A food blogger with a picky eater for a son is such a travesty isn’t it? Cooper is a very visual kid and he has a lot of distrust when it comes to food. For example, he loves red peppers, but if you try to mix things up and cut a red pepper into chunks instead of strips, he will not put the red pepper in his mouth. We also go through crazy power trips where one week he loves something and the next he’s over it. I know it’s totally normal, but gosh darn it’s frustrating when I make something special and he won’t eat it. Can you even believe he wouldn’t try a bite of my mom’s sour cream coffee cake?
The only thing that’s been working for us as of late is the reward system. You know…the you have to finish what’s on your plate or try 3 bites of vegetables before you get dessert, system. I was reluctant to try it because I don’t want him to think he’ll always get dessert. I mean…I grew up not eating dessert, he should too. The thing is…as a parent sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do. If it means he’ll try something new, I think it might be worth it. The biggest drawback is that Cooper has always been sensitive to sugar so whatever we give him for dessert after dinner has to have a low amount of sugar or else he can’t sleep or will have nightmares. Poor guy.
This is where Frozen Yogurt Dots have come in handy. I found this recipe thru Pinterest and my friend Danielle made them too! I thought I’d give it a try. The other afternoon after Cooper woke up for nap, I surprised him with a batch. He was skeptical at first, but after convincing him they were ice cream dots, he went NUTS for them. The best part is that he thinks having 3-4 dots after dinner is a legitimate dessert for him. Crazy, right?
It’s really simple. Let me show you how:
Get out your favorite yogurt. We used blueberry. My friend Kimli got me kind of addicted to this yogurt.
Put it in a sandwich bag. Lick the spoon.
Snip the end of the sandwich bag with scissors.
Pipe the yogurt on a baking sheet.
Freeze it! It takes about 30-40 minutes for the dots to freeze.
Present them to your 3 year old…
And then tell them it’s ice cream!
We’ve already made a batch of strawberry & we’re hoping to try chocolate yogurt soon.
Boom boom pow!
If you’re on Pinterest and you have a kid, you might want to follow my KIDZ board. It’s fun!
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75 Comments
say somethinggenius! those look pretty appealing to me as an adult…
I was totally a picky eater when I was a kid. But now I’ll put just about anything in my mouth (…that’s what she said). I never would’ve turned down coffee cake, but I didn’t like peppers until I was in my 20s.
Snort!
You’re brilliant! Also, Cooper’s going to read this one day and be *pissed* that they weren’t really ice cream. And I’m totes using this trick when I have a little one.
He will grow up with me tinkering with his food…it’s gonna be a tough life for him…haha
Fantastic! I’m sharing this with my sister now. My niece is super picky, but I know she loves yogurt and ice cream!
brilliant! my picky little guy will love these! xo
I totally need to try this.
Such a fun idea for kids…and adults! I can’t wait to make them for myself:)
Ok wonder if Caleb will like them one day!
I can’t wait to make these. We always have Chobani and my little cousin picked out the peach because she hates blueberry.
So smart! My kids used to think yogurt was a proper dessert – that and fresh berries
PS – love the ice cream face!
Berries are a dessert? Haha jk
Oh, I love this idea. I don’t know why these little strokes of genius don’t hit us moms more often. We ALWAYS freeze the Stonyfield Yokids squeezers – it’s the only way my kids will eat them. But it’s never even occurred to me to do these cute little numbers. Thanks for the fantastic idea!! I just happen to have some plain Greek yogurt and homemade jam in the fridge – guess what we’re making tomorrow!
I was just thinking the same thing. It’s because we are either zapped for energy or we have too much and that prevents us from coming up with creative ideas. That’s why it’s good to share info!
This is awesome. One out of three of mine eat like him. I guess I shouldn’t even complain, but it’s so frustrating when everyone else will eat but one.
Your KIDZ board is the coolest – now following.
I can imagine how that could be frustrating!
I want these. riiiiiiiight now.
You neeeeeeeeeeed to make some, girl!!
LOVE that picture of Cooper with his tongue out! So cute. And the yogurt dots look good too
Hehehe
Ha! I like this idea. Cooper is the cutest. I may try this the next time I’m in town visiting my little sis.
Thank you!
This looks fun even though I don’t have a little one!
Total genius! I saw this two minutes ago and already have yoghurt container and a tray in front of me. Making the right now.
Will be sharing this with our readers at some point soon and will link back your way as well – yum!!
Booya! I love that you just whipped up a batch!
Brilliant.
Can’t wait to try.
I tried these after seeing it on Pinterest too. My daughter looves them!! I also tricked her in to thinking dried cranberries were a treat and she thinks they are gummies. A mom’s gotta do what a mom’s gotta do!
Still can’t get cooper on the dried cranberry train!
I am so not a mother but I’m happy to see someone try this out with greek yogurt. It’s way less processed/fake sugar-y but still really yummy. I may have to try this out for my adult treats!
You should totally try it!
LOVE the pictures of Cooper sizing up this mysterious food. I won’t have kids for a while, but I might just have to try this for myself. Sometimes I need to trick myself into believing a healthy snack is a dessert too!
I love the pictures!
My daughter also has moments like your son… This is a great idea!
fantastic idea! this post made me laugh so much!
Great idea, and precious photos of your cute son!
we freeze yogurt bites, but not for our kids. they taste great when you sprinkle them over your granola in the morning!
so brilliant! and cuuute
Perfect timing! I just made yogurt in my rice cooker yesterday. Its really easy, you should try it. Will be trying out these today.
oooh awesome! do you have a recipe? I have a rice cooker!
I followed this tutorial and it worked perfectly. The yoghurt is really mild tasting and great for kids. If you like your yoghurt tangier that you need to leave it in the rice cooker for longer.
http://www.apronstringsblog.com/frugal-tips/fab-frugal-friday-how-to-make-your-own-greek-yogurt-good-news-its-a-cinch/
Brilliant! I have to try this for my picky kids!
This is so beautiful and simple. Exactly the kind of thing you could serve to a child who demands dessert every night and afternoon (wonder where he got that from)?! Thanks for the idea and the beautiful photo essay outlining the process.
I hate to break this to you, but thought you should know that psychologically, doing a reward system for undesired foods unfortunately both increases the aversion to the food you’re trying to get him to eat and increases his cravings for the reward food, making it great in the short term for eating dinner tonight but really detrimental in the long run.
I can see you’re being really health-conscious about the reward and of course with a picky eater sometimes whatever works goes, but thought you should know.
What a wonderful idea. I could eat a gazillion of these and it still wouldn’t be enough.
Genius. I’m making these right now, well as soon as I make some room in my freezer.
LOVE IT.
xo
cortnie
My picky daughter will love these! I’m always looking for a way to work in healthy possibilities into her limited menu. She is crazy for frozen yogurt and this will be a treat I can feel good about.
Genius! Nothing but genius! For adults & kiddos alike!
Genius idea!
hey Tracy, how would you store these? I;m a college student who needs health snacks on the go. I’d dying to make these, but should i just keep them in fridge/freezer, until I’m ready to eat them? Also how long will they keep outside of the fridge/freezer?
I put them in a little tupperware container
and! they don’t last long outside the freezer. a few minutes.
I would do this even for me.. XD love it
The pictures of your son are so absolutely adorable, you could write a story book around them!
I came across your blog on Pinterest when I was searching for a way to freeze yogurt for my daughter. This is exactly what I was looking for! I had to subscribe to your blog because I can’t stop looking at all of the yummy recipes. I just started my own blog and linked to you on my very first post! Here’s the link if you want to check it out:
http://www.hubbymademe.com/easy-frozen-yogurt-melts/
Thank you for the inspiration
Do you have to freeze them on baking sheet? Could you freeze them on a regular plate?
you could probably freeze them on a plate.
This is just the best idea! Thank you! Our kids are synthetic dye free and dairy free — so we’ll try it with coconut milk yogurt — but this is just such a great idea! Thanks!
Awesome! Let me know how it goes.
What a great idea! Why have I not thought of this before?
My thoughts exactly!
I made these last night for myself and they’re spectacular! I also dipped some leftover blueberries in the yogurt and froze…yum! Maybe raspberries next? Or currants? Thanks for the post! I will have a consistant supply in my freezer from here on out.
OMG your kid is SUPER CUTE! Can I have him?
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