I have done extensive field testing with my single toddler for an extended period of time over the last two weeks to perfect this recipe for the perfect sloppily thrown together smoothie.  My 2 year old gets more than a full cup of fruits and vegetables (veggies which she normally detests, like tomatoes…she won’t even eat pizza!! What toddler doesn’t eat pizza?!) with these every day. It’s the reason her stomach hasn’t begun slowly eating itself for sustenance. (That child could seriously survive a week on a grain of rice, I’m sure of it.)

I use the following, just because it’s easier to work with and clean up, which is a big deal when your son has a fascination with eating toilet paper THAT’S BEEN DIPPED IN THE TOILET. *sigh*

Sensio 13330 Bella Cucina 12-Piece Rocket Blender Platinum Edition
Beaba Babycook Baby Food Maker

I can vouch for these:
Norpro 431 4-Piece Silicone Ice Pop Maker Set

But I heard these are good too:
Kinderville Little Bites Silicone Ice Pop Molds (Set of 4)

I like these silicone molds because you can throw them in a bag or lunch and it helps keep it cool while making for an awesome snack. They are the only kind of popsicle you can take on the road. In order to make these recipes, though, all you really need is a blender and popsicle molds (recipe one), in addition to a pan and some sort of steamer (recipe two).

RECIPE 1

1 part yogurt (I prefer raw, whole, plain, organic, or any combination of the previous I can find, but any yogurt will do. I try to avoid too much flavored yogurt as it adds a ton of unnecessary sugar.)
1/2 part juice (I usually use some sort of berry juice, like goji or blueberry, or a half fruit/half vegetable juice)
1 part fruit (something strong flavored, like strawberries or bananas, is better than something light, like apples)
1 part vegetable (kale is an excellent choice as it actually adds flavor. Other good options are carrots, eggplants, spinach, potatoes…I like to steam tomatoes, puree them, freeze them in icecubes, and throw in a couple. You can’t taste them at all, and it’s a good substitute for ice.)

Put in blender.
BLEND!
Put in popsicle molds.
FREEZE!
(So easy!)

RECIPE 2

This is for a homemade applesauce that does *wonderful* if frozen. You can’t add as many veggies to this one because the apple is such a light flavor, but I find a few tomatoes or carrots work wonderfully and add color.

1 part apple (You don’t even need to peel it)
1 part flavor fruit (Most anything, really…peaches, strawberries, blueberries, mangoes.)
1/2 part vegetable

Put in steamer or babycook.
STEAM!
Put in blender (or keep in babycook)
BLEND!
Put in popsicle molds.
FREEZE!

My girl seriously cannot get enough of this stuff. She eats enough spinach and tomatoes to make a raw vegan crave steak, and it’s all beautifully masked behind a layer of healthy, sweet fruit!

The scene: Our kitchen. Ari is standing in the dining room, playing, while I make breakfast.

Ari (shouting to me): “MOMMY! I have teeskums in my mouth!”

Me: “What’s a teeskum?”

Ari (walking into the kitchen and opening her mouth, revealing nothing): “This! I put it in my mouth!”

Me (definitely not panicking AT ALL at this point): “What did you put in your mouth?”

Ari: “Teeskums!”

Me: “Can you show me with your hand?”

Ari (stares at own hands)

Me: “Can you point to what you put in your mouth?”

Ari (points into own mouth)

Me (facepalm): “Is any of it left? Can you show me what you put in your mouth?”

Ari (looks around anxiously): “It’s a teeskum!”

Me: “I understand that. What’s a teeskum?”

Ari (points into own mouth): “This!”

I look around. I hadn’t missed anything when I cleaned the kitchen. There’s a stain on the floor, but that’s been there for ages. I scrubbed it yesterday. There’s the trashcan, which was recently emptied of everything but a few pistachio seeds that had fallen out of the bag into the can. The bag is now empty, but anyway, the can is too tall for her. There’s nothing else in the kitchen. Nothing on the table, on the floor, on the counter. What on earth could she have eaten??

I start to run through the word in my mind. Sometimes you can make sense of what she’s saying. She’s watching me intently as I move my lips.

Me: “You ate…teeskums…teeskum…tee….skum….skum…tees….kum….tee….!!!!!!!!!!!”

Me: “ARI! Do you have teeth and gums in your mouth?!”

Ari (grinning wildly): “YES!”

Me (melts into a puddle on the floor)

The ongoing list of the rules of our house. We add to it daily.

1. No eating New Hampshire.
2. Puppies can lick people, but people can’t lick puppies.
3. Pouring milk on yourself does not make you cleaner, it makes you messier.
4. Don’t show me your boogers.
5. Stop trying to lick my tongue, that’s just weird.
6. I don’t care what it was originally, if you got it from your diaper, it is no longer edible.
7. Yes, you can be an ambulance. Just be a quiet ambulance that’s very far away.
8. Don’t sit on your brother.
9. If you found it in the bathroom, chances are, you are not allowed to eat it.
10. That’s a toilet bowl brush, not a paint brush.
11. No sitting on the couch naked until you’re toilet trained.
12. Kisses don’t involve teeth.
13. Whatever you’re doing, stop it.