And welcome back to Part 4 of Summer Simplicity, this is one of my absolute favourite things about the summer, well actually its my favourite thing all year round but I'm sure you guys love it as much as I do. Today we will be doing summer snacks ! I love having fruits as snacks and I think there is such an emphasis on that during the summer time because it is so hot out there and you just need/want something refreshing and delicious. If you live in the UK, you would know that it is boiling here as we are having a heat wave, I believe, or if you live anywhere else in the world where you are experiencing some serious summer heat then it is just the perfect time to whip out some amazingly prepared fruity snacks for your mates, family or just for yourself.
I am all about summer fruits and I am such a big fan of switching it up and making summer fruit snacks that are quite interesting and unique but above all of that, EASY. When you are sweating and hungry and in need of feeding, you do not want to be standing there figuring out the recipe, so I absolutely understand that these recipes that I am about to share with you have to be very simple but delicious as well. These recipes are all revolved around fruits so if you are not a big fan of fruity snacks then I do apologise but maybe looking through these might make you change your mind and maybe you'll give it a go and absolutely love them. I promise they are all so good and perfect for the summer, and I know because i have tried every single one of them and a lot more actually but these are just a few of my favourites. I mainly found most of these recipes from Pinterest, as you do.
Creamy Lemon Dip
I am not the biggest fan of the sort of baby carrot and humous dip, but I do love a bit of fruit dip especially in the summer. This dip is just a little lighter and very delicious and I tend to have this mainly with berries or apple slices.
Ingredients:-
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
- lemon zest
Method:-
- Combine lemon juice and honey in a small saucepan and bring to a boil.
- Whisk together the Greek yogurt with the lemon and honey mixture.
Strawberry Lemonade Cream Pops
I love ice cream pops, and when they are homemade, it just makes them that much better. This is a layered popsicle but you can definitely go for the all fruit popsicles if you want to. Also, you can definitely try changing up the flavours if you want to, I saw some really interesting ones like hibiscus and lime, cinnamon and mocha, pineapple and coconut etc. If you make this in batches and freeze them in advance then all you need to do when you want them is to take them out of the moulds.
I love ice cream pops, and when they are homemade, it just makes them that much better. This is a layered popsicle but you can definitely go for the all fruit popsicles if you want to. Also, you can definitely try changing up the flavours if you want to, I saw some really interesting ones like hibiscus and lime, cinnamon and mocha, pineapple and coconut etc. If you make this in batches and freeze them in advance then all you need to do when you want them is to take them out of the moulds.
Ingredients:-
- 2 cups strawberries, hulled
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 1/4 cup water
- 4 tablespoons honey
- 1/2 cup coconut cream
- 1/2 cup whole milk yogurt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Popsicle molds
Method:-
- In a blender, blend the strawberries, lemon juice, water and honey, Pour the mixture in popsicle moulds, filling half-way. Freeze for at least 2 hours or until semi frozen
- In a medium bowl, whisk together coconut cream, yogurt, honey and vanilla extract. Place the bowl in the fridge to chill.
- Once the strawberry layer is firm and semi frozen, our the second coconut cream layer into the moulds. Top the moulds with popsicle sticks and freeze for about 4 hours.
- Run water over the moulds to remove the popsicles.
Ingredients:-
- 1 cup almonds
- 1 cup rolled oats
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon powder
- 2 tbsp boiling water
Method:-
- Place almonds and oats in a food processor and blend into a coarse crumb. Add cocoa powder, cranberries, dates, vanilla extract and cinnamon and blend again.
- While blending add the the boiling water, slowly until the mixture becomes well incorporated and forms a ball.
- Press the dough into a parchment paper lined baking pan and place in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours before slicing into bars.
Chocolate Avocado Frosty
This is a slightly different take on a summer smoothie but it is delicious as well, if you want a healthier option then you can absolutely substitute the chocolate milk for something a little healthier, maybe some low fat milk and a banana would be great as well.
This is a slightly different take on a summer smoothie but it is delicious as well, if you want a healthier option then you can absolutely substitute the chocolate milk for something a little healthier, maybe some low fat milk and a banana would be great as well.
Ingredients:-
- 1/2 cup frozen bananas
- 1/2 cup low fat chocolate milk
- 1/2 an avocado
Method:-
- Place all ingredients into a blender and pulse until smooth
- Set in the fridge for at least 45 minutes
Grilled Pineapple Kabobs with Honey Yogurt Sauce
This is right at the top of my list when it comes to my summer snacks as I love pineapple very much but this is a different way of having pineapple. I recently saw this on Pinterest and I tried it out once and now I am obsessed with doing it and I make it every chance I get.
*I actually get the lovely fruit seller from where I get my pineapple to chop the pineapple for me and package them in containers just to make things slightly easier
Ingredients:-
- 1 pineapple
- Cooking oil spray
- 8-10 skewers
- 1 cup plain yogurt
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon fresh chopped mint
Method:-
- Place bamboo skewers in water and let them soak for at least 5 minutes.
- Dry off the skewers and spray to coat with cooking oil spray. Spear the pineapple onto the skewer, about 5 pieces of pineapple per skewer.
- Place the kabobs on a heated gas grill and grill for 4 minutes or until lightly chard. Flip the skewers over and grill for another 3 to 4 minutes until lightly charred. Remove to a plate and garnish with chopped mint.
- In a bowl, combine yogurt and honey.
Blueberry Pop Tarts
Pop tarts are an american treat, commonly known as being very unhealthy but this is a homemade pop tart and a very much healthier version of a traditional pop tart. I have a slight obsession with pop tarts and I can't seem to ever get enough of it, my favourite is definitely the Smores flavour, which is why when I saw this recipe I just had to give it a go and I also love that it makes use of the lovely blueberries we get in the summer time. This recipe is slightly more elaborate but if you get a few mates over or making this as a family activity, it is not much trouble at all and once you try it, it is worth the effort.
Ingredients:-
- 2 1/2 cups flour
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup cold butter
- 2 egg yolks+ 1 egg wash
- 1/4 to 1/2 cup water
- juice of 1 lemon
- 1/2 pint blueberries
- 1/4 cup sugar
Method:-
- In a bowl, combine flour, sugar and salt. Use a box grater and grate butter into the flour mixture. Toss together with your fingers
- In another bowl, whisk together egg yolks and water. Add ice. Add to flour and butter mixture a few tablespoons at a time, kneading until the dough comes together.
- Shape in a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least 1 hour.
- Combine lemon juice, blueberries and sugar in a small saucepan until mixture is thick and has a consistency of jam. Set aside to cool.
- Roll the dough to 1/4 to 1/8 inch thick. Cut into rectangles.
- Place the bottom layers on a cookie sheet
- Place the filling in the centre and brush egg around edges. Place top rectangle over filling and seal edges with for tine. Brush the tops with egg wash. Sprinkle with sugar and repeat this with remaining tarts.
- Freeze for 10-15 minutes while oven preheats.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake for 18-25 minutes or until golden brown. Store in an airtight container.
Fruit Salsa with Cinnamon Chips
With this recipe we are pushing the boundaries slightly with the ol' chip and dip and instead doing a west version. Honestly, i can eat these cinnamon chips as there are, which I do sometimes but the combination with the fruits is amazing as well.
Ingredients:-
- 16oz dices strawberries
- 2 kiwi, peeled and diced
- 1/2 cup blueberries
- 1/2 cup raspberries
- 3 tablespoons apricot jam/preserve
- 4 flour tortillas
- cooking spray
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Method:-
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cover a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- On a plate, combine the sugar and cinnamon. Spray each tortilla front and back and carefully lay on the plate one at a time. Move around lightly to get the cinnamon and sugar to adhere to the tortilla, then flip coating the other side.
- Cut the cinnamon and sugar tortilla in hall and then each half into four pieces, creating 8 slices per tortilla. Spread out on the baking sheet. Repeat with all tortillas and then place in the oven for 8-10 minutes. Pull baking sheet from oven and set aside to cool/
- Combine the fruit and preserves in a medium sized bowl, cool and serve with cinnamon chips.
For a less heathier snack option, I will definitely go for Mini Milks, because just the fact that they are so little equals portion control and you will not feel all that much guilt later on. They are also my favourite ice creams when I was in primary school and having them brings back a lot of nostalgic memories, some good and some very cringey. I also love having frozen watermelon pops, where all you have to do is slice watermelons into fairly small triangles and freeze them. Besides that is smoothies! Smoothies are amazing in the summer time, they are quick, refreshing, healthy and you can bring out your inner creativity and have different combinations which is great fun. I did not include any smoothie recipes in this blog post but I did do a blog post on smoothie recipes awhile back so I will link that below if you would like to check that out.
I hope you have enjoyed this blog post and please leave a comment below sharing your favourite summer snacks. Don't forget to check out my other social media sites and also there will be links below to all my previous Summer Simplicity blog posts, I have already discussed beach outfits, casual outfits and dressy outfits, so if you are at all interested then do give that a little look. If all goes well, I will be posting another Summer Simplicity blog post one week from now, Thursday (7/8) so look out for that when it comes out.
Have a great day! Xx
-Summer'14
Twitter: @jessieashleyyy
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Email: jessicashleyyy@gmail.com
To check out Summer Simplicity Part 1, click here
To check out Summer Simplicity Part 2, click here
