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Celebrating the Red, White and Blue. . . .Foods to Make With Grandchildren for the Fourth of July

Parenting Magazine had a great article on ten festive red, white and blue recipes for Fourth of July.


The children or grandchildren they are targeting must be less finicky than my grandchildren. Here are is the best one of their ten ideas and a few of mine for celebrating the Fourth with red, white and blue foods.


Their best recipe has few ingredients, which this Grandma likes, but many steps and waiting. Grandchildren have difficulty waiting. Remember to cover the floors and counters with old towels for easy cleanup.


Red, White and Blueberry Yogurt Popsicles


“WHAT YOU WILL NEED

1 heaping cup raspberries 1 cup blueberries 1 cup vanilla flavored Greek yogurt


INSTRUCTIONS

Using a small 4 cup food processor, or blender, puree the raspberries until smooth. Set aside. Do the same with the blueberries. (If your blueberries are super purple, add a little blue food coloring.)


Put the yogurt and each of the berry purees in small measuring cups with spouts. The goal is to thin them just a bit so they are pourable. Use water for the yogurt and the raspberries, and, depending on the color of your blueberries, you can use water, or yogurt if you need to brighten up your ‘blue’. Keep these cups chilling in the refrigerator when you are not using them. To layer your pops, start by pouring a little of the blueberry in the bottom of each mold. The only tricky part to these popsicles is getting the layers in without too much spillage to mar your stripes. . . . .Don’t get too fussy, it should look rustic!


Put the mold in the freezer and freeze till firm, at least an hour, or more.

Layer a little bit of yogurt into each mold for the next stripe. You will be able to see through the side of the mold to check your progress. At this point, cover the top of the mold with foil, and insert the popsicle sticks. Make sure to get the stick a little bit into the frozen layer so they will stand straight. Put back into the freezer until solid.


Remove the foil at this stage, you won’t need it since the stick is in and you need to layer. Next comes your raspberry stripe, and so on until the molds are filled. Make sure to freeze each stripe until solid before adding the next. Don;t worry if the stripes are uneven, but do try to clean up any dribbles as you go. I used a popsicle stick to scrape down the insides of the mold after each stripe.


Once filled and completely frozen solid, you can un-mold your pops. Fill the sink with hot water. Remove the foil, and immerse the mold just up to the lip, being careful not to let any water splash onto the top. Hold it for 30 seconds, remove, and try to pull the pops out. If they don’t slide out, immerse again for just a few seconds.


I recommend keeping the popsicles in the mold until you are ready to serve, or, if you are working in batches, wrap each pop quickly in waxed paper or put into a baggie and put back in the freezer. I don’t recommend making these more than a day in advance.


NOTES: Be sure to thin your purees, and your yogurt so that you can more easily layer them into the mold. If they are too thick, you will have trouble doing this neatly.”

What this Grandma always notices about recipes on the internet where the food is intended for children or grandchildren, is that the recipes tend to be complicated with many ingredients. It seems the recipe is intended to be made by the adult and eaten by the child.


This Grandma goes for simple recipes that have activities the grandchild will do with the grandma.


For red, white and blue, why not think fruit salad for the summer. Take the grandchild to the supermarket and select as many different red, white and blue fruits one can find. Then, the grandchildren wash and grandma cuts. Then the grandchildren arrange the fruit and everyone enjoys! The parents will not be upset with the sugar content as they will be with the recipes in Parenting Magazine.


For Fourth of July breakfast, think pancakes that are red, white and blue. Use blueberries, strawberries, to be mixed into the favorite pancake mix. Decorate with more fresh strawberries and blueberries and drizzle Kraft Jet-Puffed marshmellow creme on top.


Happy Fourth of July!


Joy,



Mema




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