Blueberries
Ghoulishly Good For You Smoothie
I love smoothies! They are yummy and sweet and best of all, GOOD FOR YOU!
Goulishly Good For You, that is! *Pretty sure that’s a word?
You can use any kind of blender, but recently, I bought a Blendtec and I haven’t regretted it for one second!
This thing makes a mean smoothie, amongst other things.
It literally makes it as smooth as the ones you would buy in the store. Most people wouldn’t care about that, but I have never been able to get that consistency until now. 🙂
Here is what I did:
I took a couple handfuls of fresh spinach, 1 kiwi, 1/2 cup fresh blueberries, 1 apple (sliced into wedges), 1 whole banana (peeled of course), and 1 1/2 cups water.
Then I tossed all the ingredients into the blender, secured the lid and pressed the smoothie button. *For a regular blender, just blend until completely smooth.
I should also mention that I like my smoothies more on the thinner side so that they are easier to drink. If you prefer yours on the thicker side, I would use a little less water. You could also add some ice cubes to the smoothie as well to have a thicker consistency.
In the end, you are left with a great energy boosting drink that has loads of fiber and vitamins.
Did I mention that my children would probably sell me to the highest bidder for one of these drinks? They love it!
They have absolutely no idea that it is so good for them.
I promise that you can’t taste the spinach. They always have to ask me if I put spinach in it. 😉
It’s a good thing that they can’t taste everything in the smoothies. It would just be too awkward to explain things after the neighbor’s cat went missing…….
Mooooohaahaahaahaahaa! (*Evil Laugh)
Yeah, Z didn’t get it either. Guess I’ll have to work on my jokes.
XOXO,
Esther
4th of July: Yogurt “Ice Cream” Pops
There is nothing more Patriotic then RED, WHITE, and BLUE! Even if you are talking about Ice Cream!
However, making Ice Cream is not really my forte’. Even though I am a self proclaimed lover of gadgets, the one thing I do not have is an Ice Cream Maker. *Have to put that one on my list!
A couple of Saturdays ago, I was watching my cooking shows and one had a recipe for Strawberry Yogurt Ice Cream Pops! I thought to myself, “That would be an AWESOME idea for July 4th!”
So with some tweaking here and there, I had it!
I just took some strawberries and mixed with some sugar and a splash of vanilla. *Not to worry! Recipe will follow! 😉
Allow to sit for 15-20 minutes.
Then, I took 1 1/2 cups blueberries.
Mixed with a 1/2 cup of regular Yogurt. (I generally eat Greek Yogurt, but for this, I used regular. The Greek is just to sour.)
Then, I tried it and realized it needed a little dash of sugar for the kids to like it. I would have been fine without it. But I did it anyway.
Then, I cleaned out the blender and repeated the same steps with the Strawberries. Since I already added sugar and vanilla to this, I just blended with another 1/2 cup of Yogurt.
Time to assemble the Pops!
I bought the molds for $1.50 each at Walmart.
I layered everything in a Red, White, and Blue pattern. Strawberry Mixture, a little regular Yogurt, then Blueberry Mixture.
Insert tops! By the way, I love these! They have a little sipper on the ends for anything that melts.
One lick ……….
And little babies everywhere are SUPER HAPPY! Who doesn’t love that?
RECIPE: 4th of July Yogurt “Ice Cream” Pops
– 1 Cup Fresh Strawberries, Sliced
– 1/4 Cup Sugar
– 1 1/2 Cups Fresh Blueberries
– Tbsp. Sugar
– 1 Tsp. Vanilla Extract
– 1 Cup Plain Yogurt, Divided plus Additional for Layering Pops
– 2 (4 count) Ice Cream Molds
Directions:
– Combine Strawberries, 1/4 Cup of Sugar, and 1 Teaspoon Vanilla. Set aside for 15-20 minutes.
– Meanwhile, combine Blueberries, 1 Tbsp. Sugar, and 1/2 cup Yogurt in a blender and blend until smooth. Set aside.
– Rinse out Blender and add Strawberries and remaining 1/2 cup Yogurt. Blend until smooth and set aside.
– Take Ice Cream molds and layer a small amount of Strawberry mixture, then a little Regular Yogurt, and then top off with Blueberry Mixture. If you still have room, start to repeat layers in a Red, White, Blue pattern.
– Top molds with tops and place in the freezer for atleast 4 hours or until firm.
ENJOY!
Mixed Berry Tartlets with Lemon Drizzle
CALLING ALL DADS!
Every Mother’s Day, I fantasize that my husband is losing sleep over the perfect meal to cook me with his 3 perfectly hair combed children in their best Sunday dresses and suit.
As he pours over countless cookbooks, he realizes that he has not yet vacuumed and dusted, which he quickly attends to. His children are making their beds and tidying up their rooms JUST BECAUSE they want to and JUST BECAUSE being clean feels SO good! (This is my fantasy, remember?)
Where am I, you ask?
Well, of course I’m at the Spa getting pampered by a crew of estheticians who want to make me feel good about my self JUST BECAUSE they care that much!
Then I stop dreaming………….. I wake up……………
to the sound of my 2 girls screaming and fighting and pulling eachother’s hair (that is not perfectly combed, by the way) JUST BECAUSE the other one took her pink furry pillow without asking. My son is throwing his little basketball everywhere but actually IN the basketball goal, which is followed up by a crashing sound. Not to mention the girls took it upon themselves to fix “breakfast” which may or may not have consisted of Nutella, Crackers, Half & Half, Cold Left Over White Rice, and Cheezits.
I know, Yummy.
All this, while my husband still sleeps soundly in his bed……. (Love ya Baby!) 😉
Well fellas, to help you out and make your #1 lady think you poured over cookbooks all day, I’m going to help you out with this Super Easy Dessert!
Why not try to make these Mixed Berry Tartlets. Heck, if you want to impress her even more than the fact that you made these to start with……. tell her they are Mixed Berry Tartlets with a Lemon Drizzle.
You only need 7 things and there is a chance that you may have a few of the ingredients already!
Here is what you need to do:
Cut up an 18 oz. package of Strawberries and add to a mixing bowl.
Throw in a couple of handfuls of fresh blueberries and sprinkle mixture with 1 Tablespoon of Sugar…… Toss to Combine. Set aside.
Take a package of Ready Crust Graham Cracker Tartlet minis.
Brush them with a little bit of egg white. (*You don’t have to, but it gives the crust a nice brown color when baking)
Put the tartlets on a cookie sheet and bake according to the package instructions for only 5 minutes. *I think it was 375 degrees, but might have been 350. Make sure you check!
While that is baking,
Squeeze the juice of 1 lemon into bowl and whisk in 1/2 cup of Powdered Sugar.
Your lemon drizzle should still be runny, but slightly thick like this. Set it aside.
Now take 1 cup of Heavy Whipping Cream. (*If you can’t find “Heavy”, regular Whipping Cream is fine) TIP for DAD: Creams like this have their own section next to the milk area in the Grocery Store. 😉
Find mom’s electric hand mixer and put the whisk attachment on. Beat on low at first unless you want to have the entire thing on your clothes. Add 1 Tablespoon Granulated Sugar and eventually go to highest setting and beat until cream becomes a thick whip with “stiff peaks” like this. BE CAREFUL! If you whisk too long, it could turn into butter! YIKES!
DAD: If making this whipped cream on your own proves to be too overwhelming, no one will judge you for buying Cool Whip! However, if you REALLY want to impress mom, go for the homemade stuff and earn those brownie points!
After the tartlets have baked and cooled, mound them up with the berry mixture. (You will probably have leftover berries)
Spoon the lemon drizzle over each tartlet to your liking. A couple spoonfuls each is fine.
Top each with whipped cream.
And garnish with fresh strawberries!
Mom will be SO SURPRISED and touched that you went the extra mile JUST BECAUSE you love her so much!
Recipe: Mixed Berry Tartlets
Ingredients:
– 18oz. package Fresh Strawberries
– Couple Handfuls of Fresh Blueberries
– 1 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
– 2 Tablespoons Granulated Sugar, Divided
– Juice of 1 Lemon
– 1/2 Cup Powdered Sugar
– 1 Package Ready Crust Graham Cracker Tartlet Minis
– 1 egg white (Optional)
Directions:
– Dice up Strawberries and add to a bowl. Add the Blueberries and Sprinkle with 1 Tablespoon of the Granulated Sugar. Set aside.
– Brush 1 eggwhite (optional) over the crusts and bake according to package instructions. Set aside to cool when finished.
– While crusts are baking, combine lemon juice and powdered sugar by whisking until smooth. Set aside.
– With the whisking attachment of an electric mixer, whisk remaining tablespoon of granulated sugar with the 1 cup of heavy whipping cream in a bowl. Whisk until mixture forms “stiff peaks”. Set aside.
– To assemble, take cooled tartlets, and mound each one with berry mixture.
– Add a couple of spoonfuls of lemon drizzle to each tartlet.
– Top with whipped cream.
– Garnish with fresh berries.
– Stick in the fridge for atleast 10 minutes. If making ahead, desserts will keep just fine in the fridge!
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