Yogurt and berries, a delicious combination in itself. Â Freeze them together into a frozen popsicle and you’ve got happy partakers. Â Things are heating up outside with summer almost here. Â For most parents of kiddos, summer IS here with kids being out of school. Â Kids are playing outside more, they’re hot, excited and want a cold treat. Â Our kids constantly ask us to get something from the ice cream truck that rolls by a lot these days, but we’re not fans of letting them get their HFCS (high fructose corn syrup) fix from fake pops. Â We will need to suck it up and let them get something from the truck once or twice this summer, just so we don’t seem like meanies for denying them this pleasure as they keep hearing from their friends. Â I think it’s mostly the act of getting it from the truck that’s fun for kids, and then of course the sugar high kicks in…Yippee!
Yogurt Pops
I try to make my kids better alternatives to ice cream truck treats.   This is a frozen treat you can feel good about eating or serving to your kids.  One of the kids’ favorite breakfasts is a bowl of plain yogurt with a drizzle of honey, fresh berries, chia seeds and a little granola.  These yogurt pops are like their favorite breakfast in a popsicle, minus the granola.
Honey Sweet
I only use plain yogurt and try to stay away from any flavored yogurt because even basic vanilla yogurt is SO full of added sweeteners it’s ridiculous.  At least when I sweeten up their yogurt with a little honey I know exactly how much sweetener I’m adding, keeping it at a minimum.
Berry Chia Charm
Our kids are berry lovers so anything with berries is usually appealing for our boys. Â If I give them a berry flavored treat I want to give them the real deal, not just food colored or berry “flavored” treats. Â It’s the season for fresh berries and even organic berries are quite inexpensive right now, barely more than standard berries. Â If you can’t find fresh berries you love, you can of course substitute for frozen ones which are almost always less expensive.
Chia seeds are a staple I always have in my pantry so my kids are used to me tossing chia seeds into their yogurt or sometimes baked goods.  I love these tiny antioxidant powerhouse seeds because they don’t change the taste of anything.  They simply add great benefits to your diet.
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Give these tasty Berry Chia Yogurt Pops a try and see how real can taste better!
Berry Chia Yogurt Pops
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups plain whole milk yogurt
- 2 Tbsp chia seeds
- 1.5 cups of your favorite berries washed and de-stemmed (in this original recipe I use blackberries)
- 1 large ripe banana peeled
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 Tbsp raw local honey divided in half
Instructions
- Measure out yogurt, 1 Tbsp of honey and chia seeds into a small bowl and stir chia seeds into yogurt so all seeds are incorporated. Let this mixture sit for at least 10 mins.
- Place berries, water and remaining 1 Tbsp of honey into a blender and pulse until berries are a smoothie like consistency
- Transfer berry mixture to a small bowl and rinse out blender
- After your 10 mins. is up, add about half the yogurt along with the banana to the blender and blend until smooth
- Return yogurt and banana mixture to yogurt bowl with chia seeds and stir
- With a small spoon add a couple spoons of yogurt mixture to your popsicle molds, then add a couple spoons of the berry mixture
- Use a toothpick to swirl the 2 layers together, creating a swirled look
- Then add a couple more spoons of the yogurt mix, repeating with the berry mix and repeat the swirling and layers till you fill your molds or both mixtures are gone. If you have extra mixture just add it to any mold you can freeze to enjoy later.
- Place your molds in the freezer for at least 4 hours to set
- Once your molds are fully set and you're ready to enjoy them, run the outside of the molds under hot water for about 30 secs and then gently wiggle and squeeze the molds around the widest part and gently pull and wiggle them completely out.
- Enjoy!
Nutrition Disclaimer:
Nutrition
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