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 thing at BBQ’s is chicken on the grill! I usually bring fruit and a fruit dip to BBQ’s!
I’m the same way… I’m always full before the main meal even makes its appearance! So I love all the dips and little appetizer bites!
i make a lightened up spinach veggie dip… fat free greek yogurt, a packet of veggie/onion soup mix, box of frozen spinach, and chopped up water chestnuts. it’s always a hit!
My favorite dish to enjoy and bring to a summer cookout is a black bean quinoa salad! As a vegetarian it’s nice to have an option with protein being that typical barbeque items are meat centered 🙂
I love the sides dishes – pasta salad and potato salad. I like to make a healthier version with greek yogurt (instead of mayo) and add lots of veggies into the mix. I’m pretty sure my friends only invite me to BBQ’s because they know I’ll bring a summer salad! 🙂
I always bring a spinach & strawberry salad with goat cheese. One of my all time favorites!
I always go straight for the pasta salad or chips & dip. Every. Single. Time.
My favorite recipe to bring is a pasta salad I found on Gina’s website (fitnessista.com). It has noodles of your choice, arugula, sundried tomatoes, feta, artichokes, and pesto (which is my FAVORITE THING EVER). so good!
I LOVE making BBQ Chicken Burgers. They’re so simple, yet so flavorful!
I typically bring a bean dip; but I use fate yogurt instead of sour cream….no one can ever tell it’s healthy, and I never come home with leftovers!
Turkey burgers are my favorite!
I have been thinking about the perfect dishes to make for our housewarming party. I’m thinking corn and avocado salsa and a healthy version of a cherry cobbler! Delicious.
What is your favorite dish to enjoy at a summer cookout? burgers and watermelon
What healthy dish do you like to bring to a summertime barbeque? Greek hummus dip
I always go for grilled veggie kebabs and fresh corn on the cob at bbqs – you can’t beat fresh summer produce and grilling everything together is the perfect way to enjoy it!
I like having ice cream after a cook out. Tops it off right! My favorite healthy dish to bring would be fruit salad. It’s cold, light, and delicious!
Summer to me means all things grilled and one of my favorite grilled dishes would be grilled shrimp. One of my favorite dishes to bring to a summer time gathering would have to be guacamole. But I like to serve it with fresh crispy veggies like celery or even slices of radish. It makes the guac stand out for its fresh flavor and you don’t get the extra calories from tortilla chips!
My favorite healthy dish is fruit salad. Watermelon, cantalope, strawberries,pinnapple, and grapes. Delicious. I also love aspargras cooked on the grill, you can also add a bit of bacon to it 🙂
In true Floridian fashion, my favorite dish would be grilled shrimp skewers or mahi! Complimented with some grilled veggies and corn…and of course a Corona:)
I love bbq-ed sausages, and I like to bring brownies or fresh fruit in a bowl (because it’s so easy)!
I LOVE grilled corn on the cob! The best!
All of these recipes look fantastic! I really love grilled corn-so naturally sweet with a smoky flavor from the grill.
I usually bring watermelon as my healthy dish..easy and delish!
I love burgers and making turkey burgers would be a health alternative. Like to bring a no mayo red potato salad.
Turkey burgers with salsa and avacado are my favorite!
My family makes a savory mexican cheesecake, it’s like a dip you eat with tortilla chips in cheesecake form and it’s a family favorite!
I’m a burger fiend. I rarely eat them and there’s nothing better than a good one — especially when there’s a unique twist to them, like adding avocado slices or when they’re grilled with cheese inside.
I love grilled veggies! And watermelon! And beer! (hard to choose!)
I love grilled corn on the cob and any pasta salad.
My favorite dish to enjoy and bring to a summer cookout is a cucumber and watermelon salad dish.
Since I can’t pick just one, my favorite dishes to enjoy at a summer cookout are deviled eggs, chips and salsa, and guacamole. I like to bring a veggie tray with dip as my healthy dish. Yum! Now I want to have a BBQ 🙂
I love sweet corn at summer BBQ’s!
My favorite summer dish is BBQ chicken with plenty of BBQ sauce for dipping! My somewhat healthy side dish I like to bring to parties are deviled eggs 🙂
I always bring a black bean salad that incorporates different beans + an apple cidedar vinegar dressing, or sometimes guacamole!
My favorite BBQ dish is the fruit salad! All the prep work is done so I just shovel it into my mouth!
My favorite dish to enjoy at a summer cookout is always a nice fresh burger hot of the grill!
A lightened up dish I’ll prepare is a Jello-fruit-no bake cheesecake tart, it’s nice and refreshing with the perfect amount of sweetness.
There`s nothing better than some good old grilled veggies in the summer! especially when marinated with a little balsamic, yum!
I love couscous cucumber mint salad for summer BBQ’s, its so refreshing in a hot weather…also love corn on the cob and watermelon salad
At a BBQ I love a great hamburger because I don’t cook them all that often at home. My go-to dish to bring is a light and zesty (no mayo) pasta salad with lots of veggies.
I’m definitely an appetizer kind of gal at summer bbqs – I also always fill up on chips, guac, salsa, artichoke dip, etc!
I like to bring a hummus-based dip garnished with cucumber, tomatoes and feta!
My favorite dish to enjoy is definitely grilled mexican street corn, only lightened up by using greek yogurt instead of mayo. Then my staple go-to to bring to a BBQ is a delicious cucumber salad. To me nothing quite says summer like a good mix of fresh cucumbers and tomatoes!
Let’s face it, I love the burgers. I rarely eat them so when it’s cookout time, that’s the first thing I’m going for. OR BRATS WITH SO MUCH SAUERKRAUT. But I like to bring a grape salad to barbeques. Gotta get SOMETHING healthy!
I love serving fresh fruits with a light fruity yogurt based dip and fresh veges with a light creamy dill ranch dip. Yum….
My favorite dish is my mom’s grilled chicken with corn on the cob and a fresh cucumber/tomato salad from her garden. My go to healthy appetizer is guacamole of course!!! I love pairing it with pita chips and veggies 🙂
My favorite summer dish to bring to a cookout is definitely a colorful fruit salad. All I ever want to eat during the summer is fruit, and I love that it can double as a dessert to satisfy a healthy sweet tooth!
Grilled corn is one of my favorite foods! Really, most veggies grilled are delicious!
i absolutely love grilled chicken or fish with a side of grilled veggies (zucchini and bell pepper). in my opinion, anything tastes better on the grill 🙂
My favorite thing to eat at a cookout is chicken kebabs with sliced peppers, onion, pineapple and mushrooms. They are also good with steak and served with rice on the side. To me that just screams summer!
When I go to a cookout I have been bringing that amazing edemame salad that you posted this past winter. It has great flavor, and everyone loves it!
I love grilled veggies, but I think my favorite is grilled corn on the cob!
my favorite (not so healthy) dish is my aunt’s artichoke dip! it’s to die for
My favorite dish at a Summer cookout is either coleslaw or corn on the cob!
I love a good hamburger! I like to bring either a lightened up pasta salad or a good, summery fruit salad.
Pico de gallo just screams summer (and cookouts) to me. I also love grilled portobello mushrooms with balsamic…so good!
I love grilled kabobs with lots of veggies. I often bring berry salad of Dijon mustard potato salad to bbqs.
My favorite things to BBQ are ginger garlic chicken burgers, they are so delicious! Also I love to grill green beans!