Cherry Nice Cream!

Sometimes, you just want breakfast for dessert. Nothing more refreshing for a late summer morning!

Now many make “nice cream” out of bananas, which is a fantastic way way to make a guilt-free, potassium rich dessert. But honestly, I’m not the biggest banana fan when it comes to blended treats. Instead, I blend my frozen beverages with filtered water or almond milk. Cherry season comes and goes in a blink on an eye, so check out my super simple take on cherry ice cream below!

Ingredients

• 2 cups frozen, pitted cherries
• 1.5 cups water
• half a tray of ice cubes
• liquid stevia, to taste

Instructions

• Blend all ingredients in a high powered blender (I use a Vitamix). I like to start out with only a few ice cubes with it on medium and pick up speed to high. Once fully blended, add in a few more ice cubes at a time, monitoring consistency. You don’t want it to be too liquidy, but also not too icy doesn’t take on the form of a slushy.

I see you, Corporate America

Photo by Brent Hofacker

America, I applaud you. In 2013, the U.S. of A is no longer the fattest kid on the international playground. This summer, a report by the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization found that Mexico has surpassed the U.S. as the world’s fattest nation, beating our rate of adult obesity (31.8 percent) with a 32.8 percent.

Not saying we are in any place to start showing off our macho muscles, but with Americans paying closer attention to what they’re eating and drinking, food and beverage companies are quickly learning that certain unfamiliar additives on their packaging is inviting criticism from the public. Thanks to the web, people are shouting their concerns to the world. As a result, companies are quietly reformulating popular snacks to remove suspicious componenets.

Want an example? PepsiCo Inc. this year claimed it would stop useing brominated vegetable oil (huh? I was drinking what?) in Gatorade and find another more natural way to distribute the color in their sports drink.

With the Internet acting as a loud speaker, it is great to see people taking a stand for what goes into their bodies. My only concern is does this invite companies to become sneakier? They are already being devious by removing these additives in a way that seems like – POOF – they were never really there! My hopes are that while corporations are showing a genuine interest in the putting better ingredients in their products, we all colletively choose that apple or baby carrots instead of that unfortunate bag of baked potato lays (I mean really. Baked? You might as well at least enjoy your unhealthy snack by picking the Cheetos for goodness sake).