I recently returned from my annual family beach vacation. It’s my family and my husband’s family, so around 35 or 40 of us in all. As you can imagine, there is a lot of beach time, huge dinners, and a lot of drinking.

One of my brother-in-laws is a big fan of fruity malted beverages, like Mike’s Hard Lemonade and other fruit flavored drinks. At one dinner, everyone was gawking at his peach flavored drink that came in a trendy 24oz mason jar. One of my sister-in-laws noticed it actually had calories and ingredients listed (something most alcoholic drinks don’t have). To her, and everyone else’s surprise, this 24oz drink had 800 calories in it! It also had high fructose corn syrup, artificial colors and artificial flavors- which may or may not be surprising to you. It also said there were 8 servings in this container, which in my opinion is just a way to make the calories look less horrible than they really were. Of course the whole drink was consumed with dinner, which made me realize that most of us have no idea how many calories we are consuming with those tasty summer alcoholic beverages. How could we? Most aren’t even labeled!

Do you know how many calories are in your favorite tasty #summer alcoholic beverage? #saslife Click To Tweet

Of course alcohol has many different effects in our body, but if we are just thinking calories alone, here is a nice chart to get those wheels turning. I’m a big believer in Knowledge Is Power!

For an even bigger list check out THIS article.

For some non-alcoholic tasty summer treats: Popsicles! With a healthy twist.

Lava Flow Ice Pops
Makes 8 popsicles
Recipe Adapted from: Nom Nom Paleo

A cool treat for those hot summer days!

Ingredients

1 cup fresh or frozen strawberries
1½ cups fresh or frozen diced pineapple
1 cup full-fat coconut milk (canned)
1 ripe fresh or frozen banana

Directions

1. Puree strawberries in a blender and set aside. Rinse the blender, then puree pineapple, coconut milk and banana.
2. Start filling your popsicle molds with a little of the strawberry purée. Then add the pineapple mixture until it reaches ⅔ of the way to the top. (You can also alternate the strawberry and pineapple mixture to make striped popsicles.)
3. Gently insert the popsicle sticks and put the filled molds in the freezer. Chill for 4 to 6 hours or until solid.
4. To serve, run the molds under hot water just enough to loosen.

Nutrition Information per Popsicle: 80 calories, 4gm total fat, 10gm carbohydrates, 1gm fiber, 1gm protein

 

Chocolate Fudge Bars
Makes 6 popsicles
Adapted from: McKel Hill

Ingredients

1 cup light coconut milk
½ cup cocoa powder
3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
2 avocados
Pinch of sea salt

Directions

1. In a small saucepan, gently warm coconut milk, cocoa powder and maple syrup, stirring to combine. Pour this mixture into a high-speed blender.  Add avocado and salt, and blend until smooth. Adjust the salt and maple syrup to taste.
2. Pour the mixture into popsicle molds, leaving about a 1/4-inch space at the top. Gently insert popsicle sticks and put filled molds in the freezer. Freeze overnight.
3. To serve, run the molds under hot water just enough to loosen.

Here is another version you can try: Citrus Espresso Fudge Paletas

Nutrition Information per Popsicle: 150 calories, 10gm total fat, 65mg sodium, 15gm carbohydrates, 2gm protein

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