Fourth of July Popcorn | Popcorn & Chocolate

Popping 4th of July

Fourth of July Popcorn | Popcorn & ChocolateHello popcorn lovers! Can you believe it’s already almost the 4th of July? What are all you doing? For me every year is different. When I was little, my family used to go to the local park and watch the fireworks with our close friends. I always loved this since they set up a carnival and rides beforehand. My dad and I used to bike down early in the day so I could play on the rides. I always remember one year he bought me a balloon and just as we left, the balloon popped because it was so hot out! I was sad so we went back and got another. We got half way home on the bike with this balloon before, POP! We ended up just going home, and my dad drove back later and got me a new balloon. I kept this one until it got small and pruney. Thanks dad :)

Strawberry Pie Flavored Popcorn | Popcorn & Chocolate

Holiday Popcorn | Popcorn & Chocolate

More recently I prefer to grill up some good food, make a refreshing drink, and watch the Macy’s fireworks on TV. I know that’s lame, but it’s always fun to watch! Plus, then you can pop up a huge fresh batch of popcorn and eat it right out of the bowl. And lately I’ve been dreaming up this delicious red white and blue inspired sweet treat for your 4th of July get-together. This strawberry pie popcorn is sweet and decadent without being too over the top. The best part is that it’s not too messy, so you could pack it up in tupperware with your picnic and bring it to share with whoever you watch the fireworks with. But be warned, you might want to hoard it all for yourself. It’s that good. Plus, it’s very allergy friendly – there’s no dairy, nuts, peanuts, shellfish, or gluten here! Just freeze dried strawberries, coconut butter, coconut oil, salt and sugar. Simple and delicious! What are you waiting for? Let’s get popping!

IMG_1381

Ingredients: Serves 2 hungry popcorn lovers or a group of 3-4

  • 1/4 cup Freeze dried strawberries  (we bought them at Target, but Trader Joes also has a good selection)
  • 1.5 tablespoons slightly melted Coconut butter
  • 1.5-2 tablespoons melted Coconut oil
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla sugar (if you don’t have vanilla sugar you can just use the sugar of your choice)
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1/4 cup kernels

Instructions:

  1. Pop up your kernels either on the stove top or in an air popper and then lay out on parchment paper on top of a baking sheet
  2. Preheat your oven to about 200 degrees Fahrenheit
  3. Grind the freeze dried strawberries, the vanilla sugar and the salt together in the food processor for a couple of seconds or until the strawberries are a fine powder
  4. Mix together the coconut butter, 1.5 tablespoons of the coconut oil, and about half of the strawberry mixture in a small bowl
  5. Drizzle the remaining coconut oil over the popcorn and then sprinkle the remaining strawberry mixture on top of it
  6. Drizzle the coconut butter mixture on top of the popcorn
  7. Pop in the oven for about 5 minutes – you don’t want it to burn!

Strawberry pie fourth of July popcorn | Popcorn & chocolate

Strawberry Pie Fourth of July Popcorn | Popcorn & Chocolate4th of July popcorn recipe | Popcorn & Chocolate

4th of July Pops

red white and blue fruit popsicle

As a kid growing up in New Hampshire where the summers are hot and sticky there wasn’t anything that I wanted to eat more than a nice refreshingly cold popsicle. I used to spend my summer days swimming and then go and buy a popsicle from the little stand by our pool. It was always such a hard decision which popsicle to get; do you get the ones with the gumball eyes? Or the creamsicle? Or the classic red, white, and blue firecracker popsicle? You really couldn’t go wrong with any of those choices.

red white and blue fruit popsicles

As it has gotten closer to the 4th of July I’ve been seeing the firecracker popsicles taunting me at the grocery store with their festive coat of red, white, and blue. My 5 year old self started drooling at remembrance of those decadent delights. The purple stained lips and tongue, the sticky fingers, the wonderful surprise as you go from each different flavor. Oh, how my stomach longed for those popsicles. After a few days of not being able to shake that craving I had to take action. I whipped out my blender and grabbed some fresh fruit, yogurt, and milk from the fridge. I was going to make a festive treat that could be enjoyed guiltlessly at anytime of the day, and one that would hopefully not stain my teeth purple..

red white and blue popsicles

Here, my friends, is our version of the infamous firecracker popsicle perfect for your 4th of July soiree. It’s quick and easy to make and tastes delicious! Not to mention it is full of nutritious fruit. Enjoy the simplicity of a wonderfully refreshing popsicle on the 4th of July.

red white and blue fruit popsicle

Ingredients:

  • 1/3  – 1/2 cup strawberries – or any red fruit
  • Yogurt – we used greek yogurt, but you could sub dairy free yogurt as well
  • 1/3 cup blueberries
  • Honey, or sweetener of choice
  • Milk – we used almond milk

1. In a blender blend together around a 1/3 to 1/2 a cup of fresh strawberries, 1 tablespoon greek yogurt, 1/2 tablespoon honey, and a dash of milk (around a tablespoon or 2 depending on how well your blender can blend non-liquid foods). Pour the contents from the blender into your popsicle molds; this made about 4-5 popsicles for me. Put popsicles in the fridge to set up for about 15 minutes.

2. For the next layer just blend together greek yogurt, 1/2 tablespoon honey, and a splash of milk. I did about 1/2 cup of greek yogurt for all of the popsicles. Pout this next layer on top of the strawberry layer in the popsicle and again let it set up for about 15 minutes.

3. For the blueberry layer, blend about a 1/3 cup of blueberries, 1 tablespoon greek yogurt, 1/2 tablespoon honey, and some milk (again, it depends on how well your blender works). Pour the final layer on top of the greek yogurt layer and stick the popsicle stick into the mold. Let the popsicle fully freeze before enjoying on a hot summer day!

Red white and blue firecracker popsicles

These popsicles are so yummy and easy to make, plus with all the greek yogurt they add a good source of protein for an afternoon snack! I’ve been munching on these once I get home from work pretty much every day this past week. Yum yum yum, my childhood self is quite content with these new ‘firecracker’ popsicles!

melting popsicle

Got to eat them before they melt!

Follow us around – Strawberry picking edition

strawberry basket

Hello all! I’ve mentioned it before, but I will say it again, there is nothing better than fresh fruit in the summer. Whether it is waking up in the morning to a nice ripe peach to put in your breakfast, or having been outside in the hot sun all day and taking a bite of a juicy piece of watermelon; I can’t get enough fruit in the summer! Rose thinks I am crazy for craving fruit after we go on a long run, but nothing else will hit the spot than a cool refreshing piece of fruit. Am I alone in this??

strawberry basket

strawberry

Well, to encourage my fruit cravings we decided to go strawberry picking! We went to Verrill Farm in Concord, MA. The day we decided to go also happened to be Strawberry Festival so there was live music, BBQ food, hay rides, and the likes going on. It was a blast and we came home with a few pounds of strawberries that we have been munching on in everything ever since. Yum!

IMG_1812

Rose strawberry

It was the perfect day out; it was sunny with a light breeze. Good thing we put on sunscreen before we left! Our pale winter skin wouldn’t have been able to handle the heat. We enjoyed a nice picnic for lunch and listened to the band play. There were kids going crazy, high on strawberries and pony rides, running around all over the place.

strawberry box

We couldn’t have left without sneaking some homemade strawberry shortcake with whipped cream. They had a big batch made for the festival and it was positively delicious.

Rose corn

Haley scarecrowBefore we left we had to stick our heads into the corn on the cob and the scarecrow #lifegoals.

Rose and Haley strawberry picking

Mango Margaritas

Mango Margarita

Happy Cinco de Mayo! I hope everyone is celebrating with a drink in hand (maybe this one) and lots of Mexican food!

Mango Margarita

Last year Rose and I got to go to Mexico for a week. It was amazing. Think lots of sunshine and reading on the beach until you were napping on the beach until eventually you were burning on the beach and it was time to reluctantly get out of the sun. This would usually mean we would just retire to a cabana so we could still enjoy the beach.

Mango Margarita

This also meant we could sneak a margarita into our afternoon as well. You can’t go to Mexico and not have a margarita (or two) every day. Plus, they had all sorts of delicious flavors like watermelon, peach, strawberry, and mango.

IMG_6244

I was quite partial to the fresh flavor of the mango margarita, especially when it was paired with some chips and guac/salsa. I could drink and eat that combination for days.

margarita

Mental note – buy some avocados at the grocery store so I can consume this delicious margarita with chips and guac.

Mango Margarita

Drinking this mango margarita takes me back to when we were sitting on the beach with waves crashing in the background and seagulls squawking overhead. We created this drink in part to reminisce of the warm sunny weather and times we enjoyed while in Mexico, and also in part to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, also also in part because we just love margaritas and any excuse to create a fun drink.

IMG_6065

This mango margarita is very simple to create and uses only a few ingredients, with no added sugar. We like to keep our drinks simple and less sweet, but if you wanted some extra sweetness it would be fine to add some agave. We also created a strawberry mango version to add a little extra delicious kick to it. I recommend sipping these with a friend, possibly on the beach, but if you don’t have one of those in your backyard then a couch will do just fine. Also, be warned, you will need some sort of salty chip or taco action to add to this drink.

Margarita mix

Mango Margarita:

  • 1/4 cup frozen fruit (we used mango, duh)
  • 1 shot of tequila
  • 1/2 shot of triple sec
  • 1/4 cup coconut water
  • A dash of lime juice
  • 1 ice cube
  • Optional salt to rim the glass

Mix all the ingredients in a high speed blender and enjoy in a tall glass with some sounds of beach waves playing in the background or sounds of your roommate munching on popcorn, either work, but I recommend the beach waves.

Mango Margarita

Simple, sweet, frozen, and delicious. What more could one ask for out of a margarita? Plus, you can mix in whatever fruit you prefer and make it a watermelon margarita or a strawberry margarita.

Strawberry Margarita

strawberry margarita

Happy Cinco de Mayo everyone! Now go throw all these ingredients in your blender and break out some chips and salsa. And, if you do that please invite me over so I can drink and eat it all.Strawberry and Mango Margaritas