Category Archives: ponpon

homemade fresh watermelon and kiwi popsicles – popsicoholic part 3

Posted on May 21, 2014 | 5 comments

Beat the heat with a refreshing treat!

Popsicoholic part 3: watermelon and kiwi popsicles.

This is an incredible summer dessert, low in calories and completely nutritious. Watermelon with kiwi, a little taste of the tropics to beat Doha heat.

In a food processor mix 2 cups of watermelon with 1 tbsp sugar and a pinch of salt. Salt might seem like a strange ingredient to add to a dessert, but it actually helps make the flavor of the watermelon more intense, but it can be optional, some people won’t like it, it’s very subjective. (my husband doesn’t like it with this pinch of salt, he is more into sweet flavors).

Again in the food processor puree 3 kiwis with 1 tsp of sugar.

Pour the mix in molds, making one big layer of watermelon and a small one of kiwi, to make it look like a watermelon wedge!

Freeze until solid. You should get 6 to 7 popsicles depending on your mold size. You can freeze up to one week.

To remove the popsicles from the molds, run under warm water until they are easily released.

So, what do you guys think? Anyone off to make some popsicles?

There is endless options to make, just pick your favorite fruit and popsicle it!

This is an incredibly refreshing dessert and is low in calories. – See more at: http://www.theslowroasteditalian.com/2012/06/blueberry-vanilla-yogurt-popsicles.html#sthash.Baxpwi5t.dpuf

5 Comments

Posted in dessert, DIY

Tagged blog, desert, DIY, jaymmy, kiwi, marmite et ponpon, popsicles, watermelon, watermelon kiwi popsicles

homemade mango lassi popsicles – popsicoholic part 2

Posted on May 20, 2014 | Leave a comment

Popsicoholic part 2: mango lassi popsicles, for mango lovers.

Mango lassi is an indian drink like a milkshake, a blend of mango pulp, yogurt and sugar. It’s very delicious and refreshing. Usually served chilled on hot days, the perfect scenario to turn out this succulent drink into popsicles!

In a food processor, puree 1 1/2 cup mango with 2 tbsp yogurt and 1 tsp sugar.

In a seperate bowl whisk 1/2 cup of low fat yogurt with 1 tsp sugar.

Pour them in molds, alternating between the two mix. Let the mango puree layer thicker than yogurt. Make 3 to 4 layers. With a skewer or thin-bladed knife, swirl mixtures together in an up-and-down motion.

Insert ice-pop sticks and freeze until solid. Preferably overnight. To remove the popsicles from the molds, run under warm water until they are easily released. This quantity makes 5-6 popsicles depending on your mold size.

Nothing can beat the heat like a fresh fruit popsicle. So try making these, they are worth it! My son loves them! yes they are suitable for kids and nutritious too.

One cup of mangoes (225 g) contains the following:

105 calories
76 percent vitamin C (antioxidant and immune booster)
25 percent vitamin A (antioxidant and vision)
11 percent vitamin B6 plus other B vitamins (hormone production in brain and heart desease prevention)
9 percent healthy probiotic fiber
9 percent copper (copper is a co-factor for many vital enzymes plus production of red blood cells)
7 percent potassium (to balance out our high sodium intake)
4 percent magnesium

(Percentages apply to daily value)

Enjoy!

homemade fresh strawberry popsicles – popsicoholic part 1

Posted on May 19, 2014 | Leave a comment

Cool off doha heat! A healthy refreshing homemade dessert! Suitable for kids! 100% natural! Low in calories!…. and i can keep listing many other reasons… Just to say there’s always an excuse to have a popsicle in my mind, am a big fan of popsicles!

Doha summer is already here and the temperature is getting higher and higher to the 40°C and above. Nothing will refresh you like a fruity popsicle.

I would like to share with you my recipes for fresh fruits popsicles and give a piece of my happiness to popsicoholic people like me 🙂

Popsicoholic part1: strawberry flavor

For these delicious popsicles you need to:

In a food processor puree one cup of fresh strawberries with 1 tbsp of sugar.
whisk 1 cup of yogurt and 2 tbsp of sugar

Pour in a mold, alternating between the strawberry puree and the yogurt, make about 3-4 layers. With a skewer or thin-bladed knife, swirl mixtures together in an up-and-down motion. Insert ice-pop sticks and freeze until solid.

You should get 5 to 6 popsicles depending on your mold size. You can freeze up to one week, (but i doubt if they will last more than couple of hours).

To remove the popsicles from the molds, run under warm water until they are easily released. Enjoy!

Water balloons sensory play – bath time fun!

Posted on May 13, 2014 | 4 comments

Next in the sensory play series was the limitless possibilities of water play!

Toddlers love water, not only because of the familiarity of their womb environment, but also because it’s one of the most exciting thing to explore!

Giggle, spray, sprinkle, laugh excitedly, drip, pour, funnel tickle, drizzle… and the most fun one is SPLASH! Think of how rich and delightful water is as a play.

Who doesn’t remember water balloons from childhood? I filled about 20 balloons with water and placed them in the tub to extend the bath time fun.

Nady got so excited, he jumped on the balloons, wanted to grab them all at once, squeezing them, twisting them into other shapes and slipping them through his hands.

Water play, fosters learning in all developmental areas. It encourages the development of eye – hand coordination through squeezing, pouring or stirring.

Water play relieves tension by encouraging children to release their emotions. Nady was enjoying expanding the balloons. I tied the balloon to the tap and he was pulling until it splashes. You can hear a lot of giggles!

Water play is such a meaningful experience to introduce new words to describe the situation such as heavy, pull, splash… for instance.

Sprinkling was hilarious! I was enjoying the play as much as Nady. I loved his reaction!

Water play widens the sensory experience as kids put their hands in different textures and temperatures. Running water was like magic for him, he wanted to catch it, he stayed for a long time trying…

You can’t imagine how open – ended is this activity and how it provides opportunities for extended learning. After we burst all the balloons and wanted to end this play, i needed a transitional game to take him out of the water. I thought his stacking cups could help and he found a way to stay in the game. he started filling the cups with the burst balloons and pouring them from one to the other.

It was so hard to end the play! We really enjoyed it and looking forward for the next time with even more equipments 🙂

4 Comments

Posted in way to play

Tagged balloons, bath, bathtime fun, blog, fun, jaymmy, marmite et ponpon, sensory play, water, water balloons, water play, water sensory play, way to play

Homemade colored sand – fine motor skills and messy sensory fun

Posted on May 5, 2014 | 1 comment

Homemade sand for hot days (or rainy, but it’s not the case in doha), when it’s not convenient to play outdoor.

Very easy and low-budget activity. All you need is cracked wheat and colors ( i always recommend wilton icing gel). One kilo bag of cracked wheat needs one tsp of the coloring gel. Mix well until the color is even and let it dry.

To kick off the fun, I put them in a container and hide the small animals for Nady to dig in.

Children have always been intrigued by sand play. They dig in, pour it, enjoy the feeling, pretend with it and explore how it moves.

Sand play is open-ended, there is no right way to play with, it stretches the imagination of the kid, provides a soothing sensory experience and it’s an excellent avenue for children to learn physical, cognitive and social skills.

Children are not born with a know how to play, parents should teach them! that’s why at the beginning children just observe before starting to explore.

What does this feel like when I touch it? What does this sound like when I squeeze it? What will happen if I push this or pull that? Crawl over there? Pull myself up on this?

Get down on the floor with your child. You are the ultimate plaything, and any activity will seem more fun if your child can share it with you. Talk to him while you play and you’ll help boost his language skills. Let your child choose how to play, you can suggest new things or present new options, but he should be the boss.

Now it’s time for messy play! It’s an important part of early education:

Physical development: Children will be given the tools to develop and practice fine motor skills and eye hand coordination, such as pouring and spooning and will provide opportunities for children to compare textures such as smooth, rough, hard and soft.

Communication and language development: During messy play, children will be given many opportunities to speak and listen.

Personal, emotional and social development: Messy Play is designed with children’s natural curiosity in mind. It encourages a positive approach to new experiences. There is no “right” way for children to do messy play. This builds self-confidence and self-esteem. They develop concentration, problem-solving and planning.

Intellectual development: Children will investigate, explore, design and create leading to a better understanding of the world around them. They will learn to group and classify, arrange items in a logical order, identify and match and understand cause and effect.

Mathematical development: The children will sort objects, fill containers and create patterns.

Creative development: Children are given endless opportunities with a variety of materials to build imagination and creativity. Through sensory experiences, they are able to respond to what they see, hear, feel, touch and smell. They will express their feelings and thoughts through color, texture, shapes and forms in two and three dimensions.

It was a successful fun activity, Nady was extremely happy and enjoying every second! we played for 90 minutes non stop without loosing interest or getting fussy.