Cool down this summer with these anti-oxidant rich and liver cleansing beet popsicles! These popsicles are refreshing and nourishing, as they are packed with the goodness of beets, cherries, bananas, and a boost of collagen. The beet cherry popsicles are dairy free, refined sugar free, low fat and only take 5 minutes to blend up.
As summer approaches, I have started making these beet cherry popsicles for my toddler, and she loves them. There is nothing quite like enjoying a refreshing yet healthy popsicle in the warm sunshine. It is also so exciting and fun for toddlers and kids to get to have ice pops.
For whatever reason, my little girl loves icy-cold popsicles. Since I just bought a 6-piece popsicle mold and made our first batch of popsicles this spring, she asks for one every day. Store-bought popsicles are loaded with refined sugar and do not contain many whole-food ingredients, so I like to make my own homemade popsicles with healthy whole foods.
Making veggie popsicles mixed with fruit is a great way to get kids to enjoy their vegetables. Beets are one of my top superfoods for liver health, a sluggish gallbladder, insulin resistance, and diabetes. I am always trying to include them in my diet as they have so many health benefits, so I decided to make beet popsicles with cherries to get these antioxidant-rich foods into my diet.
Plus, my toddler is not a fan of roasted or raw beets on their own, so I thought it would also be a great way to get this vegetable into her diet. Luckily, my toddler loves these beet popsicles combined with the natural sweetness of bananas and cherries.
I have no qualms about letting my girl enjoy smoothie popsicles daily when they are made with whole food ingredients especially beets! So if you have picky eaters try making these vibrant beet popsicles as its such a fun way to get your tiny human to learn to love beets.
Beet Popsicle Recipe:
- 1/2 cup beets, peeled and diced
- 1 cup frozen cherries, run under hot water to defrost
- 2 bananas
- 20 grams of collagen powder
How to make the Beet Cherry Popsicles:
- Prepare the beets: Peel and dice the beets into small pieces.
- Defrost the cherries: To make the frozen cherries easier to blend, run them under hot water until they are soft.
- Blend the ingredients: In a high-powered blender, combine the diced beets, defrosted cherries, bananas, and collagen powder. Blend until smooth and well combined.
- Pour into molds: Once the mixture is smooth, pour it into popsicle molds, then place popsicle sticks into each mold.
- Freeze: Place the filled molds in the freezer and let them freeze for 12 hours or until completely solid.
- Enjoy: Once the popsicles are frozen solid, remove them from the freezer, and then run the outside of the plastic popsicle molds under hot water to loosen the popsicle edges. Once you can twist the popsicle, pull it out of the mold and enjoy!
Tips and Substitutions:
- For all you beet lovers out there, go ahead and add an extra quarter to 1/2 cup of beets. I only used 1/2 cup of beets in the beet popsicle recipe because I wanted to mask the beet flavor with cherries and bananas so that my toddler would eat them.
- I love the cherry beet combo with bananas, but I have also made them with strawberries, which are just as good.
- I added collagen powder for an extra boost of protein and amino acids, but this is optional and does not affect the flavor or texture, so it can be omitted.
- The key to making the best-tasting fresh fruit and veggie popsicles is not adding any liquid or water, as it dilutes the natural sweetness. For this reason, it is best to use fresh fruit or defrost frozen cherries so that they blend well without any liquid.
- If you prefer sweeter beet popsicles, add a touch of maple syrup or honey.
- You can also use a food processor to blend the ingredients if you don’t have a high-speed blender such as a Vitamix.
Nutritional Benefits of the Beet Cherry Popsicles
These cherry beet popsicles are packed with liver cleansing phytonutrients and anti-oxidants that are beneficial for reversing insulin resistance. They are also low fat, which, according to the authors of Mastering Diabetes, a plant-based low-fat diet is the best way to reverse insulin resistance.
In Anthony Williams’s book Liver Rescue, he recommends delaying the intake of fats in the morning to allow for optimal liver cleansing. While I am not against the intake of unprocessed fats, my family gets lots of healthy fats via other meals during the day. Thus, I kept these popsicles nut free and instead focused on liver-cleansing fruits and vegetables.
This beet popsicle recipe yields approximately six servings and thus six popsicles, depending on the size of your popsicle molds. According to Cronometer, each serving contains:
- calories: 73
- protein: 4g
- carbs: 13g
- fat: 0g
They are also an excellent source of vitamin B6, folate, vitamin C, and manganese.
Beets have phenomenal health benefits for diabetes, and I ate them daily while managing my gestational diabetes through diet and exercise. They are also among the best vegetables to support a sluggish gallbladder and to naturally promote bile flow for phase 3 liver detox. Many people don’t know that poor bile flow is a root cause of SIBO.
Cherries are tasty fruit and are among the top fruits high in anti-oxidants. Many studies show positive benefits of anthocyanins found in cherries to be beneficial for fatty liver.
If you want to support a sluggish gallbladder and improve liver health, these beet cherry popsicles with bananas are for you! Their vibrant color and gorgeous color make them the perfect healthy treat for the whole family to enjoy on a warm sunny day.
My toddler doesn’t even need the sun to be out, as she asks for them first thing in the morning upon rising. Lately, I have been loving enjoying my morning coffee while my little girl savors her beet cherry popsicles, which are refined sugar-free and naturally sweetened with liver-cleansing fruits. These mango popsicles are another favorite!
Beet Popsicles with Cherries & Bananas – Easy & Homemade
Equipment
- 1 High speed blender
- 1 vegetable peeler & knife
Ingredients
- ½ cup raw beets
- 1 cup frozen and de-pitted cherries
- 2 bananas
- 20g collagen powder (optional)
Instructions
- Peel a raw beet and dice into small chunks then place into the blender.
- Defrost frozen and de-pitted cherries under hot water before adding them to the blender.
- Peel the bananas and place in the blender with collagen powder.
- Blend all the ingredients until smooth and creamy. Do not blend with any liquid. Instead start blending on low before turning to high and use a blender tamper to press the ingredients down to help blend if needed.
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