While we’re staying in and the sun is shining, there’s no better way to appreciate the weather than with a fruity, refreshing ice lolly ‘PopTail’ – and making your own couldn’t be easier.
The recipe development team at food box company Gousto have created three cocktail (or mocktail) inspired ice lolly recipes, perfect for the scorching weekend ahead. These hand-held treats are cool and refreshing on a hot day.
We’ve asked senior recipe developer Jordan Moore (the brains behind the recipes) to give us his top tips for the perfect ice lolly, so you don’t end up with a fruity slush when you pull them out of the freezer.
Watermelon, Raspberry & Kiwi Mocktail Ice Lolly
If you want to encourage (read: trick) your kids into eating more fruit, these fruity ice lollies are the ones for you. Watermelon (as the name would suggest) is around 92% water, so it’s no wonder these lollies are so refreshing and the raspberry and kiwi add a tartness to these little slices of cool
Ingredients (makes 4-6 depending on size of moulds)
- 300g watermelon
- 30 raspberries
- 2 kiwis
A big splash of lemonade (or a different clear juice – like grapefruit)
Method
- Cut the watermelon up. You won’t need the rind for this recipe, but no need to throw it away – chop it up and use it in slaws, salads or stir fry.
- Put the chunks of watermelon flesh into your food processor and blend.
- Strain the blended watermelon through a sieve into a jug or bowl.
- Place about 5 raspberries at the bottom of each lolly mould, you need about 1cm of space at the top of the mould, so push the raspberries down.
- Pour the watermelon juice into the mould, still leaving the 1cm space at the top. Pop the mould in the freezer for an hour, or until the watermelon juice is part frozen but not totally solid.
- While they’re in the freezer, remove the skin from the kiwis. Put the skin to one side, you can keep it to use later in a smoothie.
- Dice up the flesh of the kiwi and grab your partly-frozen lollies from the freezer. Add the diced kiwi fruit to the top of the mould, press them down so it’s packed in, top with your lemonade or clear juice. (do this over the sink to avoid mess from overflowing!)
- Put a stick in each mould and pop them back in the freezer until fully frozen.
Jordan says: Watermelon is a great fruit to include in ice lollies as it’s mainly water so freezes quickly and evenly. If you want to get a layered effect to your lolly, pop the watermelon layer in the freezer for around 45 mins to firm up, then carefully add your blended kiwi before placing back in the freezer to firm up.
Gin & Tonic Ice Lolly With Basil, Lime & Strawberry
Let’s face it, ice lollies aren’t just for kids. These G&T inspired lollies have a dash of something a little stronger, perfect after a long week. This sharp and tangy lolly has the taste of G&T and also has the sweetness of strawberry, the tartness of lime and herby notes from the basil.
Ingredients (makes around 4, depending on size of moulds)
- 25g sugar
- 16g strawberries
- 2 limes
- 4 basil leaves
- 100ml gin
- 2 cans of tonic
Method
- Boil a small amount of water in your kettle. Put the sugar into a jug with a splash of boiled water and stir until the sugar is dissolved.
- Slice the strawberries length ways, cut one of the limes in half and squeeze the juice into the sugar water. Cut the other lime into slices.
- Add the gin and the tonic to the jug as well. Give everything a good stir.
- Pop a basil leaf in to each mould, along with some strawberry slices and a couple of lime slices
- Fill the moulds right to the brim and push a stick in each
- Freeze overnight
Jordan says: If you add a dash of something boozy to your lollies, keep in mind that too much will stop the lollies from freezing solid, resulting in a slush (not necessarily a bad thing, but not what we’re aiming for here).
Alcohol has a higher freezing point than fruit juice so always err on the side of caution when pouring your shot(s) of gin for these lollies.
Vegan Pina Colada Ice Lolly
After all this is over, we’re looking forward to sun, sea, and piña coladas. In the meantime, whip up your own vacation inspired lollies, featuring pineapple, coconut rum and coconut milk, to make the perfect vegan treat.
Ingredients (makes around 8 depending on size of moulds)
- 250g pineapple
- 100ml coconut rum (make them virgin by leaving this out)
- 50ml agave nectar
- 400ml can coconut milk
Method
- Cut the pineapple and add 200g of it to your blender, along with the coconut rum, agave nectar, and coconut milk. Blitz everything until it’s as smooth as possible.
- Pour the mixture through a sieve to remove any fibres or bits that haven’t been blended
- Slice the remaining 50g of pineapple chunks so they are thinner. Add these to your ice lolly moulds.
- Top the moulds with the blended mixture and pop a lolly stick in each one
- Freeze overnight and enjoy!
Jordan says: Depending on the ingredients you use in your lollies, they can take between 6-8 hours to freeze. Why not level up these vegan lollies before serving? De-moulding and dipping them into melted dark chocolate and sprinkling with toasted flaked coconut for the ultimate weekend indulgence.
DIY Lollies, Using What You Already Have in the House
From shot glasses to chopsticks, we asked Jordan for his alternative DIY ice lolly suggestions, using things you may already have in your kitchen cupboards.
DIY ice lolly mould?
A great way to reuse plastic yoghurt pots is to wash them out to be used as ice lolly moulds, or use a muffin tin or ice lolly tray. Simply pour your mixture into the trays, add a stick and freeze as you would normally.
Continuing the boozy theme, you might want to pour your unfrozen lolly mixture into shot glasses before you freeze.
You could even freeze the whole lot in a loaf tin, add sticks and slice into individual lollies.
No lolly sticks? Think again…
Try using a teaspoon, paper straw, metal straw or even an old chopstick you have lying around (just be sure to supervise little ones if there are any sharp points or edges).
Worried about drips?
Cut a small slit in the bottom of an upturned paper cupcake case to catch any drips from your melting lolly.
Can’t finish all of your lollies? Don’t throw them away!
Homemade lollies are best eaten as soon as they are frozen, but you can wrap them in baking parchment and freeze in a ziplock bag (this will help avoid freezer burn).
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