Fruit popsicles

These are a super easy and healthy treat to have around the house in the summer. My kids love popsicles and I love to give them treats. It is so much better when I can make those treats healthy for them. A lot of time we use all frozen fruit since the kids tend to eat half a banana here, half a pint of strawberries there and instead of tossing the other half we throw it in the freezer for the next batch of popsicles. This batch was made with fresh fruit that was just about to be done. If you end up with more juice than popsicle holders you can refrigerate it for a day or two and refill the holders as the kids eat up the fruitsicles.

fresh fruit and orange juice

altogether into the blender

then into the popsicle holders

freeze well

Enjoy on hot summer days.

Banana bread (gluten free)

I have made banana bread so many times that I finally know the recipe by heart. Kids love bananas, kids love to eat half a banana and then refuse to eat the browning other half. Usually I trim them and freeze them until I have enough for bread. This time a whole batch of bananas ripened too fast and I had enough for bread, muffins, and more. Fortunately I attended my first food swap today. So I brought along some muffins.

Since I can almost make this in my sleep, I have been experimenting with making it gluten free. I have done all oat flour which works, but I also decided to make my own quinoa flour for the first time. That was fun. So I made this batch with quinoa flour and oat flour which gave it a savoriness. If you want to use regular flour you can use this method, but if you want to use whole wheat flour you will need less flour and to let the batter stand. Whole wheat flour makes quick breads a lot drier so you can't do a one for one with it.

bananas, applesauce, eggs, oil, vanilla, cinnamon, salt, lemon, quinoa and oat flours

smoosh your bananas with the oil and vanilla

remember that you actually need sugar and smoosh that in

blend up your oat flour

add eggs, cinnamon, salt, baking powder, lemon zest and stir well

optional -  stir in flax seeds

grease your pans and preheat your oven

add quinoa flour

then add oat flour

continue adding oat flour until you have the right consistency

divide into pans

bake until springy

cool completely in pan (so they come out more easily)

and swap

Next time, maybe almond flour?