Ahh….the merry month of May! Even though it’s packed end-of-the-year school events, several work projects and travel, I couldn’t be happier to see the calendar turn with the promise of summer right around the corner.

Which puts me in the mood for fresh produce and cold treats which is why I chose these Chocolate Pops and Fruit & Veggie Pops in Baggies for this month’s Secret Recipe Club from my assigned blog of Denise at From Brazil to You.

I was giddy when I got assigned to Denise. She has some of the most beautiful, bright photography and enticing recipes – many from her home country of Brazil but global dishes as well. Plus, she’s a friendly and supportive presence in the blogosphere – I do hope I get to meet her in person someday (perhaps a Secret Recipe Club potluck down the line??)

Anyway, it was hard to decide what to make as each one of her recipes were appealing – just some I’ll be revisiting:

Brazilian Cheese Rolls with Kalamata, Basil & Feta
Sunshiny Mango Upside Down Cake
Ravioli Soup
Caipirinha – Brazil’s National Drink!

But ultimately, it came back to summer eats and I was intrigued at the idea of making popsicles in baggies. Apparently, this is a common treat in Brazil and while eating them was a bit messy and we needed a cloth napkin to avoid frozen hands, my 6 year old was definitely on board with these!

(Update: See Denise’s comment below on how to correctly eat these for less mess by cutting a small hole in the corner and sucking out the pop little by little!)

I also LOVE the idea of combining fruit & veggies in popsicles (I am a dietitian after all.) And with the popularity of both the juicing and green smoothie craze, why not freeze those concoctions, too? Denise’s carrot, orange and watermelon combo was refreshing and delicious…..and who can resist frozen chocolate?

I tweaked each recipe reducing the sweeteners and some of the fat but keeping all the flavor. Here are my versions:

Frozen Chocolate Pops in Baggies

Yield: 8 popsicles. 1x

Print Recipe

Ingredients

Scale

4 cups 1% low-fat milk
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
8 ounces fat-free condensed milk (a little more than 1/2 of a 14 ounce can)
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

In a blender, whip together milk, cocoa, condensed milk, sugar and vanilla extract.
Pour into 8 (10 x 3-inch) treat bags (I use Pretzel Rod bags from Wilton.) Knot each bag where the pop ends. Freeze overnight.
To eat, snip the corner end of the bag to push out the pop to eat little by little.

Notes

Adapted from Denise @ From Brazil To You’s Frozen Chocolate Pops in Baggies

Frozen Fruit & Veggie Pops in Baggies (Watermelon, Orange & Carrot)

Yield: 8 popsicles. 1x

Print Recipe

Ingredients

Scale

3 1/2 cups chopped seedless watermelon, without rind
2 1/2 cups orange juice
1 (14.5 ounce) can no salt added sliced carrots (or if you have a powerful blender you can use about 1 1/3 cup raw chopped carrots)
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons honey

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

In a blender, puree watermelon, orange juice, carrots, lime juice and honey until well blended.
Pour into 8 (10 x 3-inch) treat bags (I use Pretzel Rod bags from Wilton.) Knot each bag where the pop ends. Freeze overnight.
To eat, snip the end of the bag and push up the pop while eating.

Notes

Adapted from Denise @ From Brazil To You’s Fruit & Veggie Pops in Baggies

I’m looking forward to experimenting with some other fruit & veggie pop combos and making these Avocado Lime Popsicles and Pina Colada Popsicles in baggies next time.

What are your favorite foods/recipes to get into the summer mood? Have you ever made a fruit & veggie popsicle – please share!

Darla at HeartWork Organizing

Monday 9th of June 2014

Great idea. I love watermelon, but sometimes can't get the kids to eat it fast enough. This would be a brilliant way to use up half a melon quickly.

Deanna Segrave-Daly

Friday 13th of June 2014

Yes! Watermelon carrot would probably be a tasty combo too!

Feast on the Cheap

Wednesday 21st of May 2014

My two-year-old would LOVE these. I haven't yet introduced him to popsicles, but I'm totally trying this when I do. He'll go nuts for these!

YES! I'm already thinking of some new combos for my daughter - avocado, pineapple, berry :)

Meegan

What about adding banana to the chocolate one. Yet another serving of fruit. Can't wait to try them.

Love LOVE the idea of adding banana to the chocolate - definitely doing that with the next batch I made - thanks for the idea :) Let me know if you try them out!

Gwen @simplyhealthyfamily

Tuesday 20th of May 2014

Hww fun! My kids will get a kick out of these frozen treats and so simple for me to make! We need all the cool treats we can get here in Phoenix!

Yes, I guess it's been summer for a few months already in your neck of the woods :) I'm off to check out your amazing sounding grilled pineapple recipe!

Sid's Sea Palm Cooking

Visiting from Group B here, and gotta say, Chocolate Pops, WooHoo. These are now on my list of must make soon recipes.

Comments are closed.