Summer Treats

Kids LOVE treats. They also LOVE to help make creative treats. The following are my top 10 treats for summer partly because many of them cool you off on a hot summer day and partly because most of them are fun to make with the kids. Enjoy!

1. Homemade Ice Cream Sandwiches. Pack your favorite ice cream between graham crackers for yummy ice cream sandwiches.

2. Homemade smoothies. Perfect for those hot summer days! Here's my basic recipe. I shake things up a bit by adding yogurt, different fruits, some spinach (yes, spinach) etc. Check out Sunny's previous post for a yummy smoothie with a healthy twist of veggies.

1 1/2 cup milk

1 1/2 cup water

6 oz. frozen orange juice concentrate

frozen fruit

3. Smoothie Popsicles. Did your kids not quite finish off the smoothie? Pour the leftovers in a popsicle form for the perfect cold treat.

4. Chocolate Pudding Pops. Avoid that trip to the store for these yummy treats. Make your own at home. I got this recipe from FamilyFun magazine (Thanks, Heidi for your great promo on this magazine...definitely worth it!). With a wire whisk, blend together 1 package of instant chocolate pudding, 2 cups milk, 1/2 cup cream, and 1/2 cup sugar. Pour the mixture into popsicle molds. (No molds? No problem. Pour into small plastic cups, cover with tin foil, and insert a craft stick through the foil). Freeze and eat.

5. Homemade ice cream. Here's a great recipe from familyfun.com

Ingredients
2 tablespoons sugar
1 cup half and half
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup salt (The bigger the granules, the better. Kosher or rock salt works best, but table salt is fine.)
Ice cubes (enough to fill each gallon-size bag about half full)
1 pint-size ziplock bag
1 gallon-size ziplock bag
Instructions
Combine the sugar, half and half, and vanilla extract in the pint-size bag and seal it tightly.
Place the salt and ice in the gallon-size bag, then place the sealed smaller bag inside as well. Seal the larger bag. Now shake the bags until the mixture hardens (about 5 minutes). Feel the small bag to determine when it's done.
Take the smaller bag out of the larger one, add mix-ins, and eat the ice cream right out of the bag. Easy cleanup too! Serves 1

6. Frozen Gogurts. Okay, these aren't fun to make, but they're a terrific, cold, quick, healthy snack. Just throw them in the freezer when you get home from the store and you've got the perfect snack on the go.

7. Pigs in a Blankets. Wrap L'il Smokies in strips of crescent roll dough and cook according to roll package directions. They're fun and simple.

8. Frozen Bananas. Halve the bananas, leaving the skin intact. Slide a popsicle stick into each one and remove the skin. Freeze the bananas until hard (about 1 hour). Melt chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl in 10-20 second intervals until smooth, stirring each time. Dip the bananas in the chocolate. For added fun, dip in chopped nuts, granola, cherrios, crushed pretzels, you name it!

9. Homemade Corn Dogs. Inserts skewers or popsicle sticks into the end of each hot dog. Wrap hot dog in Cornbread dough (or any kind of refrigerated roll dough). Bake according to directions on roll package. For added flavor, add cheese, ketchup, mustard or relish before rolling up the hot dog.

10. Pinwheel Wraps. Ingredients: Tortillas, cream cheese or hummus, deli meats, cheese, lettuce or fresh spinach, any veggies your kids love! Lay out tortilla and spread it with cream cheese or hummus. Add meats, cheese and veggies in a uniform layer, leaving one edge open. Roll up tortilla towards that edge and use that edge to seal it shut. Then cut into pinwheels. A yummy, healthy treat the kids will love to make.