These dark cherry popsicles contain no added sugar, not that you need any since the cherries are so sweet! I had my hubby taste test just to be sure it wasn’t just me that thought these were sweet enough. Normally, I just snack on them frozen, since they come pitted and frozen from Trader Joes. Look for a bag that says Pitted Dark Sweet Cherries.

I did two versions of the popsicles to see which one turned out prettier and/or tasted better. In the first version, I defrosted the cherries overnight in the fridge, completely blended them with no added water, and made them into popsicles. The second version, I added a little bit of water (to get it to blend) and used frozen cherries.

The color was a little brighter on the frozen cherries and I kept the blended cherries pretty chunky. You do get air bubbles spooning a chunky mixture into the popsicle molds, but I don’t mind if it doesn’t look completely perfect. In fact, it looks more homemade which I always think is a good thing. My hubby said they tasted the same, but here is what they look like side by side … I prefer the frozen with air bubbles since the color is a little bit brighter, but either way they are delicious.

Dark Cherry Popsicles

 

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Prep time

2 mins

Cook time

5 mins

Total time

7 mins

 

Author: Lauren Bolanos

Serves: 10 popsicles

Ingredients

• 2 1lbs bag of pitted dark cherries (Trader Joes)
• ¼ cup of water

Instructions

1. Place cherries and water in a Vitamix and blend. Use the masher to mix if it gets stuck or add more water.
2. Spoon the cherries slushie mixture into popsicles molds, and freeze for a few hour or overnight, depending on strength of freezer.
3. When done, run under hot water to remove from molds, and place on parchment paper back in freezer to create frost effect.

Notes

Drink leftover cherry slushie mixture or save for a berry smoothie later.

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I know avocado honey ice might seem like a crazy flavor, but it was actually really delicious. The avocado taste is very mild and healthy fat gives this ice cream a nice rich texture. Make sure you use a high quality honey, since the flavor of the honey really shines through in this recipe. I’m obsessed with Honey Pacifica Creamy Wildflower Raw Honey. It’s local sourced and raw, plus the wildflower gives it a nice floral sweetness.

To preserve the lovely green color from the avocados, I made sure this ice cream is never exposed to air unnecessarily. I couldn’t help it when it was being churned in the ice cream maker (only for 18 minutes!), but when it comes to chilling the ingredients and then storing the ice cream in a freezer, use some saran wrap and push down into the mixture so there are no pockets of air. I use the same technique for storing guacamole. No air equals no browning.

Overall, I’m really happy with the way this recipe turned out and I would definitely make it again. I’m also really satisfied with my ice cream maker. It’s a Cuisinart Frozen Yogurt-Ice Cream & Sorbet Maker, and I’ve been really happy with the way my recipes have been turning out and how easy it is to make ice cream. There is just one on and off button for churning ice cream, and as long as you have the right volume of ingredients and enough fat in your recipe, the results are awesome! You need the right volume, because the churning causes the ice cream to expand and if you overfill your ice cream maker things will get messy. Without enough fat, your ice cream will have the texture of sorbet, which I don’t enjoy as much. Especially, when my goal is to make a smooth and creamy ice cram.

Avocado Honey Ice Cream

 

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Prep time

30 mins

Cook time

18 mins

Total time

48 mins

 

Author: Lauren Bolanos

Serves: 1 quart

Ingredients

• 2½ cups of full fat coconut milk
• 1 cup of mashed avocado (about 4 small avocados)
• ½ cup of honey (Honey Pacifica Creamy Wildflower Honey)

Instructions

1. In a blender combine all ingredients, until smooth and silky.
2. Then cover mixture with saran wrap, pressing into the mixture, to eliminate any pockets of air.
3. Chill for one hour, then remove saran wrap and add mixture to ice cream maker.
4. Follow directions on ice cream maker. Normally I have to churn the ice cream for 20 minutes, but this mixture finished sooner at about 18 minutes. The saturated fat caused it to solidify quickly.
5. Then store in a freezer container, and again cover with saran wrap, eliminating any air pockets.
6. Freeze overnight. When ready to serve, defrost tub for half an hour.

Notes

Use chopped raw pecans for a healthy topping.

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This easy vegan chocolate ice cream is made with only three ingredients – full fat coconut milk, cacao powder, and dates. The fiber from the dates and the fat from the coconut milk give this ice cream a rich and smooth creamy consistency. When it came out of the ice cream maker is looked and tasted exactly like chocolate soft serve. I kept it frozen over night to get the nice round scoops, but if you love soft serve, why wait?

For healthy toppings, I added some chopped pecans, which I consider a “dessert nut” and some in season raspberries. However, the sky is the limit and you can easily get creative and throw on whatever you like.

Easy Vegan Chocolate Ice Cream

 

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Prep time

1 hour 30 mins

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

1 hour 50 mins

 

Author: Lauren Bolanos

Serves: 1 quart

Ingredients

• 3 cups of full fat coconut milk
• 18 medjool dates (12 oz)
• ⅓ cup of cacao powder
• (optional) a handful of fresh raspberries
• (optional) a handful of chopped pecans

Instructions

1. Blend coconut milk, dates, and cacao powder in Vitamix.
2. Chill mixture for at least one hour.
3. Take out frozen freezer bowl. This should be stored in your freezer.
4. Assemble ice cream maker according to instructions.
5. Turn on ice cream maker and pour in mixture slowly.
6. Turn on for 20 minutes for soft serve.
7. (optional) Transfer to a freezer friendly container, when finished and let harden.
8. (optional) Add toppings such as raspberries and chopped pecans

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Popsicles, also known as paletas, are traditionally a Latin American dessert made with fresh fruit. I’m a huge popsicle fan since they are so easy to make, and are a relatively healthier option for dessert. Another common snack, or dessert, are mangos sprinkled with chili powder. So I thought why not make it into a popsicle?

Now I don’t recommend you use any old chili powder, because I don’t think it would taste good, especially if it’s heavy on the powdered onion and garlic. I use Tajin Clasico Seasoning with Lime, which is used traditionally over fresh mango or jicama and can be found in Mexican groceries stores, or amazon. There is only dehydrated lime juice, sea salt, and chili peppers in this mix so you’re getting a great blend to eat with tropical fruit.

Mango Lime Popsicles with Chili Powder

 

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Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

10 mins

Total time

25 mins

 

Author: Lauren Bolanos

Serves: 10

Ingredients

• 1 can of light coconut milk
• 16 oz bag of frozen mangos
• juice of two limes
• 1 tsp chili powder (tajin clasico seasoning with lime)

Instructions

1. Mix ingredients together in a high speed blender or Vitamix.
2. Then scoop into popsicles molds. This mixture is a bit too thick to pour.
3. Then cover mold and add in popsicles stick and freeze overnight.
4. Take them out the next day, by running mold under hot water.
5. Then sprinkle chili powder over popsicles and let them melt for 3-5 minutes.
6. Then pop them back into freezer so chili powder stays on popsicles. Then enjoy.

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If you love rosemary as much as I do, then you’ll love this delicious cherry rosemary and lemon sorbet. There is no sugar added or needed!  I used the frozen pitted cherries from Trader Joes. They are dark and sweet cherries, so you won’t get any tart flavor. I do like a bit a tartness, so I added half a lemon. Honestly, a little bit of lemon makes everything from dinner to dessert taste a tad fresher (and better!). Honestly, I was eating the frozen cherries plain, as in straight out of the bag, since they tasted so delicious.

I suggest waiting 10-15 minutes once it comes out of the freezer to make it easier to scoop. If you make a lot of ice cream or sorbet, I recommend the Tovolo Ice Cream Tub, which makes it easy to get beautiful scoops. The container is long and thin, which gives you more room to scoop your sorbet. Plus, they are BPA free. I also use the OXO Trigger Ice Cream Scoop, which easily releases the ice cream after you scoop it. Seriously, I don’t know why I waited so long to get this product. It’s been a godsend for food photos.

Finally, I wanted to give a shout out to my favorite Rosemarie! Hope you feel better! Wishing you well, while eating your namesake.

Cherry Rosemary and Lemon Sorbet

 

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Prep time

5 mins

Total time

5 mins

 

Author: Lauren Bolanos

Serves: 5-6

Ingredients

• 16 oz (1 lb) bag of frozen pitted dark sweet cherries (from Trader Joes)
• ½ tsp of fresh minced rosemary
• juice from ½ a lemon
• 1 cup of water

Instructions

1. Blend ingredients in a high speed blender. I used my Vitamix.
2. Then, store in a container in the freezer. Preferably overnight.
3. Before eating, defrost 10-15 minutes. Then scoop and serve.

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So, I know paleo brownies aren’t exactly healthy, but these are made without grains and dairy, and taste just like the real thing. I’ve been craving brownies lately, and I wanted to try to make own, instead of spending a ridiculous amount of money at Whole Foods. I cooked these for twenty-five minutes, but if you want them on the gooey side opt for twenty minutes. I’ve done them both ways. Cook them longer and they will taste like a fluffy chocolate cake. Under cook them, and you’ll be left with a thicker denser center, that’s soft and gooey. Sound delicious? Well, both ways are.

Instead of garnishing them with some powdered sugar on top, I sprinkle some mini Enjoy Life chocolate chips. They are so cute, and if you eat the brownies warm, the chocolate chips start to melt, and then you can lick melted chocolate off your fingers. Yummy!

Paleo Brownies

 

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Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

35 mins

 

Author: Lauren Bolanos

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• ¼ tsp sea salt
• ¼ tsp baking soda
• ⅓ cup of arrowroot flour
• ⅓ cup of almond flour
• ¼ cup of cacao powder
• ½ cup of coconut sugar
• ½ cup of honey
• 2 eggs
• 2 tsp of vanilla extract
• ½ cup of organic palm oil
• (optional) ¼ cup of Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips (semi-sweet)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 370 degrees fahrenheit.
2. Mix dry ingredients in a food processor. Pulse a few times.
3. Mix wet ingredients in a separate bowl. (Palm oil and honey may not mix that well, do your best, and it will get mixed in the food processor)
4. Add wet mixture to food processor.
5. Line an 8x8 cake sheet with parchment and bake for 20 to 25 minutes.
6. (optional) Add mini Enjoy Life chocolate chips to top of brownies in last 5-10 minutes of baking.
7. Let brownies cool before cutting into squares.
8. Refrigerate brownies for at least two hours, preferably overnight. I don't know why, but it improves the texture, even if you under or over cooked them.

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