Recently, a good friend brought over freshly harvested pomegranates from her very own backyard. The last time I encountered pomegranates was when I was a little kid trick-or-treating on Halloween. One of our neighbors left a box of pomegranates out on his porch with a sign that read, "Take one only." And so of course I took one...or two. What I discovered that Halloween night was a strange blood-red, sweet and sour fruit.
And here I am again, rediscovering those sweet little bursts of pomegranate arils. Pomegranates are delicious but taking them out of their shells was quite difficult. The blood-red juices sprayed all over our shirts...which looked like Halloween again. Besides the scary side of pomegranates, they are really tasty with some granola and yogurt.

Pomegranate Granola Yogurt:
yield: 4 individual cups

Ingredients:
1 cup pomegranate arils
2 cups yogurt (any flavor)
1 cup granola

Directions:
1.  Place 1/2 cup yogurt in each cup.
2.  Top with 1/4 cup granola in each cup.
3.  Then Top with 1/4 cup pomegranate.

On the side, I also tried making some lollipops with the pomegranates. It turned out kind of funky looking. I'm thinking of calling these "banana pom pops"...cool.

Banana Pom Pops:
(adapted from http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Hard-Candy/Detail.aspx)
yield: 4 popsicles

Ingredients:
1/3 cup and 1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
2 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons light corn syrup
1 tablespoon and 2-1/4 teaspoons water
1/4 teaspoon lemon, or other flavored extract
2 tablespoons of pomegranate arils
4 dried banana chips, or dried nuts
4 wooden skewers or sticks

Directions:
1. In a small saucepan, stir together the sugar, corn syrup, and water. Cook, stirring, over medium heat until sugar dissolves, then bring to a boil. Without stirring, heat to 300 to 310 degrees F (149 to 154 degrees C).
2. Remove from heat and stir in flavored extract, if desired. Place saucepan in cool water bath for 1 minute while stirring the sugar mixture.
3. Working quickly, pour 4 circles onto a parchment sheet. Place in wooden skewers. Poke in pomegranates, dried bananas, almond shavings, or whatever you prefer.
4. Let sit to cool off and harden.