Growing up, my sister and I went through a phase where we decided it would be completely fantastic to own a pickup truck.
We hatched this brilliant (or so we thought) idea on an uncomfortably-humid Philadelphia summer’s day, and our logic was that the back of the truck could be filled with water, turning it into our very own portable swimming pool. Summer heat would no longer be a problem.
(Not to mention… how fun would road trips be?!)
Unfortunately, our mother did not buy into this ingenious plan. Each day when we begged to get rid of the minivan in favor of a truck, we were denied. And so, still hot and still without a pool, we were finally forced to come up with other ways to beat the heat.
We ran through the sprinklers like it was an Olympic sport, adopting the bathing suit as our summer uniform. We invited our friends over for water balloon fights, and we experimented with ingredients to concoct different flavors of frozen homemade pudding pops. These pudding pops became a staple in our diets, and they were almost enough to make us entirely forget about our truck-pool.
Almost.
Cookies and Cream Pudding Pops
- 1/2 cup raw cashew or macadamia nuts (60g)
- 2/3 cup milk of choice (160g)
- scant 1/8 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp sugar of choice or xylitol (24g)
- pinch pure stevia, or 1 extra tbsp sugar of choice
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 4-5 oreo cookies or Homemade Healthy Oreos
In a bowl, cover the nuts with water and let sit 6-8 hours. Drain and be sure to pat dry completely. Combine the drained nuts with the salt, vanilla, sweetener, and the milk of choice, and blend until smooth. (If you have a Vita-Mix, blend a full minute. This can technically be done in a non-high-power blender if you blend a very long time, but I don’t know that it will be as smooth.) Add the Oreos and blend again, just enough to crush the cookies. Pour into popsicle molds or dixie cups. (If using dixie cups, freeze until slushy, then remember to add a popsicle stick to the middle of each popsicle.)
Click for: Cookies and Cream Pudding Pops Nutrition Facts
Question of the Day:
Growing up, was there ever something you really wanted, but your parents said NO?
Such as contact lenses, a later bedtime, or a puppy? Aside from the truck, I also went through a phase where I really wanted a pet monkey. Actually… I still kind of really want a pet monkey. 😕
Link of the Day: Copycat Ben & Jerry’s Chocolate Chip Cherry Garcia Frozen Yogurt
Whoa….that second picture….I almost took a fork to the computer screen.
I begged for YEARS for my parents to get me a hamster, and seeing my undying want, they finally got me one after years of badgering! RIP Hampton, you was a miracle little ball o’fluff. I also begged to let me and my sister audition for talent scouting things, as I had an insane obsession with becoming a superstar like Lindsay Lohan. She always said “Sure! When they’re in the area!” Needless to say I am 18 and far from being on the big screen. Oh well, she did me a favor!
What a lovely post and your pudding pops sound delicious. Will give them a go once the weather warms up a bit over here in England!
Hi Katie! That looks amazing!! Do you think I could use and ice cream maker or your freeze-blend technique to turn this into a milkshake/ice cream? Thanks!
Double the recipe and then you can.
I love how this looks delicious and I know it’s healthy!! I use similar ingredients in my smoothies…now that the nice weather is upon us, it’s time to freeze them 😉
Hey did you know your Popsicles where in huffington post I came across?http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/28/healthy-popsicle-recipes-_n_3619610.html
I was like that’s so cool there her recipe is!!
Holy schnikies, Batman!! These look amazing and just in time for our family vacation in June. We take a week long vacation with my hubby’s extended family (think 40 people in a cabin!) and LOTS of kids. A. LOT. These pops (and I want to try the nutulla fudge pops, too) are great for dessert. THANK YOU! Even though it’s vacation, I still try to keep a grip on the junk and sugar. Thanks for your hard work and wonderful blog!
Mmm I was just thinking it was time to dust off the popsicle molds! These sound awesome. My sister really wanted a pet monkey too! I wanted this pencil case from the Disney store that had all these neat compartments. I asked for one every year and never got it so as an adult I went to the store with the intention of getting myself one and they no longer make them 🙁
I made these last night and they were great! I accidentally added my Oreos during the first blend so they were pretty homogenous but still really tasty 🙂
Tonight I subbed cottage cheese for half of the cashews and that was great! I’m gonna try to use all cottage cheese next time. Not relevant for the vegans but thought it might be helpful for someone trying to cut back on calories 🙂
Thanks for the recipe!
Oh my gosh, these look so yummy!!! I’m definitely going to try these especially with all this hot weather. 🙂
Oh yes, my grandmother Lucy. We were three granddaughters living next door and loved her “specialties”. Making tripe that was sold once a week in our neighborhood; snails simply served w some toothpicks and a succulent garlicky sauce (once getting loose from the pot and climbing the walls according to my aunt!) escarole and beans, homemade pasta, eggplant that was left to “sweat” in the sun to remove the bitterness and sun-dried tomato paste. Meditteranean before we even knew what to call it! PS love pierogies too and quampkies!
Hi Katie, I have liquid Stevia; for a “pinch” of Stevia, what would be the replacement ratio if using liquid? 1 pinch : 1 drop? Or what do you think? Thanks!!
I love them! I am 12 years old and they were so easy to make! They look delicious and I can’t wait to try them! By the way I love you site!