Healthy Summer Treats for Balanced Blood Sugar - Ask a Nutritionist

Transcript:

Amy: Welcome to Dishing Up Nutrition's midweek segment “Ask a Nutritionist”. I am Amy Crum, a Registered and Licensed Dietitian, and today we will be discussing healthy dessert ideas for summer. Summer is a time where there are so many fun gatherings and so many of them revolve around food. Maybe it's those backyard barbecues, snacks by the pool, the family reunions, or the neighborhood gatherings.

I've had many clients say they were doing well with their nutrition, feeling great, and then summer gatherings started them down the path of eating more sugar, and before they knew it, their eating had gone off the rails a little bit. I'm not saying one family picnic with treats is going to be the end of your ability to stick with a plan, but I do know once you start with a little sugar, sometimes it can be hard not to eat more later in the day and maybe in the days that follow.

So I'm here today with some fun treats for summer that will taste good and will also help you to keep your blood sugar in balance. Today I'm going to share 10 of my favorite treats, either to bring to a gathering or just enjoy by yourself on a hot day.

Fruit variations as dessert

I have to start by saying that I think fruit on its own can be such an amazing dessert. The summer has so many wonderful fruits that are in season: berries, cherries, peaches, plums, nectarines, watermelon to name a few. You can really enjoy that on its own after a meal for dessert or bring it along to that potluck.

One fun thing you can add along with that fruit is some protein whipped cream. It's easy to make. Just whip heavy cream with a mixer, takes about three minutes. I use about half a cup of whipped cream and mix it until it has medium peaks, and then add about half a scoop of protein powder and mix it until it's just combined. Depending on how much flavor you want to add to it, you can go up to about a full scoop of protein powder.

This will give you about three servings of protein whipped cream. You can even use chocolate protein powder to make it chocolate whipped cream. You compare this with berries, peaches, or almost any fruit you can think of for a delicious and balanced snack or dessert.

While we're talking about fruit, I had a client bring up how much she likes frozen grapes to me the other day. That evening, I washed a few grapes and put them in the freezer and had my teenage son try them for a snack a few hours later. He loved them and said they'd be great for hot baseball games. So if you're looking for a nice cold treat, I would highly recommend frozen grapes for an easy sweet snack.

I also think it's good to remember that a lot of fruits freeze well. If you bought too many berries, bananas, pineapple, mango, or really almost any fruit except for citrus, try freezing it before it goes bad. I do this before I leave on vacations to make sure things don't go to waste, and when I get home, I have delicious frozen fruit ready for a smoothie.

Healthy chocolate pudding

The next idea for a nice treat this summer is chocolate pudding. The secret ingredient in this one to make it blood sugar friendly is cottage cheese. Hear me out. I promise no one is going to know about the cottage cheese unless you tell them. You start with two cups of cottage cheese and I like to put it in the food processor and whip it up until it's creamy. You could also use a blender, then add a scoop of protein powder.

You can use chocolate protein powder or vanilla protein powder and just add in some cocoa powder to make it chocolate. I think it's sweetened enough from just the protein powder, but you can also add in a little maple syrup depending on how sweet you'd like it.

My favorite way to eat this is with pomegranate seeds on top, but you can top it with any fruit that's in season and it will be delicious. If you want to serve this at a gathering and make it a little more special, you can top it with a few dark chocolate chips or melt a few chocolate chips and drizzle that on top.

I put these in little individual dishes right after I make it and refrigerate it, and then it's an easy dessert to pull out of the fridge after dinner. This recipe serves four and it's good the next day too. It tastes more like a mousse after it sits in the fridge for while.

Peanut butter banana bites

Another fun treat that you can make ahead of time are peanut butter banana bites. I believe our wonderful dietitian, Mel, is where I got the idea for this one. Simply cut out banana into thin slices and put peanut butter or almond butter between two slices of banana. You'll have nice little peanut butter banana sandwiches and then put them in a container in the freezer. These are great because you can just get out a couple when you'd like a sweet treat. This one is a good one if the rest of your family is eating ice cream and you still want something that's cold, but not going to put you on the blood sugar rollercoaster.

Healthy popsicles

Another frozen treat that's great for kids and adults are popsicles. Those popsicles you find in the grocery store are often filled with sugar and food dye. Making your own is very simple. My favorite popsicle molds are silicone and there's a lot of variety out there. Or you can just use paper cups and popsicle sticks. We have a lot of recipes for popsicles at weightandwellness.com: peaches and cream, banana fudgesicle, grape, peach, pineapple, pink lemonade. You can make a different one each week this summer.

Another trick I like to do when I'm making smoothies is to freeze a little of the extra into popsicle molds. That way, nothing goes to waste, and I have a nice balanced popsicle for later as a sweet snack. Summer is a great time to try some new smoothie recipes. So check out the article, How to Make the Perfect Smoothie on our website for a link to our smoothie recipes.

Yogurt bark

I also think a fun treat in the summer is yogurt bark. Line a plate with parchment paper, and you're going to put a thin layer of full fat, plain yogurt on top. If you'd like to give the yogurt a little more flavor, you can mix in some protein powder or Key Greens before you put it on the pan. Then the fun part is adding toppings of your choice.

Cut up strawberries are great, but any finely chopped fruit can be good. You can also use freeze dried fruit for a different flavor, and then you can top it with nuts or seeds for a crunch or try some shredded coconut. You can swirl in a little nut butter if you'd like for more flavor. And then if you'd like to add something a little sweeter, you can chop up some good quality chocolate bar into fine pieces and sprinkle that on top.

The different combinations are endless. Put it in the freezer for a couple hours and then you can cut it up into small pieces and either enjoy that right away or store it in a container in the freezer for later.

Fruits crisps

One of my favorite things to bring to potlucks is a nice fruit crisp. It travels well and you can use a fruit that you enjoy that's in season. We have a recipe for a peach crisp that's on weightandwellness.com. It's peaches topped with almond flour, coconut flour, almonds and butter, but you could also use apples or berries or cherries. We also have a great recipe on our website for our gluten-free strawberry crisp. Don't forget, a little whipped heavy cream on top for an amazing summer dessert.

Beverage ideas

I have a couple of beverages that I also like to make for myself during the summer that I would definitely consider a treat. The first is protein coffee. If I'm thinking ahead, I just make coffee the night before and put it in the refrigerator. If not, it works fine to make it in the morning and put it in the fridge for awhile I'm getting ready.

I take a scoop of protein powder. I use vanilla, and a couple tablespoons of heavy whipping cream, and put it in a mason jar with a lid. Shake it really well with that cold coffee until there aren't any lumps from the protein powder in it. Then I fill up the jar with ice and I have what I think tastes just as good as a store-bought ice latte without all the sugar and with added protein and good fats.

Another drink I like to make in the summer is my version of the popular dirty sodas. This one uses a sparkling water of your choice. It can be flavored or plain. I put electrolytes in the bottom of a cup, or you can use a scoop of Key Greens & Fruit. Add the sparkling water and make sure you get a pretty big glass 'cause it's going to get fizzy.

And then stir it up, add in some ice and you can be done there. Or when I want something a little extra, I add in some heavy cream. I think it's such a delicious afternoon treat. I like it for that three o'clock-ish time when so many of us are looking for a sweet treat.

Fat bomb

One other treat I really enjoy that isn't really necessarily a summer treat, but is my very favorite, so I can't leave it out, is our fat bomb recipe. It's made with coconut oil, almonds, or peanut butter and chocolate Key Fruits and Greens melted together, and then put in silicone ice cube trays. I store them in the freezer and find that one or two is the perfect treat for when I'm looking for something sweet.

If you are looking for more sweet treat ideas, I would recommend going back to Brandy's “Ask a Nutritionist” episode, What a Nutritionist Makes When They Want a Treat from March of 2025. She gives so many wonderful ideas for treats that I have tried myself and I recommend to my clients over and over.

Thanks for listening to Dishing Up Nutrition’s “Ask a Nutritionist”. If you found this episode to be helpful, be sure to leave us a rating or a review on your favorite podcast app. And if you have a question that you would like us to answer, we have two options for you to reach out to us. First, you can join our private Dishing Up Nutrition Facebook page by searching up Dishing Up Nutrition on Facebook.

Join Our Dishing Up Nutrition Facebook Group

Or you can call 952-641-5233 and leave a question on our Dishing Up Nutrition voicemail. If you have a question, let us know. We would love to hear from you.