

A) You can feel good about consuming

B) Company will be impressed by the flavours and think you’re a bonafide Martha Stewart

C) Children will not realize are actually “healthy” and will be tricked into eating vitamin rich treats

Folks, we call that a WIN-WIN! Here are 3 recipes to try..

 

STRAWBERRY-BASIL BALSAMIC

3 cups fresh hulled or thawed frozen strawberries

2 Tbsp chopped basil

2 Tbsp sugar

2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 juiced lemon

Place strawberries in a glass or plastic bowl with basil. Top with sugar, lemon juice and balsamic vinegar. Toss and let marinate for 1 hour.  In blender, puree strawberry-vinegar mixture until smooth.  Mix well and pour into ice-pop molds. Insert sticks and freeze for about 8 hours. (Vinegar punches up the flavor without adding fat, while the strawberries loads these icy treats with all the vitamin C you need in a day.)

 

KEY LIME PIE POPS

2 cups sweetened vanilla almond milk

2 Tbsp sugar

3/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice  ( about 4 large limes)

2 teaspoons lime zest

pinch of salt

3 cups coarsely crushed graham crackers

Put the almond milk, lime juice, lime zest, and salt in a bowl and whisk. Divide the mixture between the molds, put in sticks and freeze until solid, about 5 hours. Spread the graham cracker pieces on a large plate. Remove pops and press each side into the graham crackers, coating completely. ( You can also blend the graham crackers into the liquid mixture and freeze the chunks. Dee-lish!) 

BANANA SPLIT POPS

2 ripe bananas

3 tbsp all natural peanut butter ( or almond butter)

1 cup dark chocolate almond milk

1 cup coconut milk ( Thai Kitchen brand is good!)

1/2 cup fresh finely chopped strawberries

Place the bananas, chocolate almond milk, peanut butter and coconut milk in blender and mix on high speed. Gently stir in the finely chopped strawberries. Pour the mixture into popsicle molds.  Put in the sticks and freeze until solid!

If you’re feeling extra naughty, try freezing sangria in those tasty popsicle molds for an adults-only treat!!

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