All you need to make great frozen pops are dollar store molds and … dollar store generic jello. I use the standard round mold with reusable sticks so I’m always ready to make some when the hot weather strikes. There are tons of fancy shapes out there, but I find those the easiest to get out of the mold.

This is a recipe my mom made over and over every summer when we were kids (and still does). It’s been so long I have no idea where the recipe is originally from. This is a lot better than the old frozen juice, staying tasty to the last chunk.

Ingredients (for 2 racks of 8 popsicle)

1 packet (85g) of Jello (or generic brand)
1/2 cup of sugar
2 cups of boiling water
2 cups of cold water

Preparation

• Put the jello powder and the sugar in a large bowl.
• Add the boiling water and stir until the powder and sugar are completed dissolved. Mix in the cold water.
• Pour the jello mix in the ice pop molds, leaving a bit of room at the top. Put the sticks in and freeze overnight.
• To unmold, run hot water over the mold, twisting and pulling the stick gently until it gets out.

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This recipe is an experiement that turned out very well . I started out from the Barres ÉnerJo recipe from Ricardo. First, I switched some of the cereals and seeds for stuff I had lying around. I was also finishing up a soy milk recipe, so I removed some of the cereals and a bit of the liquid and used the okara instead. This recipe is easy to adapt to what you have on hand, but try to find the cardamon : it adds an heavenly smell to the bars.

 

Ingredients (Yield : about 20 bars)

40 oatmeal squares cereals
2 cups of quick-cooking oatmeal
1/2 cup of wheat germ
2 teaspoons of baking powder
1 teaspoon of powdered cinnamon
1 teaspoon of cardamon pods, ground
4 teaspoons of flax seeds, ground
2 teaspoons of chia seeds, ground
1 teaspoon of sesame seeds, ground
A pinch of salt

1 egg
1 1/2 cup of soy milk or cow’s milk
1 cup of fresh okara
2 tablespoons of canola oil

1/2 cup of raisins
1/2 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preparation

• Put the oatmeal squares in a large bowl and smash them a few times with a potato masher to break them in small pieces.
• Add the oatmeal, wheat germ, baking powder, spices, grounds seeds and salt in the bowl and mix well.
• In another bowl, mix together the egg, milk, okara and oil. Pour it in the big bowl with the dry ingredients and stir well.
• Add the chocolate and the raisins and mix again.
• Pour the batter in a pan, spreading it evenly. I used two pans, one 8″ X 8″ and one 8″ X 4″.
• Cook at 350 F for 35 to 40 minutes. When the mix has cooled enough, cut in bars. This recipe freeze well if the bars don’t disappear within 3 days…

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I’ve tried to make popcorn at home the traditional way, in a pot on the stove. It tasted fine, but it required too much cleaning and preparation for a fast snack compared to a prepacked popcorn bag.

Unfortunately, the bags sold at the grocery store are pretty expensive if you take into account that they only contain a few popcorn kernels, not to mention the salt and/or the artificial flavours they add for the taste. Also, it produces a lot of waste : you have to to throw away the greasy bag, the plastic wrapper and the box. That’s a lot for three or four bags of popcorn!

The best option I’ve found is to make my own popcorn bags. The only things needed are a brown paper bag (I use lunch-style bags) and 1/4 cup of popcorn kernels. Put the kernels at the bottom of the bag and fold it a few times. Cook for about 2 or 3 minutes in the microwave like you would for a store-brought bag, stopping when the pops are more than a few seconds appart. You don’t need to add grease or oil : it works fine without anything. The only time I ever used oil, it was all absorbed by the bag, with none left for the popcorn.

When it’s done, you can add your seasonings of choice. I usually just eat it plain, or with some nutritional yeast. Any other good ideas? I’ve got a lot of pop-corn grains left…

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