For Summer, Cold Fruit Ideas

Frozen Fruit and Smoothies

Frozen Fruit
When you are trying to beat the heat, frozen fruit, which is abundant in the summer, can be a great relief!
-Frozen watermelon cut into cubes make a great popsicle-like treat. I freeze them in an ice-tray so they do not stick together, and then move into a ziploc bag.
-Frozen grapes are great to eat or to use as replacement icecubes in a cold drink!
-Frozen mango juice, poured into an ice tray, is very, very sticky, but also very, very good.
-Bite-sized chunks of banana is a great icecream substitute! It can also be thawed and cooked into banana bread. I find breaking bananas into small chunks and freezing in a ziploc bag much more efficient for later use than freezing in their peel.

Fruit and Veggie Smoothies
The corner stones for most of my smoothies are a banana and yogurt. This is a great way to use up frozen fruit in the freezer, and can be taken for lunch in a mason jar or other wide-mouthed container (I don't recommend using straws!). 
Ingredients I love are fresh strawberries, raspberries, and frozen blue berries. I sometimes add a table spoon of peanut butter (for some protein and fat to keep you going) or a handful of spinach (for it's health benefits). While spinach will turn your smoothie green, you can't taste it when paired with the potent flavor of berries. I sometimes add shredded carrot and apple juice, mango juice, or a small amount of tofu. (Uncooked tofu remaining from a dinner beforehand, perhaps. Tofu is best used in sparse quantities and paired with a strongly flavored fruit, such as raspberries and a bit of lemon, but it's protein helps keep me going.) I have also added half a cucumber, or a few table spoons of ground flax seed flour (great for extra fiber and omega 3).

Summer Recipes

These are some good foods for the hot summer months:

Frozen Fruit
Frozen watermelon (~courtesy Dana), grapes, bite-sized chunks of banana. Great icecream substitutes!

Fruit and Veggie Smoothies (~courtesy Ron and Vicki)
1.) carrot, spinach, strawberry, blueberry
2.) carrot, tiny bit of ginger, cucumber, banana, apple, spinach, half a lemon, a bit of yogurt for creaminess
3.) carrots, cucumber, bell pepper, strawberry, banana, ginger, yogurt, pineapple juice, protein powder, aojiru.
Ideas: Watermelon is abundant, but it has a rather delicate flavor, so I'm trying to find good matches for it. Watermelon and tomato, or watermelon and cucumber? (Please don't try it with yogurt or tofu! My attempts have been disgusting at best.)

-Mary's Smoothies:
1.) yogurt, an 8th of a brick of tofu, frozen blueberries, banana
2.) yogurt, banana, kinako powder.

Cold Soups
-Gezpacho: Blend five small tomatoes, an 8th of an onion, two cloves of garlic, a bit of celery and red bell pepper, a splash of lemon juice, and a cucumber together in a blander, and serve chilled. Good also with some black pepper and salt.
-Veggie Juice Soup: Marukyo sells a no-sugar, no-salt 100% veggie juice (primarily tomato and carrot juice) at the market, and it is a great base for a cold soup. I blend in a bit of garlic and onion, sprinkle on some dried basil [because my fresh basil was eaten by a happy caterpillar :'( ] and then drop in leftover stir fried mushrooms and potatoes that have been chilling in the fridge. Great served with a fried egg, or some macaroni noodles!!


-Alternative Tuna Salad: tuna (that is stored in water, not oil), olive oil, balsamic vinegar, capers, a chopped onion, chopped pickles, sometimes mayo, sometimes chopped olives, fresh thyme, lemon juice. Serve over lettuce or chopped spinach. Side with red bell pepper or cucumber.

I want to look up:
-Vegan frozen banana and soymilk "icecream"