Summer Fruit Popsicles

This post is another in a series of food blogs brought to you by a group of registered dietitians who believe good nutrition can taste great. This month's theme is frozen desserts.

I bought some popsicle molds for some recipe development projects that I did this winter and I’ve put them to good use to make summer treats for myself. All I do is puree fruit, add a little lime or lemon juice, pour it into the molds and freeze. It’s a refreshing, sugar-free, and delicious treat to enjoy on the last of the hot summer afternoons. Try giving one of these healthful treats to your kids—they’ll probably think it’s better than any artificially colored and flavored popsicle they’ve had.

If you don’t have popsicle molds, you can make these in small paper cups. Put the puree in the cups and cover the tops with foil. Insert a wooden popsicle stick into the center of the foil and freeze.

You can also layer different fruit purees to make colorful popsicles or stir some whole raspberries or blueberries into the puree before freezing. This is the perfect time of year, when fruits and berries are at their peak, to have some fun in the kitchen and have a delicious treat as your reward.

Summer Fruit Popsicles

Makes 4 servings

4 cups fresh berries or 1-inch cubes of peeled and seeded fruit (such as cantaloupe, honeydew, watermelon, peaches, nectarines, or plums)

2 teaspoons lemon or lime juice

1. Place the fruit and the lemon juice in a food processor and process until smooth (you’ll have about 2 cups of pureed fruit).

2. Spoon the mixture into 4 (4-ounce) popsicle molds, top with the handles, and freeze at least 4 hours or up to 2 weeks.

Each popsicle has about 15 grams of carbohydrate: 1 Carb Choice; 1 fruit exchange


Take a look at these frozen treats from fellow registered dietitians participating in the Recipe Redux:

Emma Stirling - The Scoop on Nutrition   
Greek Yogurt Pavlova Popsicles

Cherie Schetselaar - Grain Crazy   
Blackberry Lemon Almond Torte

Emma Cutfield-The Hearty Heart   
Coconut Ice, Blueberry and Cocoa, Joint Healing Dessert   

Carlene Helble- Carlene's Figments   
Peanut Butter Banana 'Ice Cream' Sandwich   

Janel Funk - Eat Well with Janel   
Peanut Butter and Jelly Ice Cream   

Kat Lynch - Eating The Week   
Coconut Chia-Seed Fruit Pops   

Dr Barb, Nutrition Budgeteer   
Simply Fruit Mango-Pineapple Sorbet

Rebecca Scritchfield - MeFirst   
5-minute Frozen Peach Pie   

gretchen - kumquat   
chocolate "ice cream" bars   

Emily Greenfield - The Nutriscientist   
Honey and strawberry semifreddo   

Liz Marr - Liz On Food   
Peach Lavender Ice Cream
   
Elizabeth Jarrard- Don't (White) Sugar-Coat It   
Adult Popsicles: Frozen Boozy Treats    


Regan - The Professional Palate   
Frozen Samoa Pie   

Liz Weiss & Janice Newell Bissex - Meal Makeover Moms' Kitchen   
Healthy Blueberry and Mango Snow Cones

Jessica Fishman Levinson - Nutritioulicious
Watermelon Sorbet   

Alexandra Caspero- Delicious Knowledge    
Mango & Coconut Popsicles   

Karman Meyer- Nutrition Adventures   
Coconut Ice Cream with Strawberry Puree   

Yuri - Chef Pandita   
Acerola Chia Lime Popsicles   

Kristen Bourque- Swanky Dietitian   
Peanut Butter Coffee Popsicles   

EA Stewart-The Spicy RD   
Luscious Lemonade Pie   

Danielle Omar - Food Confidence RD   
Banana Soft Serve   

Katie Caputo- East Meats West   
Auntie Rosie's Ice Cream Pie   

Alysa Bajenaru - Inspired RD   
Coffee Granita   

Kara Lydon - Peace, Love, and Food   
Peanut Butter Banana "Ice Cream" With Dark Chocolate   


Serena Ball- Teaspoon of Spice   
Splendid Key Lime Frozen Yogurt   

Nicole Ferring Holovach - Whole Health RD   
Peaches and Rum Ice Cream Pie   

Lisa @ Healthful Sense   
Peanut Butter Vanilla Soft Serve       

Audra Losey - Nutrition Know How   
Mocha Pops   

Kristina LaRue - Love and Zest   
Frozen Berry Yogurt   

Grilled Prosciutto Shrimp with Asian Dipping Sauce

This is my first post that's part of a brand new network of dietitans who believe flavor comes first. We call ourselves the Recipe Redux and every month we'll be creating recipes on a single theme and linking to each others' blog posts. Check out all the links at the bottom of this recipe for more great-tasting, good-for-you summer grilling ideas.

I love kebabs. They make any meal look like you went to more trouble than you did. There’s something about putting food on a skewer that elevates it to a special occasion (even a marshmallow on twig!).

These kebabs are extra nice because the large shrimp are each wrapped in a little strip of salty prosciutto and then they’re alternated on the skewers with sweet peaches. The marinade and dipping sauce is a sweet/salty/spicy Asian-inspired mixture made from ordinary pantry ingredients. I call for peaches or nectarines in the recipe, but you could also use cubes of cantaloupe, honeydew, mango, or pineapple.

When you shop, look for wild or farmed shrimp from the United States. They may be a little more pricey than the imported ones, but most shrimp imported from other countries are farmed with lenient environmental regulations.

While you’re grilling the kebabs, throw some quick-cooking veggies on the grill to serve with them. Sliced yellow squash, zucchini, bell peppers or small whole mushrooms are all good low-carb options. This is an easy, delicious meal that lets you do what people were meant to do this time of year: sit back and enjoy summer.

Grilled Prosciutto Shrimp with Asian Dipping Sauce

Makes 4 servings

1 pound large peeled and deveined shrimp (about 24 shrimp)

2 ounces prosciutto, cut into 24 thin strips

4 small peaches or nectarines, pitted and cut into wedges  

3 tablespoons orange juice or unsweetened apple juice

1 tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce

1 tablespoon molasses

1 teaspoon canola oil

1 clove garlic, crushed through a garlic press

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Wrap each shrimp with a strip of prosciutto. Thread the shrimp and peaches alternately onto 8 (6-8 inch) metal skewers and place in a large shallow dish.

Stir together the orange juice, soy sauce, molasses, oil, garlic, and cayenne in a small bowl. Drizzle the skewers with 2 tablespoons of the orange juice mixture and let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes. Set aside the remaining orange juice mixture to serve as a dipping sauce with the shrimp.

Preheat a grill to medium heat. Place the skewers on the grill and grill until the shrimp are opaque, 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Transfer the skewers to a serving platter and serve the remaining sauce on the side.

Each serving: 18 g carbohydrate, 216 calories, 5 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 183 mg cholesterol, 2 g fiber, 27 g protein, 777 mg sodium

Carb Choices: 1; Exchanges: 1 fruit, 3 lean protein

Here is a list of the grilling creations of my fellow registered dietitian Recipe Reduxers:
Alexandra Caspero
Grilled Summer Fruit Salad
Alysa Bajenaru – Inspired RD
Grilled Romaine Salad
Cindy Brison
Nutrition Know How
Chef Pandita
Grilled Vegetables
Danielle Omar – Food Confidence
Grilled Sweet Peppers
Diane Welland – EatWellEatClean
Grilled Beet & Onion Salad with Goat Cheese
The Nutrition Budgeteer
Dr Barb’s Grilled Corn and Tomato Salad
EA Stewart – The Spicy RD
Grilled Polenta Veggie Stacks with Balsamic Cherry Tomatoes
Emma Stirling – The Scoop on Nutrition
Char Siu BBQ Pork
Gretchen – Kumquat
Grilled Tandoori Chicken Skewers
Jessica Fishman Levinson – Nutritioulicious
Grilled Salmon Burgers with Cherry Chutney
Kat Lynch – Eating The Week
Portobello mushrooms stuffed with spiced couscous
Katie Caputo- East Meats West
Succulent Sirloin Kabobs
Kristen – Swanky Dietitian
Portabella Mushroom Burgers with Grilled Corn
Lisa – Healthful Sense
Grilled Veggie Bean Burgers
Liz Weiss and Janice Newell Bissex – Meal Makeover Moms’ Kitchen
Mushroom Burgers with the Works, Mushroom Cannellini Spread
Marie Spano
Italian Grilled Turkey Burgers
Nicole Ferring Holovach – Whole Health RD
Grilled Eggs
Rebecca Scritchfield – MeFirst
Grilled Plantains: A Sweet Summer Side Dish
Regan – The Professional Palate
Grilled Eggplant & Two-Tomato Whole-Wheat Piadina
Serena – Teaspoon of Spice
Grilled Watermelon Salad

Local & Naked

In almost all parts of the country right now you can probably find some local strawberries at your farmers’ market, at a nearby you-pick farm, or if you grow your own, they’re right in your back yard (lucky you!). You can also, without doubt, find strawberries in your local supermarket that are grown in California or Florida. If you ever thought that eating local foods was just for snobs or all just bunch of hoo-hah, this is the perfect time of year to prove to yourself how fantastic local food tastes.

Pick up a package of those shipped-in strawberries in a plastic container at your supermarket. Then, get some locally grown strawberries and put them side by side. The locally grown ones will almost surely be much smaller than the supermarket strawberries. They’ll be fresher, because they were just picked, and did not have to spend days on a refrigerated truck. In fact, the local berries you bought have never been inside a refrigerator. Commercially grown strawberries are bred to be large and to look fresh even when they have been picked for a week. Not so with locally grown strawberries; small farmers and backyard gardeners are not choosing the same variety of berries as the big growers like Driscoll. Their berries aren’t going that far; they will be picked and sold right away close to where they are grown.

Now, take a bite from each of the berries and you’ll instantly understand why local is better. And it’s not just for strawberries—it’s every food. When you have diabetes or heart disease, when your health really does depend on every bite you put in your mouth, every bite should be delicious. And, when you take the extra trouble to seek out local produce that’s full of flavor, you’re going to be excited about eating all those fruits and vegetables that you should be piling on your plate every day. The best way to eat those strawberries: naked (the berries, that is), in a bowl, with a fork.