In honor of Labor Day weekend, the last weekend many pools and beaches are open for the season, I thought I’d write about four of my favorite summery, healthy poolside snacks. Enjoy your last hurrah before the cooler temps kick in! (unless, of course, you’re lucky enough to live someplace warm year-round…)

• Strawberries with balsamic vinegar. I stole this idea from my favorite wine bar in New York City, ’ino. Just wash some strawberries, put them in a bowl, pour some good balsamic over them, and bring them out to the pool to nibble on. A healthy, seasonal, delicious snack!
• Popsicles. My friend bought rocket-shaped ice-pop molds from the kitchen store Sur La Table, and we love filling them with orange or grapefruit juice to make refreshing single-fruit treats. (Or, if we’re feeling lazy, we just head to the store and buy Edy’s All-Natural Fruit Bars—usually the lime, strawberry, and wildberry ones.) This Labor Day, however, I think I’ll be more creative. I just read a Daily Candy (NYC trend guide) newsletter about a group of New Yorkers who take seasonal fruits and herbs from local Greenmarkets and make them into unique popsicles to sell there; the group is called People’s Popsicle, and their blog lists some of their unique flavor combos with recipes… I think I’m going to try one of their ideas. I’ll either make their “Blue Velvet” (blueberries, yogurt and honey), Sugar Plum & Mint, Peach, Chamomile & Honey, or Watermelon, Cucumber & Hyssop. Yum!
• Smoothies. My favorite combos are strawberry-banana (strawberries, bananas, orange juice, and ice in a blender) or pineapple-peach (pineapples, peaches, orange juice, and ice in a blender). Frozen fruit works fine. Don’t forget to put a little slice of fruit on the rim of the glass to make your drink feel special!
• Watermelon. Cut it into cubes and eat as is, or try this Nigella recipe and make it as a light salad with feta, mint, red onion, and black olives, and lime juice. Are you thinking, yuck, watermelon with olives?? Just try it.

By the way, if you don’t have molds, don’t worry—People’s Popsicle say you can just use Dixie cups and put in popsicle sticks.

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