Watermelon Frozen Greek Yogurt Pops from ZinnRunner!

From Whole Pieces: I would like to introduce you to a friend and fellow health enthusiast, Alison Zinn, who is graciously providing us with a guest post today. Her blog is ZinnRunner, where the focus is mainly exercise (running and hiking) and food (recipes and food/restaurant reviews). In sum, her message is: live healthy through balance. Do your best to make the right choices and don't beat yourself up when you don't.

From ZinnRunner: We all want to be healthy. I think there are variations of what is "healthy", but usually it involves regular exercise and eating right. As you can see from the pictures, in this post, the focus is eating right.

When it comes to food, always be cognizant of how important food is. I notice that a lot of folks trying to lose weight deemphasize the importance of food. This might be a good course to explore if your appetite is triggered by emotions like stress or sadness; however, it is okay to embrace food and find the right place for it in your life. Remember, food is our fuel, it dictates everything from how our bodies perform to the healthfulness of our hair and skin. In addition, food is one of the most natural parts of our lives. When you think about it, food is a life force coming to us straight from the earth with all of its flavors and colors.

Choosing the healthy fruits, veggies, and meat are important to me. I do my best to eat organic foods as well as dairy and meats that are hormone and antibiotic free. I find that doing so 100% of the time is pretty darn difficult so I try to make the healthy choices as often as I can to find that balance.

Whether you are healthy, trying to get healthy, at a weight you like, or looking to change your body, you can still feed your sweet tooth. Feeding your sweet tooth doesn't automatically mean you are straying from a good diet; sometimes, it can be just the opposite. Fruit is a great way to feed your sweet tooth! Also, you can find plenty of other all-natural choices that can help satisfy your craving. And, occasionally, you might eat something that's not your best choice, but then recall that you only live once and the occasional less than healthy indulgence is okay.

Today, I am sharing a pretty darn healthy all-natural ice pop: The Watermelon Frozen Greek Yogurt Pop. These guys are a little less than 100 calories a pop dependent upon whether you use sherbet or frozen greek yogurt. Frozen greek yogurt ups the protein content, so I highly recommend it. If you use lime sherbet, you'll get the green color and then the pop will look like a watermelon slice but, you may lose out on the all-natural aspect as sherbet often contains artificial coloring. The choice is up to you!

What You'll Need:
3 oz. paper drinking cups
popsicle sticks

Ingredients:
5 cups seedless watermelon pulp
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup mini chocolate chips
1 pint of frozen greek yogurt (I used Adonia key lime) or lime sherbet, softened

Directions:
1. Puree watermelon and sugar in batches in your blender or food processor until smooth and strain into a medium bowl.

2. Cover and freeze until puree is slightly slushy, but not quite solid, about 2 to 3 hours.

3. Remove from freezer, stir well and add in chocolate chips.

4. Place 12 of your disposable cups on a plate or freezer safe dish and spoon watermelon puree into cups, leaving about a 1/2 inch left from the rim.

5. Place pan in freezer for 2 hours, or until puree is solid, but not rock hard.

6. Allow yogurt or lime sherbet to soften a bit, then spread over top of each portion of watermelon puree so that it comes up to the edge of the cup.

7. Smooth sherbet with the back of a spoon and cover each cup with plastic wrap.

8. Cut a small slit in the center of each cup and insert a popsicle stick into each pop so that it almost reaches the bottom of the cups.

9. Freeze overnight (or until solid). These will keep in the freezer, covered, for 3-5 days.

10. Allow pops to sit at room temperature for about a minute, then gently pull out from cups or tear the cup away if pulling doesn't work.

11. Serve and enjoy! You will love these.

I hope you enjoyed our recipe with Zinnrunner. Please follow her here!

Celebrate Independence Day without the Guilt

It can be so frustrating going into a fun holiday, like the 4th, when you are concerned about what you will be eating. After all, we should be thinking about the history of our country, and celebrating our rockin' nation with friends and family.

Unfortunately, if our friends and family aren't as committed to a healthy lifestyle as we are, it can be excruciatingly frustrating. The solution to this dilemma, is to simply have a plan.

While this resolution is important each day of our lives, it is particularly useful when up against a wall of temptation and peer pressure. This upcoming holiday I encourage you to create a do-able and realistic plan setting yourself up for success.

Ideally, you will have the day off of work, giving you a little extra time to accomplish your goals. Here is a realistic angle propelling you to a successful and guilt free holiday while still having a blast.

-Start off the day with a workout. There are lots of fun 5k's and walk/runs to enter. If not, maybe grab a yoga, or kickboxing class at your gym. This will automatically put you in a good frame of mind. Even if it's a walk around your neighborhood, get your blood flowing and DO something.

-Next, hit the grocery and and bring your own healthy options to your grill out. Some phenomenal grill options are Portabella Mushroom burgers, sweet corn, pre-made grilled chicken, buffalo, or shrimp skewers, you can even do potatoes on the grill.

You can easily do this with a little preparation. You will feel so good about yourself and it's a great opportunity to prove to yourself that you can be successful! I can't wait to hear about your success story! Happy Independence Day!