The weather in New Hampshire is such a tease. We get days that feel like summer and then other days where I fear I’ll see snowflakes. Now that we’re almost into May, I think we are safe to say the warmer days of spring and summer are coming. And that means you should stock your freezer with homemade popsicles, stat.
There’s really nothing like a homemade popsicle. If you’ve never tried one, they’re so much better than the ones you can buy at the grocery plus you can make them with your favorite flavors. The options are literally endless! And you can use wholesome ingredients like Greek yogurt and minimize the sugar content so you can feel good about serving them to your family.
I do have a popsicle mold which I used for the Peach Melba popsicles, but you can just as easily use small Dixie cups and popsicle sticks as I did for the three other recipes. The popsicle mold I have made certain things easier, but getting the treats out of there was a challenge so you might prefer to avoid that plus not have to buy special equipment to make your own popsicles. When you use Dixie cups, wait to insert the sticks until the pops have partially frozen – about 30-60 minutes. Also of note, I suggest freezing overnight but in a lot of cases, the pops will be ready after 3-4 hours. If you are in desperate need of a popsicle fix, check them after 3 hours to see if they are firm enough to eat.
Here are 4 recipes for homemade popsicles that I hope you enjoy. As mentioned, if you don’t love the fruits I used, just swap them for your favorites. The recipes below range from fruit pop, to one that uses ice cream, to one that uses Greek yogurt, and one where you make your own pudding. Have fun experimenting!
Peach Melba Popsicles
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen
Ingredients:
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 cup raspberries
- 2 cups peeled chopped fresh peaches (or you can use frozen as I did and thaw them before using)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups vanilla bean ice cream, slightly softened
Directions:
- In a medium saucepan, combine the water and sugar; bring to a simmer and stir until the sugar dissolves.
- Place the raspberries in a small bowl and pour ¼ cup of the sugar syrup over them. Add the peaches to the saucepan with the rest of the syrup and bring back to a simmer. Cook for a minute or 2, until the peaches, soften. Let both fruits cool in their syrup completely.
- In a blender or food processor, purée the peaches and their syrup and scrape them into a large measuring cup. Add the vanilla extract.
- Purée the raspberries and their syrup and place them in a smaller cup.
- In the bottom of each popsicle mold (or Dixie cup), place a small amount of the raspberry mixture, then a larger amount of the peach mixture. Dollop some ice cream on top. Repeat with the remaining raspberries, peaches, and ice cream.
- Using a skewer, lightly swirl the mixtures together. Freeze overnight and enjoy!
Swirled Berry Yogurt Popsicles
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen
Ingredients
- 2 cups chopped strawberries
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
- Peel from 1 lime
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 ½ cups plain (unsweetened) Greek yogurt
Directions
- Place berries in a bowl, stir together with maple syrup and lime juice, and set aside.
- In a small saucepan, add the water, sugar, and lime peel. Cook, stirring until it comes to a boil, and then gently simmer for 5 minutes. Remove the peel and let the syrup fully cool.
- Once the syrup is cooled, whisk it and the yogurt together.
- In a blender, process the berry mixture until it reaches your desired consistency.
- In popsicle molds (or Dixie cups), alternate pouring some yogurt then berries until you are ¼” from the top. Using a skewer, lightly swirl the mixtures together.
- Freeze overnight and enjoy!
Butterscotch Pudding Popsicles
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen
Ingredients
- ¾ cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 tablespoons maple smoked bourbon
- ¾ cup dark brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 1 ½ cups whole milk
- ¾ teaspoon vanilla bean paste
- ¼ teaspoon flaky sea salt
Directions
- In a medium-sized heavy saucepan, combine the whipping cream, bourbon, dark brown sugar, and butter over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring as it becomes more syrupy.
- Add cornstarch then slowly whisk in the milk. Bring the heat back up to medium and cook until the mixture thickens – this will take 5-10 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and add in the vanilla bean paste and salt. Give it a taste and add more salt if you wish.
- Cool to lukewarm before pouring into popsicle molds or Dixie cups. Freeze overnight and enjoy!
Watermelon Pops
Adapted from AllRecipes
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups cubed seedless watermelon
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
- 1-2 tablespoons honey
Directions
- In a blender, combine all the ingredients at high speed until the mixture is smooth. Pour into ice pop molds or Dixie cups, depending on your preferred method. Freeze overnight and enjoy!
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