Author: Jennifer Wells

Smiling is something that humans are born knowing how to do; it’s an involuntary response to feeling happy or joyful, and you can express that feeling before you even know what it means. Smiles can melt your heart, start a new friendship and make you healthier. Even a smile in the shape of an emoji can lighten the mood. 🙂 We put together our top 10 reasons to smile even more than you already do. Get ready to get happy!

1. Smiling automatically puts you in a better mood. Next time you’re having one of these days, just try smiling instead of complaining. We’re betting you’ll be smiling for real in no time!
2. Smiling makes you look friendlier and more approachable. Because more friends are never a bad thing, right?
3. Smiling is a natural stress-reliever. Studies have shown that when under stress, smiling can lower your heart rate and reduce the levels of cortisol, a stress-related hormone.
4. It’s contagious! Try it out. When you’re walking down the hallway or on the street, smile at a stranger as you pass by. You’ll be make their day!
5. Smiling boosts your immune system. You’ve heard the phrase, ‘Laughter is the best medicine’ – well that’s true! It makes you more relaxed which contributes to a healthier life.
6. Smiles are more attractive to others than makeup. Plus, they’re free!
7. It’s a universal sign of happiness. Even if we don’t speak the same language, we still communicate.
8. There are 19 different ways to smile. Try to master all of them!
9. Smiling helps you stay positive. What you put out into the universe is what you get back and we guarantee the more you smile, the more people will smile back at you.
10. And as if you needed more reasons, here’s one more. You can now smile with a brighter smile with our whitening services! If that’s not a reason to smile, then we don’t know what is.

Ice cream is the cherry on top of the dessert sundae. In fact, ice cream is the most popular dessert in America. What makes a scoop so sinfully sweet? Most commercial ice creams are high in fat and loaded with added sugar.

Icy treats don’t have to be full of sugar and fat! While it’s true your pearly whites aren’t fond of sugar, they love calcium, a key nutrient for building and maintaining strong teeth and bones. And, if you don’t get enough calcium, you’re increasing your risk for gum disease.

So what’s a smile to do? Keep the calcium, cut the sugar and reduce the fat. Creating healthy ice cream may sound intimidating, but it’s easier than you think!

Make like a reporter and get the scoop on our favorite healthy ice cream recipes. And grab your umbrella – there may be a chance of sprinkles!

Go shorty, it’s sherbet day. 

3-2-1 Raspberry Sherbet Recipe ~ Using a mix of fresh and frozen raspberries (3 cups), some cream (2 cups), some sugar (1 cup) with just a touch of lemon juice,  TO DIE FOR!

~ Place the 3-2-1 mix of ingredients into a blender. You don’t have to have a fancy blender, any ol’ blender will do.
~ Puree until all ingredients are well blended and you get this creamy, luscious mixture.
~ Then follow your ice cream maker manufacturer’s instructions for sherbet.

Every day is sherbet day with fresh fruit and a few other healthy ingredients. Whip up a sorbet base and add your favorite frozen fruit. Delight your pearly whites, pick a sorbet star with a high water content such as pears or apples.

This split is B-A-N-A-N-A-S.

Banana Split Bites ~ A classic ice cream dessert gets mini for some bite size fun. And yes, there is actually a tiny scoop of ice cream tucked inside and underneath the whip cream of those little darlings.

~ Use firm bananas and cut into 1 inch sections. Leave the peel on for easy handling, and with a melon baller, dig a well in the middle of each banana section.
~ Melt chocolate in the microwave and dip the bottom portion of the banana in chocolate and then dip it once again in either sprinkles or chopped peanuts. To quickly harden the chocolate, place dipped bananas in the freezer for five minutes.
~ Fill each well with ice cream and top with whip cream and a cherry!

These banana split bites are tooth healthy twist on a summer classic. The dessert on a stick features fruit, nut, sprinkles and a coat of chocolate. Chocolate may not be sugar free, but it’s one of the best sweets for your teeth. It dissolves quickly in the mouth, which decreases the amount of time sugar touches your teeth.

Get your Greek on.

Greek Vanilla Bean Frozen Yogurt {Soft Serve Style} ~ 1/4 cup water, 2/3 cup sugar, 2 egg whites, 3 cups of plain Greek yogurt, cold and 1 vanilla bean, scraped (or 1 tsp vanilla bean paste)

~ In a saucepan over medium-high heat, bring water and sugar to a full boil about 90 seconds or until all the sugar has dissolved and you have a thick, clear syrup. Turn off heat!
~ Use a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites to soft peaks at medium-high speed. Reduce the speed to low and stream the hot sugar syrup slowly into the beaten egg whites. When you have added all the syrup, turn the mixer up to high and continue beating until the mixture forms a thick, glossy meringue and the sides of the bowl are no longer hot to touch, but just warm.
~ Fold the Greek yogurt and vanilla into the meringue until well incorporated. Transfer the mixture straight into the bowl of your ice cream maker and churn according to manufacturer’s instructions until frozen, but still soft-serve texture (not firm).

Greek yogurt is both low in fat and contains body enhancing probiotics. It’s simple to make your own Greek frozen yogurt and it’s so creamy, you won’t even notice the difference. This basic vanilla bean recipe is flavorful and packed with protein. Try it for yourself and Greek out!

Regardless of which treat you try, you won’t be able to top these unbeatable recipes. Well maybe with a little bit of hot fudge!

It’s the 4th of July next week! Here at First Impressions Family Dentistry we are excited! We are closed Monday, July 3rd through Wednesday, July 5th and will reopen Thursday, July 6th.  And appreciate our patients understanding so we are able to have fun plans with family and friends! We wanted to share some fun 4th of July recipes that are easy to do. So many creative ways to make this holiday memorable!

Here are a few fun ways to serve food on the 4th…

4th of July pretzels

Ingredients:

blue and red m&m’s
hershey hugs

Place the hugs on the pretzels on a baking sheet and then place the baking sheet in the oven at 200 degrees for about 7 minutes. Just watch for the Hugs to barely melt. Take them out and place red, white and blue m&m’s on tip and let them cool! Patriotic and delicious. A great combo!

Patriotic Berry & Cake Dessert Platter

Ingredients:

angel food cake (or make your own white cake 😉 )
strawberries
blueberries

So, if you are like me and need something quick you can buy a pre-made cake at the store and just cut it in small cake squares. So, you will just need a rectangle platter and a little bowl to place the blueberries in on the top left corner. Then line the strawberries and cake squares every other row to make a flag! Easy Peasy! Also, you can serve a little dish of whipped cream on the side. YUM!

Star Spangled Fruit Salad

Ingredients:

blueberries
watermelon

The Star Spangled Fruit salad is easy to make! Simply cut watermelon into 1/2 inch thick slices and then cut with a small star shaped cookie cutter. If you have a couple different sizes it looks even better! Then combine blueberries and watermelon in a medium serving bowl. Toss gently to blend. And there you have it a Star Spangled Fruit Salad!

Watermelon and Blueberry Sparklers

Ingredients:

blueberries
watermelon
wooden skewers

You can use extra watermelon and blueberries from the Star Spangled Fruit Salad recipe listed above! Cut out stars from the watermelon using a star shaped cookie cutter. Place six blueberries on each skewer. Top each skewer with a watermelon star. Kids will love these. Just make sure they don’t run with the sticks!