Superfood Very Berry Popsicles

Superfood Very Berry Popsicles – These beautiful mixed berry popsicles are secretly loaded with superfoods! Naturally sweetened, kid-approved and perfect for a healthy treat or snack!

This post is part of a three-recipe heart healthy dessert week I developed in partnership with Sprouts Farmers Market. All opinions are my own. Don’t miss the other two recipes–No Bake Chocolate Berry Tart and Chocolate Trail Mix Clusters and watch me make them live with Sprouts here. 

We LOVE riding the popsicle train all year round. Smoothie popsicles are our lifeblood since we live in such a hot climate, and there are so many delicious ways to enjoy them. I love that I can make them from basically any smoothie and my kids feel like they’re enjoying a dessert while I enjoy knowing that they’re getting a boost of healthy ingredients!

These Very Berry Popsicles could fool anyone–they certainly don’t LOOK like a green smoothie. But that’s the beauty. So much goodness and so much delicious, sweet flavor.

Generally speaking, I’m not big on hiding healthy ingredients in my kids’ foods. I like them to know what’s in it, so they can learn that they DO actually like veggies. This often works best when I have them help me, and for some reason, even if they pick at a salad at dinner time, they’re both totally okay grabbing a handful of spinach and putting it into a smoothie.

Healthy Ingredient Breakdown:

1. Spinach. Dark, leafy greens are a great way to get a big dose of nutrients (including plenty of vitamins, iron, folate, and even calcium) and spinach is one of my faves. It blends well (no gritty texture), and the flavor is mild, which makes it great for adding to just about anything. I pick up one or two (or three) bags of greens just about every time I’m at Sprouts. The prices and quality are amazing, and we fit them in all throughout the week–for salads, sandwiches, wraps, stir fries, pasta, smoothies, and even popsicles like these.

2. Berries. It doesn’t get much more nutrient dense than berries. They’re loaded with antioxidants, vitamin c, fiber, etc. Plus, they’re so sweet, tangy, and delicious. Here, they add a cheery berry color to an otherwise green smoothie, and no one will be the wiser. When fresh berries are in season and inexpensive, you can absolutely use fresh. For the colder months or times when you don’t have fresh on hand, frozen work great. Sprouts carries a selection of frozen berries and organic frozen berries. We pretty much always have them in our kitchen, and I always stack up when they’re on sale.

3. Chia Seeds. Known for their concentration of Omega-3 fatty acids, chia seeds are tiny little power boosts we add to everything from our morning oatmeal, to smoothies and popsicles. Some people don’t love the “gelling” texture they can develop on their own (as in chia seed pudding), but blended up in a berry smoothie, they mix right in completely.

4. Orange Juice. I’m including orange juice here because it’s taking the place of any added sugar by acting as our sweetener. Nature does it best, and I love that this tiny bit of sweetness also comes with a hefty dose of vitamin C and more.

Notes on the Recipe:

The ingredients are fairly flexible here. If you prefer to buy a pre-mixed bag of berries (usually some combination of strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries), go for it! You can also try putting in 2 cups of strawberries and 1 cup of blueberries or raspberries for a stronger pink color.

Greens, greens, greens. I’ve used spinach because of how much I love it (see above), but you can certainly sub in whatever you have on hand–kale, chard, etc. You can also up the greens all the way up to 2 cups if you prefer (my kids’ sweet spot caps at 1-1.5 cups).

What about a popsicle mold? Like I said, we eat popsicles all year round, so we own several different molds. This one is our absolute favorite. I love that the lid has slits for the popsicle sticks so they don’t slip or slide around in the freezer. It also has the capacity for up to 10 popsicles, so I can make a big or small batch with no problem.

What if I don’t have one or don’t want to buy one? No problem. You can use paper cups and popsicle sticks instead. Simply fill your cups about 2/3 full and place them on a flat surface in the freezer for 30-40 minutes or until they start to harden but are still soft. Insert the popsicle sticks and allow them to continue freezing until completely solid, about 3 hours total.

Don’t have a high-speed blender? Don’t worry. Before I got mine, I learned that if I puree the greens together with the liquid first, they would blend much more smoothly. Blend the greens + liquid, then add the other ingredients and puree till smooth.

 

Thanks to Sprouts for working with me on this fun dessert series! Watch me make all three recipes live here. 

More popsicles to love…

• Strawberry Watermelon Popsicles
• Lava Flow Popsicles
• Lime in the Coconut Popsicles

Helpful for this recipe: Popsicle Mold // Popsicle Sticks // Paper Cups // Blender

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