When mike’s LITE hard lemonade reached out to me about creating healthier takes on summer fare, I was more than up for the challenge! I decided to revamp two appetizers, one entrée and one dessert and did my best to make dishes made with wholesome, healthy ingredients that we can all feel good about eating!
And stay tuned at the bottom of this post (it’s a LONG one!) for an awesome giveaway!
Appetizers
For the appetizers, I created two different creamy dips that utilize Greek yogurt as the main ingredient: An almond butter and honey fruit dip and a savory veggie dip!
Both dips come together in a flash and can be made with ingredients you likely already have on hand. No fuss!
First up is the almond butter and honey fruit dip!
I served this dip with crunchy apples and sweet strawberries.
It was a hit!
Cinnamon Almond Fruit Dip
Ingredients
- 2 cups fat free Greek yogurt
- 1/4 cup all-natural almond butter
- 2 1/2 tablespoons honey
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons sliced almonds (+ more for garnish, if desired)
Directions
- Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and stir together until completely combined
- Top with additional sliced almonds, if desired, and serve with fresh fruit
The veggie dip is super simple to make and only requires one mixing bowl, so dishes are minimal!
A quick note about this veggie dip: It’s also delicious as a sandwich spread! I love it on top of a whole wheat roll with avocado and turkey.
Savory Veggie Dip
Ingredients
- 1 cup fat free Greek yogurt
- 1/4 cup light mayonnaise
- 1/2 teaspoon dried dill
- 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh chopped scallions
- 1/4 teaspoon dried chives
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
- freshly ground pepper to taste
Directions
- Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and stir together until completely combined
- Serve with fresh vegetables and enjoy
Entreé
When I set out to create a healthy entrée, I wanted to make a delicious burger. I decided to use lean ground turkey as a base and knew I needed to add a lot of spice and flavor to the turkey to kick it up a notch. The end result was a tasty southwest burger that Ryan and I thought was fantastic!
I made these burgers for the first time over Mother’s Day weekend and again during a casual cook out at our house in Ocala. They were a hit on both occasions!
A little sliced avocado on top of the burgers make them even better!
Southwest Turkey Burgers
Makes 4 burgers
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground turkey
- 1/4 cup chopped bell pepper
- 3/4 packet reduced sodium taco seasoning
- 3 tablespoons salsa
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup chopped scallions
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 1 avocado, sliced
Directions
- Combine all ingredients except for the sliced avocado
- Using your hands, squish everything together and mold into four patties
- Coat a sauté pan with olive oil and bring to a medium-high heat
- Place the burgers in the pan and cook for 5 to 6 minutes on each side
- Top burgers with sliced avocado and desired toppings and enjoy
During our Sunday afternoon barbeque with friends, we all ate our burgers with the mike’s LITE hard black cherry lemonade. This flavor was new to me and I was excited to try it since I’ve enjoyed the original mike’s hard lemonade for years. (I’ve been using it to make an awesome sangria since college!)
After one sip of the mike’s LITE hard black cherry lemonade, I absolutely loved it! It’s sweet, refreshing and reminds me of the perfect poolside beverage.
It’s light and crisp and sweetened with a bit of honey which is right up my alley.
And here’s the quick and easy sangria recipe I’ve been making with mike’s hard lemonade for years, though I made it with mike’s LITE hard lemonade this time to stay with the “lightened up” theme of today’s post!
It’s incredibly easy to throw together in a flash and is a refreshing summertime sangria!
Lemonade Sangria
Ingredients
- 1 bottle white wine (Riesling or Moscato work well)
- 3 11.2-ounce bottles mikes LITE hard lemonade
- 1 lemon, sliced
- 1 lime, sliced
- 1 pint fresh raspberries
Directions
- Combine all ingredients in a large pitcher and refrigerate for approximately two hours.
- Pour into glasses, garnish with a lemon slice if desired and enjoy!
Note: You may also add lemon-lime soda or lemonade to taste for additional sweetness and lemon flavor.
Dessert
Dessert! My favorite course!
When I think of summertime desserts, ice cream immediately pops into my mind. I could easily eat a bowl of ice cream after every meal and never get sick of it, so that was the dessert I decided to tackle to try to make a little healthier. By using my favorite banana “soft serve” as a base, I added cacao powder and almond butter to the cold and creamy banana to make a dessert that only tasted indulgent!
Ryan and I both gobbled this up in no time at all and it definitely satisfied our sweet tooth in a healthier way!
Chocolate Almond Banana Soft Serve
Ingredients
- 5 frozen bananas, sliced (the riper the better!)
- 1/4 cup almond milk
- 3 tablespoons cacao powder
- 3 tablespoons almond butter
Directions
- Place bananas and almond milk in a large food processor and blend until creamy, approximately 5 minutes
- Add cacao powder and almond butter and blend until combined
- Top with desired toppings and enjoy immediately
And now you’re hopefully all feeling a little hungry and ready to get cookin’ in the kitchen, so let’s move right along to the giveaway portion of this blog post!
Three PBF readers will win a $100 gift card to use at the grocery store to pick up the ingredients you will need to make your own lightened up version of your favorite summertime recipes.
Awesome, right!?
To enter this giveaway, simply comment on this post by answering one (or both!) of the following questions:
- What is your favorite dish to enjoy at a summer cookout?
- What healthy dish do you like to bring to a summertime barbeque?
I will randomly select a winner on Monday!
Good luck!!!
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My favorite dish to bring to a bbq is a fresh fruit salad! It’s refreshing, healthy, and the perfect way to end a meal. Plus… I get to take the leftovers home 🙂
I love grilled asparagus or brussel sprouts!
hamburgers, especially served with pasta salad. It’s the way my mom did it, so it always says summer to me.
Fruit salad is always my jam in the summer, and it’s perfect for party-sharing. I also love any vegetables on the grill, especially zucchini.
Bruchetta quinoa salad from Peas and Crayons. Delicious, fresh and healthy.
I love to have Texas caviar in the summer time. It’s a great alternative to salsa and you can pile it high onto tortilla chips. I love this recipe, but it has a lot of sugar. To make it healthier you can swap out the sugar for agave nectar or honey. The recipe makes a HUGE batch, but I love having left overs to eat on top of a pile of greens for lunch. http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Best-Ever-Texas-Caviar/Detail.aspx
My favorite dish to bring to a summertime cookout is grilled pinapple or grille peaches! So yum!
My answer to both is a corn and bean salad with a light lime vinegarette!
Anything on the grill always turns out good to me. I specifically love throwing together a fruit salad which always ends up a hit at any BBQ or picnic!
I love the ramen noodle with cabbage salad! so light and tasty….and it’s usually what I make to bring, too!
I love a good, veggie filled pasta salad!
I loooove bacon wrapped jalapeno poppers. To me, no BBQ is complete without them.
When I am making a healthier side dish for gatherings I normally stick with a salad. I make chicken salad with avocado and lemon instead of mayo or a pasta salad with LOADS of veggies and whole wheat pasta. My friends love that I make healthy food taste good.
I love the cheese platters and trying different cheeses that I never buy! But my favorite healthier option is definitely fruit bowls, I could eat fruit all day long!
I usually bring a fresh caprese salad to a BBQ and its always a hit. My favorite cookout food is a good old fashioned hamburger!
I always hit up whatever fruit options there are. It always tastes so good when it’s hot outside!
My favorite dish to enjoy would be hamburgers. My favorite lightened up dish to bring would be fruit salad!
i made a beet arugula goat cheese pear and sunflower seed salad and it was delis
Hands down, my dad’s turkey burgers!
I make a pretty delicious corn and black bean salsa. It’s my go to dish for summer cook outs.
I love to make this lentil dip that has peppers and onions
I am a huge fan of vegetable kebobs on the grill. I bring the scewers and the chopped pieces of nions, peppers, zucchini, butternut squash, sweet potatoes,! Yum!
I recently tried GRILLED PIZZA after a friend recommended it. Its delicious. I made my own whole wheat pizza dough let it get hot on the grill for a few minutes. Flipped it over and put sauce, cheese and basil on the warm side. (if you add meat or other veggies sauté them before). Its incredible!
I love love love any kind of corn dip, especially if it’s mexican flavor and CHEESY! The spicier the better!
I love to bring fruit cookie “pizza” to a cook out! While it isn’t super healthy, it does have healthy fruit as a delicious and beautiful topping!
I absolutely love summertime cookouts! Turkey burgers with avocado are my fave for sure; I also love a big bowl of fresh fruit and my mom’s vegetarian baked beans!
All of your recipes look delicious!!
I usually bring a cold quinoa salad with lots of chopped veggies for my gluten free friends! It’s always a hit with everyone. My favorite dishes are anything with fruit and/or dips! I also love a good sangria. I’m going to try your recipe ASAP! Usually sangria looks complicated to make, but yours looks simply and delicious! Thanks Julie!
My favorite bbq dish to enjoy (and usually bring) is fresh homemade guacamole!
I’m your typical American girl who loves to enjoy a good burger on the grill! I’ve been bringing fruit salad to recent BBQs because who doesn’t love the color and flavor of fresh fruit!?
I love to eat and bring Texas Caviar. It’s a combination of black beans, peppers, corn, and a delicious cilantro lime vinegarette. Serve with tortilla chips or top a salad. Yum!
My favorite dish to enjoy at a cookout is deviled eggs!! I can’t get enough of them but try to limit myself to 2 or 3.
I always bring my cold veggie pizza to cookouts, made with crescent roll dough, greek yogurt mixed with a little miracle whip and ranch seasoning, and lots of veggies on top. It’s always a hit!
I love a good ol’ burnt hotdog at a cookout!
For a healthy app I like to bring corn & feta salsa. Corn + feta + EVOO + S&P
My favorite thing to eat at a cookout is probably barbecue chicken, but i love to bring a healthy three bean salad or vegetable dish so that I’m not just loading up on mayonnaise-filled cole slaw and potato salad.
To me, kabobs just yell summer. You can customize them anyway you want! Usually I like mine with chicken, zucchini, and roasted tomatoes. With some sweet corn beside them 🙂
My favorite summer BBQ dish would have to be burgers with guacamole, or anything with a guacamole dip.
If i had to bring something to a BBQ, I would probably bring some type of dessert. I love making a Banana PB Pie, but thats hard to bring since it needs to stay frozen or cold.
chicken marinated in italian dressing and grilled corn on the cob… it’s like comfort food to me! And I always like to bring some sort of southwestern salsa dish- perfect as an appetizer or even a side.
I love bringing fruit to a cookout! It’s nice to have something to munch on other than chips, and what says “SUMMER” more than a bowl of watermelon??
I always try to bring a salad to a summer cookout to help my friends get a little veggies in with their meat and carbs!
My favorite thing to eat at a BBQ is a good brat or all natural chicken sausage 🙂 Also I love to bring a citrus quinoa salad!
My favorite cook dish to eat at a party would have to be hot dogs!!
A healthier dish I like to bring to cookouts is pumpkin dip with ginger snaps. So delicious and not absolutely awful in calories, if made with the right ingredients 🙂
I always enjoy a nice tomato salad or corn on the cob. My go-to dish to bring though is bacon wrapped dates. My CF box has lots of social gatherings and it’s a given that that’s what I’ll bring. In fact, there’s a container in my frig for a bday party tonight!!
I love a good cheeseburger at a cookout. And I always like to bring watermelon as my healthy side. It can be so good when it is hot outside.
I love fresh black bean/corn/cilanto salad
My husband and I love to throw potato and any other veggies we have handy into a grill pack and steam it up on the grill with some flavored olive oil- you can’t mess i t up! I usually follow it up with grilled peaches and some smores for dessert =)
I think watermelon is my favorite cookout food…although i usually bring some kind of cookie or cupcake dessert 😉
I bring my aunt’s bean salad recipe with tortilla chips – it’s delicious!
I love to grill, and to bring a variety of salads to make them fun! I love Mike’s for a summer drink, so I will definitely be sure to try the light Mike’s. Thanks for the recipe ideas–I will be trying a few of them myself!
I love corn on the cob.
I like to bring fruit salad.
I love bringing salads that combine fresh, colorful chopped veggies with healthy grains- bulgar, quinoa, wheat berries- and light and creamy yogurt dressing. So cooling on hot summer days! I also love taste-testing chili at the annual chili cook-off that my aunt hosts each year.
I love bringing a fruit salad or homemade salsa to a BBQ!
I love me some Mike’s Hard Lemonade…so refreshing! I always bring a cocktail with me…..Peach Schnapps, Champagne and fresh chopped peaches. So So good.
I love making caprese salad bites, with fresh basil and tomatoes from my garden!
My all-time favorite part of summer barbe
My absolute favorite summer side dish is corn on the cob! And I love bringing a black bean, corn, avocado salsa! It’s calorie friendly and a great dip.
These all look so good! Already added the ingredients for the sangria to my grocery list so I can make it this weekend. Yummm!! My favorite lightened up bbq dish right now are homemade veggie burgers with sweet summer corn in them and a caprese topping.