Thrifty Thursday | Chocolate Pudding Pops!

The fruity yogurt popsicles were such a hit that I decided to try a chocolate fudge type popsicle.  I wanted to do this as inexpensively as possible so I searched around for a good chocolate pudding recipe.  Since this recipe has no eggs I decided to give it a try and it turned out great!

Chocolate Cornstarch Pudding

1/2 cup white sugar

3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 cup cornstarch 

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 3/4 cups milk

2 tablespoons margarine

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a saucepan, stir together sugar, cocoa, cornstarch and salt. Place over medium heat, and stir in milk.  Bring to a boil, and cook, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon.  Remove from heat and stir in margarine and vanilla.

Recipe from allRecipes.com

Once the pudding had cooled slightly I carefully spooned it into the popsicle molds.  Jaden was my big helper - he watched from a kitchen chair and played with the popsicle handles.  "Ready?" was his perpetual question as he waited for the chance to put the lids on the popsicles.  When I was finally ready Jaden happily put all the lids on the popsicles, after which I put them in the freezer.

The best part about making pudding pops? Licking the spoon!

During the whole pudding/popsicle making process Hannah was busy playing, but as soon as the camera came out she was underfoot.  Literally, she nearly got stepped on!

Not one to be left out of the action, Hannah had to check out the camera.  What a cheeser!

In the Kitchen | Fruity Yogurt Popsicles

For years now I've had a set of popsicle molds sitting idle in the cabinet over the refrigerator. I had great intentions to make popsicles for the kiddos but it never seemed to happen.

One evening, inspired by some strawberries in the freezer that were getting old I made fruit smoothies. They were pretty simple, yogurt, strawberries, and bananas. Jaden loved his smoothie, and the opportunity to drink from a straw. One blender-full of smoothie made more than enough for all of us with some leftover. Looking at the leftover mix I thought of the popsicle molds and dug them out of the cupboard. I poured the extra smoothies into the popsicle molds and popped them into the freezer.

Jaden and Hannah enjoying their popsicles on the deck.

The result? Tasty popsicles that both Hannah and Jaden enjoyed, and healthy too. Hannah is at the stage where she wants whatever her brother is having and this was a great treat for both of them. The two of them sitting side-by-side (totally unposed) on the deck enjoying their popsicles was so cute that I just had to snap a picture.

Next up on my list? Chocolate pudding pops - not so healthy, but tasty and fun!