The sweaty, simmering days are here and while the school is on break, there are plenty of other reasons to make you fall in love with summer. The bright, icy popsicles, for instance, are fast becoming a summer favourite for its ingenious way of making the most of the seasonal fruits.
It is also a perfect way to keep at bay bad eating habits among children and shun ice-creams and other junk food for these juicy ice lollies.
Did you know that these icy treats are also ridiculously easy to make at home using fresh fruits? From kiwi slices to chunks of watermelon and pomegranate seeds — ice popsicles can be made creatively with different fruit flavours that not only look good but taste equally yum.
It was with the idea to introduce the goodness of popsicles to mothers a workshop on ‘healthy popsicle making’ was conducted recently at Starlite Wellness Centre in association with the newest popsicle destination in town Paleta House.
“Popsicles are packed with nutrition and work wonders in camouflaging vegetables and fruits to make it look for interesting for the children. All you need is popsicle mould and then unleash your creativity with an array of seasonal fruits. In some flavours like watermelon, you can even skip the sugar to make it totally healthy,” says Anjali Dange, nutrition consultant and founder of Starlite Wellness Centre.
A group of 12 mothers and children came together to learn the recipe of making popsicles. The glee on the faces of the children was palpable as they gave a helping hand in squeezing the juice out of the fruits and filling up the moulds.
The participants got a chance to take home samples of low sugar popsicles from Paleta House.
At Paleta House located at Waltair Main Road (Balaji Nagar), you can get popsicles of mind-boggling varieties – watermelon and kiwi, raspberry, pineapple and plum, guava chilli, cantaloupe chilli, chikoo, orange, lychee, mango.
The menu features an enticing range of creamsicles as well like choco banana, fig and honey and coconut chia. “I worked on the recipes for one and half years before launching the store.
The entire emphasis is to provide nutritious summer treats without any artificial flavours or sweeteners,” says Shritha Marisa of Paleta House. The outlet also offers salads and smoothie bowls.
Healthy snacks
According to Anjali,, fruit based snacks are a great option for kids in summer. Apart from popsicles, she suggests snack options like fruit spinkled with roasted sesame seeds, frozen fruit puree with milk or yoghurt. “Increase liquid consumption with fresh juices adding a pinch of sabja seeds and a few mint or tulsi leaves. It makes for a refreshing drink,” she says.
Also, try adding pumpkin and sunflower seeds while baking wheat or oats biscuit. It enhances the nutritional quotient. Another snack option that goes well with kids is granola bars made with dates, apricots and rice puffs.
“Every seasonal food has the required nutrition to help the body cope with the temperature changes. At a time when dehydration is common, good nutrition is the key to getting through the summer,” adds Anjali.
Watermelon popsicle recipe
Watermelons are the most easily available seasonal summer fruits. To make a watermelon and yogurt popsicle, put some freshly cut watermelon in a blender and blend it into puree. Strain with a fine sieve into a bowl. Put the puree in the blender along with fresh yoghurt and blend well. You can also add honey for added sweetness. Pour the blended watermelon and yogurt mix into popsicle moulds. Freeze for four to five hours and serve chilled. It’s icy, fruity, sweet and the perfect way to cool off.
