Banana Popsicles dipped in Chocolate and Nuts

Ice-cream is such a dangerous thing to have "on hand"! The oh-so-easy snack, comforting and indulgent. Now, with so many kinds of them... Lowfat, FatFree, LowSugar, SugarFree, LowCarb, Heart Healthy and many more, an average person no wonder gets overwhelmed.
I take time to read each and every ice cream's nutritional facts before settling on one, seems like an awful lot of time to be reading some label, but here is why it is important.
Most of the fatfree stuff has tons of sugar in them, I don't know why, but they seem to be compensating the lack of grease with sugar! And then there is the story about artificial sweeteners, the jury is still out on that. But either way doesn't help. The fat content is something that needs to be taken into account too.

Every child reserves the right to a nutritious and healthy food, why feed him/her junk, greasy, sugary stuff in the name of fast-food then? Why would one opt for such a lifestyle for your own kid? Beats me...

So, when your child asks for an ice cream the next time(I am not for denying a child the little pleasures, but moderation is what I suggest), if possible make a home-made low sugar and fat version at home. But if you are one who says "Wish I had more time and resources to be making ice creams at home" then this is something you'd want to consider.

Firstly, the bananas when frozen do not get hard. They are still soft and chewable.
I used a combination of dark and semi-sweet chocolate this time, and I am going completely dark the next time. I was not sure how this was going to turn out, so opted the easy way out by mixing both.
If you are making this for children, I don't think they would be enamored by the dark chocolate taste, so go for semi-sweet all the way.
It is very important to freeze bananas completely before dipping them in chocolate and after. Skimping on time will end in a mess. They stay frozen for a long time, so make sure to make lots of them and store them in the freezer in bags for a quick treat any time of the day.



Banana Popsicles dipped in Chocolate and Nuts

Ingredients:

Bananas - 5 large
Dark/Semi-sweet chocolate - 1 cup
Fatfree Half and Half milk- 2 tbsp
Chopped Nuts (Almonds/Peanuts/Walnuts/Pistachios) - As needed

Hardware:
Skewers or Ice-cream sticks - 10 (break off sharp tip if using skewers)
Tray
Wax paper

Method:

Cut bananas in half, insert an ice-cream stick into each one. Lay it on a tray lined with wax paper and freeze for about 4-5 hours. I freeze them overnight. They need to be really cold and frozen before the next step.

Melt chocolate and milk over a double boiler, the top bowl should not touch the water below.



Keep stirring the chocolate till it becomes silky smooth.

Take the bananas right when you are going to make the dipping, not before that.

Dip or spread the chocolate onto the bananas and immediately sprinkle or roll in chopped nuts.

Lay it flat on a wax paper on a tray and freeze again for 3 hours or till the chocolate has hardened.

To store, you may store it in freezer bags once they are completely frozen.

Makes a great snack for kids and for the kid in you!