super bars

the other day my sweet neighbor katie who is an insanely good cook (remember my favorite chili?) came over with some melt-in-your-mouth bars for me to try. she totally brought me in to the light when it comes to making your own treats that taste like these. i've seen lots of posts like this one and this one but hadn't actually tasted them for myself. let's just say this batch didn't make it. i think matilda and sam had about 2 a piece. there are so many super foods in these bars like coconut and cacao that i've dubbed them...

super bars

makes approx. 12 small bars

1/2 cup raw hazelnuts (you could also use almonds)
1 1/2 cup chopped dates (or 10-15 whole pitted dates)
1 cup organic unsweetened shredded coconut
1/2 cup cacao nibs
1 T cacao powder
3 T coconut oil
1 t honey

method:
i started grinding the nuts first in my vitamix (a food processor would also work), then i added in the dates one by one. i used 10 total. about half way through grinding up the dates i added the coconut oil. now that everything is starting to gel i added in the rest of the ingredients until the mixture is fully saturated and could be rolled in to balls.

remove mixture from blender and use your fingers to work the batter in to a small glass baking dish. flatten.

chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. you will then be able to cut the mix in to bars. enjoy!

berries & cream pops!

ever since i made this frozen cheesecake, my head has been spinning with possible popsicle combinations. the options are really limitless. i wanted to whip up something with berries since they are loaded with antioxidants. i added the greek yogurt (full fat, full of protein) to pose as the "cream." together you've got yourself something tasty + healthy on a stick. rachel gave me these popsicle molds years ago and i'm ashamed to say this is the first time said rocket-awesomeness has been experienced!

i made them originally for our fourth of july party, which sadly got rained out. one of my favorite girl friends christy and her son jack came over yesterday morning. after a few hours of catching up and the on-set of tiny attention spans fading, i broke out the rocket pops! matilda and jack loved the frozen goodness and we didn't have any trouble finishing ours either.

i'll never forget sitting on christy's porch pre-motherhood and talking about babies and baby names. here we are six years later with two babies of our own sitting on my front porch eating popsicles.

berries & cream pops

recipe yields 6 popsicles

1 cup frozen strawberries

1 cup frozen blackberries

1/8 cup maple syrup

juice of 1/2 a lemon

1 cup fage total greek yogurt

blend berries with syrup and lemon juice until well blended. add yogurt and blend until smooth. pour all the way to the top of your popsicle mold. freeze for 6 hours or overnight.