food to glow

It’s summer time and, for some, it is bikini weather. But before one packs that tiny Easyjet-sanctioned bag full of minuscule bathing suits and not much else, some yearly rituals to attend to.

Summer Ritual Checklist

(as dictated by fashion/women’s magazines)

At least two months’ worth of eating salads and not much else: check.

Daily litres of cleansing, cellulite busting water. Green tea, if you are feeling fancy: check.

Crossfit/PX90/Zumba/parkour as if your life depended on it: you betcha.

Scaly Winter body: buffed, waxed and sprayed.

Healthy, cooling frozen desserts cos you deserve it: um, hang on a sec.

At this time of year Mars ice cream bars and Hagen Daz tubs jostle for space with the so-called healthy frozen desserts. Contains real fruit puree! Low-fat mocha ice dessert – with real chocolate pieces! Raspberry-swirl frozen yogurt parfait!

Don’t they sound go-od?

But look at the label. Just look at it. Ugh huh? Gums, seaweed thingies (carrageenan), some chemistry class stuff. But hey, it’s low calorie and, if I close my eyes and think of Ryan Gosling, I may even enjoy it. 🙂

Some such iced confections have a skewed idea of what is healthy. No fat, no gluten, no dairy but loads of sugar and weird sub-food ingredients. Don’t think so. Some others (but very few) are very healthy but sound and taste rather joyless. Pass me a juicy peach instead please.

Now, what if you could make something in the comfort of your own home – in your bikini, if you so desire – that is not only gloriously healthy, for a frozen dessert*, but tastes flipping awesome?

(*not as healthy as grazing on kale. Or eating an apple. Just saying.)

And what if I pinky promised that it was almost as good as one of the most calorific frozen desserts I can think of, the semifreddo? Well, wouldn’t you just want to know what that might be?

This is my iteration of a beautiful frozen treat I found in Zest For Life, a Mediterranean healthy cookbook by Connor Middelmann-Whitney and reviewed in this post (along with a recipe I use all the time). Considering the simple ingredients my take is quite different, so do have a look at her book for the original recipe. My one below has taken a southern turn to Turkey – by way of Scotland. If you can get your head around that one.

I have tried this out on numerous cancer nutrition classes and other groups, with approval in the form of empty plates and no leftovers. I hope that’s a good enough recommendation for you. :-). And no, no one wore a bikini. But you could.

Miss R’s Track of the Week: Trouble from Bitter:Sweet – sexy, skinnifreddo eating music

I am sending this fruity frozen sweet over to The Spicy Pear, Eat Your Veg and Delicieux for June’s Four Season’s Food, with Red as the theme. My raspberries qualify so over it goes! Louisa at Eat Your Veg also co-hosts with Vanesther at Bangers and Mash for their Family Foodie event. This month’s theme is “outdoors” – perfect. Ren Behan is gamely still hosting Simple and In Season, despite quite possibly having just given birth. Wow! And lastly to the lovely Mark over at Javelin and Warrior’s Cookin’ W/ Luv for his Made With Love Mondays. Thanks so much to all of you fabulous hosts with the most!