Summer wouldn’t be complete without an ice cold grape popsicle, especially when it’s boosted with protein-rich Lifeway Kefir! Grapes are one of the most underrated fruits when it comes to natural sweetness and health benefits making them perfect for easy, healthy frozen desserts like popsicles. While you can put grapes in the freezer and enjoy them as an ice cold treat that way, we say, take them to a whole new level and blend them with creamy, probiotic-packed Lifeway Kefir.
Both Strawberry and Blueberry flavors of our Lowfat Kefir options would work wonderfully in this recipe, or, for less sweetness and to let the grape flavor shine through more, you can also use our plain flavor of Lifeway Kefir. You can also use any type of grape you love most into this recipe; we used dark red and dark purple grapes here but hey, all grapes are great if you ask us! Grapes are packed with nutrients including vitamin C, potassium, and a heart-healthy antioxidant known as resveratrol making them an excellent popsicle pairing to our kefir.
We suggest freezing the grapes first for one hour before blending the ingredients up and freezing into popsicle molds. This way, they not only freeze faster once you pour them into molds, but it produces a colder, creamier treat than using fresh grapes. You can just put the grapes in a bowl after you wash and drain them, then place in the freezer for one hour before blending them into the kefir to make your popsicles.
Lifeway Kefir’s natural protein and probiotics are just two reasons why it’s one of the most the best frozen dessert ingredients for healthy recipes like this that you can enjoy without needing any special equipment. The options are nearly limitless!
Cultured Dairy: The Nutrition Benefits You Need to Know
With increasing research linking the correlation between probiotics, gut health, and immunity, it’s no secret that the integrity of our gut is vital to our health. Although additional factors such as stress, antibiotic usage, and individual health conditions can contribute to the condition of our gut, a focus on healthy food choices is one of the easiest ways to support the microbiome.
Several studies have shown a strong association between the gut-brain-microbiota. Probiotics introduced to the gut have been found to support immunity, improve allergies, and improve digestion.
Studies have shown that reduced diversity of healthy gut bacteria during early years is associated with an increase in food allergies during school-age years. In addition, kefir made from whole milk helps absorb key nutrients such as Vitamins A, D, E, and K. Vitamin K is important because it helps your bones absorb calcium. It’s important to know that kefir contains a special trio: vitamin D, K, and calcium – all three crucial elements to support bone health. Lifeway Farmer Cheese is also a great source of all these nutrients, just in a different format for all the cheese lovers out there.
Prep Time: 4-6 hours Servings: 4-6 pops
Ingredients
For the Popsicles
- 2 cups grapes of choice*
- 2 1/2 cups Lowfat Strawberry Kefir
- **or use Lowfat Blueberry Kefir
- 1 tbsp. raw honey or maple syrup
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- optional: 1-2 scoops vanilla protein or collagen peptides powder
For Decorating Your Popsicles:
- 2/3 cups fresh grapes, rinsed, and chopped in half- reserved for decorating
Directions
- For the Popsicles: Rinse your grapes in a colander, pat dry well, then freeze for one hour either directly in a colander you rinse them in, or you can put them in a bowl to freeze for one hour (no longer or they may freezer burn). Remove from the freezer, then blend the grapes with the rest of the popsicle ingredients (except the reserved grape pieces for decorating).
- Prepare your popsicle molds: Place a few pieces of the reserved cut-up fresh grape pieces into each mold, spreading them out evenly amongst all the popsicle molds.
- Next, pour your popsicle mixture from step 1 into your prepared popsicle molds, insert a stick (if your popsicle molds don't have their own), then tap each mold gently to remove any air bubbles, and freeze for 3-4 hours to set. Note, the smaller your popsicle molds are, the quicker they'll freeze.
- Once time has passed, remove them from the freezer, and enjoy!
- *The grapes work best if frozen first, around an hour. The pops will freeze faster that way!
- For less sweetness and a more neutral flavor, you can use Lowfat Plain Lifeway Kefir.
