Earlier this week, one of my twin babies, Lorenzo, learned to roll over onto his back. He was doing morning tummy-time when he suddenly figured out how to get his arms underneath him to flip over. We were both shocked when it happened, and we looked at each other momentarily before he gave me the biggest smile! Two seconds later he was in my arms and I was kissing him and praising him for his big accomplishment. I wept tears of joy because everything my boys do throughout their development humbles me to the core.

There is so much transition happening right now. Families are transitioning from summer vacation, to back-to-school. From Summer heat waves, to Fall sweater weather (only in the mornings and evenings around here). Summer is quickly disappearing, but we still get to enjoy the long days and the beautiful weather for a little bit longer.

I developed this recipe earlier this week because I love to do unexpected things with vegetables. Rather than hide veggies or disguise them in order to get kids to eat them, celebrate them and show how wonderful they can be in different situations.

Here I’m using sweet potatoes, a favorite Fall ingredient, and combining them with coconut milk and fragrant spices. It’s a preview of the upcoming holiday season served in a delicious Summer popsicle (or paletas as they’re known throughout Latin America).

It was Christopher’s idea to dip these in white chocolate, and I added the graham crackers for texture and visual interest. The result is a creamy, spiced popsicle with a crisp white chocolate exterior. It’s quite fancy if you ask me!

Enjoy!!!

Sweet Potato & Coconut Popsicles (Paletas de Batata y Coco)

Servings: 10
Prep time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

1 lb sweet potato
1 16 oz can coconut milk
1 12 oz can sweetened condensed milk
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon cardamom
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 oz white chocolate chips
1 teaspoon coconut oil
1 graham cracker, crumbled

Instructions

1. Bake sweet potatoes in preheated 400 F oven for approximately 45 minutes, or until tender. Remove from the oven and allow to cool before removing skins from potatoes.
2. Combine baked sweet potatoes, coconut milk, condensed milk, vanilla and spices in a blender or food processor until no lumps remain and ingredients are completely incorporated. Pour into Popsicle molds and freeze for at least 6 hours or overnight.
3. Once popsicles have frozen, remove from molds by running the molds under warm water and allowing popsicles to sit out for 5 minutes. Remove popsicles and place on a parchment paper lined platter or baking sheet. Put back in the freezer for another 1-2 hours.
4. Combine white chocolate chips and coconut oil in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave for 30 seconds and stir, then repeat in 15-second intervals until chocolate is melted through.
5. Drizzle white chocolate or dip popsicles into melted white chocolate. Sprinkle with crumbled graham crackers (optional) then allow to set in freezer for a few more minutes before serving.

Notes

• If you don’t have cardamom, you can use pumpkin pie spice instead.
• For a vegan version of these paletas, use 3/4 cup sugar instead of condensed milk. You can also substitute coconut condensed milk.