My goal here was to come up with a variety of delicious, wholesome, frozen treats that the kids would love. (I did it!) =)
Of course, you can puree just about anything & freeze it into a popsicle, so go with what you’re in the mood for & experiment. Or, use the following simple recipes as a basis to get started & go from there. I went back & forth a bit, tweaking, to get just the right ratio of flavor and sweetness, but I suggest you start with small batches so you can test & adjust the flavors to your own personal preference.
Liquid stevia works extremely well in these pops, but you can substitute honey (preferably raw) if need be. Just keep in mind that stevia is quite a bit sweeter than honey, so you’ll have to adjust accordingly.
These are some of the basic, staple ingredients I use:
~ Organic Plain Whole Milk Yogurt
~ Fresh organic fruit such as apples, bananas, watermelon…
~ Organic frozen fruit such as berries, peaches, cherries, pineapple
~ Navitas Naturals Cacao Powder
~ Navitas Naturals Sweet Cacao Nibs (for chocolate chips)
~ SweetLeaf Liquid Stevia (“SteviaClear” or “Vanilla Creme”)
For more ice-pop making details, scroll down to the bottom of this page.
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DARK SWEET CHERRY CHOCOLATE CHIP
3/4 cup plain yogurt
14 drops liquid stevia
1 cup pitted cherries (thawed if frozen)
chocolate chips (optional)
Mix stevia into yogurt. Puree cherries in blender and combine with yogurt. Stir in chocolate chips. Makes 3 star pops & 1 twirly.
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ORANGE ICE
Juice a few oranges (or use store-bought juice).
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PINEAPPLE COCONUT
1 heaping cup pineapple chunks (thawed if frozen)
1 cup unsweetened coconut milk (regular – not light)
half of a ripe banana
8 drops liquid stevia
Blend all ingredients in blender. Makes 4 rectangular (4 ounce) pops, or 5 star pops.
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APPLE CINNAMON
1 cup plain yogurt
12 drops SteviaClear liquid stevia
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. (For easy applesauce recipe, see condiments/dips section, or use store-bought)
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WATERMELON
watermelon
Remove seeds & puree in blender. (If you have a high-powered blender, you don’t have to worry so much about removing the seeds, & in fact, they’re quite nutritious – Lots of protein & some vitamins & minerals as well)
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LEMON ICE
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (approx 3 lemons)
3 cups water
18 drops liquid stevia (more or less)
This one comes out a little different each time I make it, depending on how sour the lemons are. In general, it’s a 6 to 1 ratio of water to lemon juice. Then add as much sweetness as you need.
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PEACHES N CREAM
3/4 cup plain yogurt
14 drops liquid stevia
1 heaping cup sliced peaches (thawed if frozen)
MIx together yogurt & stevia. Puree peaches in blender & swirl into yogurt. Makes 5 or 6 twirly pops.
If I happen to be opening up a new yogurt container, for this one, I like to use mostly the cream on top of the yogurt.
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BANANA CINNAMON
1 very ripe banana, mashed w/ fork
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
12 drops liquid stevia
Mix everything together in a bowl.
In photo, I’ve actually got the pineapple coconut flavor on the bottom half. You can layer any flavors together that you’d like. Makes 1 star pop, 1 rocket & 1 twirly.
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RASPBERRY CHOCOLATE CHIP
3/4 cup plain yogurt
14 drops liquid stevia
1 cup raspberries (thawed if frozen)
chocolate chips (optional)
Combine yogurt & stevia. Puree raspberries in blender. Mix together with yogurt & add choc chips if using.
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CHOCOLATE
1/2 cup plain yogurt
2 teaspoons cocoa powder
12 drops liquid stevia
Mix together in bowl. Makes 2 twirly pops w/ a little left over.
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CHOCOLATE (variation 2 – dairy free)
2 TBSP coconut butter
2 TBSP cocao powder
1 avocado
3 dates, pitted
1 cup cold water
1 pinch sea salt
1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
Blend well in a high-powered blender. (Cut the dates into small pieces before adding to blender if using a standard blender.)
(This chocolate pudding recipe is from www.renegadehealth.com)
I was actually giving the kids this one for a while, before I tried the simpler, variation 1. Avocado might seem weird, but this is what gives the pudding a creamy consistency, and you’d never know it was in there taste-wise. There was one time though, I guess I didn’t blend long enough….”Mommy, what’s this green chunk in my ice pop?” The kids do prefer variation 1, but this one is pretty darn good if you can’t eat dairy.
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CHOCOLATE RASPBERRY
1 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup raspberries (thawed if frozen)
4 teaspoons cocoa powder
30 drops liquid stevia
Puree everything in blender. Makes 6 twirly pops (6 two ounce ice pops).
It’s also great substituting strawberries for the raspberries.
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CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER
1/2 cup plain yogurt
12 drops liquid stevia
2 tsps cocoa powder
2 TBSP (more or less) peanut butter*
Mix everything together in a bowl. Makes 2 rocket pops.
*If for whatever reason, you don’t eat peanuts, “Sunbutter” (made from roasted sunflower seeds) is the closest you’ll get as far as flavor goes (but you can also substitute almond, cashew, or any other nut-butter).
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MEXICAN ICE CREAM
1/2 cup plain yogurt
12 drops liquid stevia
2 tsps cocoa powder
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Mix together in bowl.
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BLUEBERRY
3/4 cup plain yogurt
14 drops of liquid stevia
1 heaping cup blueberries (thawed if frozen)
Combine yogurt & stevia in a bowl. Puree blueberries in blender and swirl into yogurt.
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STRAWBERRY
3/4 cup plain yogurt
14 drops of liquid stevia
1 heaping cup strawberries (thawed if frozen)
Mix together yogurt & stevia. Puree strawberries in blender & combine with yogurt. Makes 2 rocket & 2 star pops.
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VANILLA CHOCOLATE CHIP
1/2 cup plain yogurt
9 drops vanilla creme liquid stevia
chocolate chips
Mix together in a bowl.
If I happen to be opening up a new yogurt container, for this one, I like to use mostly the cream on top of the yogurt.
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ORANGE CREAMSICLE
2/3 cup orange juice
1/3 cup plain yogurt
6 drops liquid stevia
Juice oranges and mix ingredients together in a bowl. Makes 2 rectangular (4 oz) pops.
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APPLE ICE
If you have a juicer, juice a few apples, or use store bought (100%) juice.
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All the photos are clickable if you’d like to zoom in & admire these pretty pops =)
~ Minimum of 6 hours to freeze….Depends on how big your molds are, and also how thick the liquid is. You need at least 6 hours, sometimes more.
~ When mixing ingredients by hand, mix your ingredients in a measuring cup (as opposed to a bowl) as the spout will make it really easy to pour the contents into the molds. Of course, if you’re blending it all up in a blender, just pour it straight into the molds.
~ When filling the popsicle molds, leave a little space at the top. As they freeze, the contents will expand.
~ Also, if the tops (handles) “snap” onto the molds, don’t actually snap them on. Just rest them gently on top. This makes it easier to remove the pop from the mold when ready to eat.
~ In our experience, we needed to make them a little sweeter than I initially thought necessary. In other words, once frozen, the sweetness diminishes. A few of the purees we made that tasted just perfect to us when fresh turned out to be a bit bland after freezing into a pop.
~ For most of these flavors, I puree the fruit in a blender, then mix into yogurt with a spoon. Alternately, you can put everything in the blender together if it’s easier. You’ll get a smoother pop that way. We like it a little chunky – small bits of fruit & a swirly color, so this is why I don’t add the yogurt to the blender. Up to you.
~ If trying to layer 2 flavors into 1 pop, it’s easiest with the thicker (yogurt based) flavors. Simply fill up the mold halfway w/ one flavor & the rest of the way w/ the other. If you want to do this with watery flavors (juice pops), you’ll have to add the first flavor, then freeze for just a few hours (until it’s thick &; slushy, but not fully frozen), then add the next flavor.
~ Why not use flavored yogurts? – Flavored yogurts almost always contain undesirable additives. I choose to use plain yogurt and sweeten/flavor myself. Up to you.
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My favorite popsicle molds:
~ ORKA (these are the smaller, twisty ones). As far as removing the frozen popsicle from the mold, these are the easiest I’ve ever used. You simply peel off the silicone sleeve – like taking off a glove. These are also the best size for toddlers, who would likely not be able to finish some of the other larger sizes. Made from non-toxic silicone & dishwasher safe.
~ TOVOLO makes all the other shapes you see here – Rocket, Star & Rectangle. To release popsicles from molds, run under hot water for a few seconds to loosen. BPA free plastic & dishwasher safe.
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All of the ice pops on this page are gluten free, egg free, and sugar free (no added sugar). Actually, our “chocolate chips” (Navitas Naturals Sweet Nibs) do contain organic cane juice, so omit them if need be. Navitas also makes unsweetened nibs which Al & I like, but it’s more of an acquired taste – potent, intense, & a little bitter. Not really what my kids are looking for in an ice pop =)
A few of the flavors are also dairy free:
~ Lemon Ice
~ Orange Ice
~ Apple Ice
~ Watermelon
~ Pineapple Coconut
~ Chocolate (variation 2)
If avoiding dairy, you can experiment, using coconut milk or almond milk instead of yogurt. Actually, there are also non-dairy yogurts out there (in my opinion, coconut yogurt would be a first runner up to whole milk yogurt).
Some are even raw if you use your own fresh, juice and/or fruit:
~ Lemon Ice
~ Orange Ice
~ Apple Ice
~ Watermelon
~ Chocolate (variation 2)
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I should mention too, that these pops are not just for kids. Husband has been in ice-pop-heaven. I think I’ll be leaving this page up top for the remainder of the summer!
I’ll be adding to this page if I come up with other flavors that work out well. Please feel free to share some of your own ice pop ideas.
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Debbie
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Stephanie
