Stay Cool This Summer With Healthy DIY Popsicles
It’s the childhood treat we all know and love, the treat we raided our neighbors’ freezers for because they had the “best” kind, the treat that signified summer was finally there. Luckily, the trend is no different in 2019, but with the rise in “health foods,” people are starting to make their own tasty frozen treats. The best part? It’s super easy.
DRIVE-BY HISTORY ON POPSICLES
Ironically, popsicles weren’t invented for summer. In fact, they came to life in the dead of winter. “Ice pops” were invented in 1905 by eleven-year-old Frank Epperson, who left a cup filled with powdered soda, water, and a stirring stick outside to freeze in wintery temperatures. Thus, the billion-dollar popsicle industry was born.
In 1923, Epperson called his creation an “Epsicle” and made its debut in Alameda, California. From then on, his children began to call this new treat “Pop’s ‘sicle,” eventually persuading Epperson to change its name to the popular term “popsicle.”
HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN
Most store-bought popsicles are packed with artificial flavors and colors, and a whole lot of sugar. Luckily, making your own healthy version of a popsicle is extremely simple. All you need is a popsicle mold, a blender, some sort of liquid that freezes and real fruit juice. Optional add-ins can include anything from fresh herbs, Greek yogurt, and real pieces of fruit. Here are a few of our favorite recipes:
- 5 cup fresh raspberries
- 1 can full-fat coconut milk
- Juice of one lime
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ cup pure maple syrup or honey
Blend together coconut milk, lime juice, vanilla and maple syrup or honey. Add raspberries and blend for a few more seconds, until incorporated. Pour mixture into popsicle molds and freeze overnight.
- 2 cups green tea (brewed using Primo® Water)
- 1 tbsp raw honey
- ¼ lemon (zest and juice)
Brew your green tea using Primo (the longer you brew, the stronger the flavor). Add honey and lemon juice to your green tea and mix well, then chill in the fridge. Once chilled, pour mixture into 3 oz paper cups or a popsicle mold. Sprinkle lemon zest into each cup. Freeze for an hour, or until they are partially frozen, then insert popsicle sticks into each cup. Freeze completely, about four hours.
- 3 kiwis, peeled
- 3-4 cups cubed watermelon (de-seeded)
- 1 tbsp honey (optional)
Blend kiwis until smooth and pour into your popsicle molds, filling each mold only ¼ full. Freeze for about an hour. While the kiwi mixture is freezing, blend your cubed watermelon until smooth. If you’re choosing to add honey, add it now and blend for an additional 15 seconds. Remove kiwi mixture from the freezer and add watermelon mixture on top. Freeze again for about two hours, or until completely frozen.
FRUITS, HERBS, SALT: ENDLESS POSSIBILITIES
As you can tell, making your own healthy popsicles doesn’t have to be complicated. Just a few natural ingredients can make you a summer treat that helps you beat the heat. The good news is, you can make your popsicles with any number of combinations. Switch out watermelon for strawberry, raspberries for blackberries, even add some fresh mint to any of your recipes for an extra kick of coolness. You can also add a few pinches of sea salt to each popsicle for an extra electrolyte boost. Salts are electrolytes by nature, so when you add it to water, or any other liquid, it dissolves into ions that are electrically conductive, helping send messages throughout the body that keep your cells hydrated.
But most importantly—don’t be afraid to try your hand at making something uniquely delicious!
WORRY-FREE SUMMER TREATS
These natural popsicles are sure to be packed with essential vitamins and nutrients (like the Vitamin C content in watermelon and the high fiber in kiwis) that your body needs to beat the heat. But if you’re a dairy-free warrior who’s choosing water as their popsicle liquid of choice, be sure and choose water that’s worry free, like Primo® Water.
Primo water undergoes a 5-step Reverse Osmosis (RO) process to make sure it’s free of harmful microorganisms, heavy metals, trace pharmaceuticals and more. So not only will your added ingredients be healthy, but the base will be, too. And any healthy dessert treat is a BIG win in our books. Find Primo water near you to get started!
