Best Summer Purchase Everrrrr: Part Deux

Elias stealing one of his sister's cream pops.

Since I got those popsicle molds, sometimes that's all I wanna do: make popsicles. Unfortunately, most of the time we don't have what I want to make them. Most of the time, I don't wanna follow the rules and directions to do any of it…so I don't. Most of the time, that's ok.

It's been hot here in the East bay for the majority of July and right into mid-August. Triple digit temps. Gross. The only logical thing to do was bust out the handy dandy molds so all of the nuggets in my house could cool off. (Honestly, my crock pot has been doing the rest of the dirty work lately.)

I dubbed these "random crap" pops. Now, I'm very aware that the term "random crap" doesn't sound appetizing. I completely understand that. It's so fitting though. I don't know about your household, but people in my family really like to leave the very end of the carton of milk or the last few chips in the bag. They're freaking pros at it, actually. (My family is also good at leaving empty boxes of cereal, oatmeal packs, etc. in the pantry, too…::ahemThing1ahem::) I'm pretty sure it's their attempt at being considerate, but it actually just ruins my life. Anyway, about the term "random crap": the kids and I threw all of the little leftovers that they always leave…all of the random crap…into the cream pops! This means that each pop is not consistent in what it contains, which completely alters the flavor individually. The one I'm eating will not taste like the one you're eating. That breaks so many rules in the culinary world. Oh well! Thou shall not waste in my damn house.

Best part of these: no processed sugar added. I used raw honey and huckleberry honey!

Strawberry-Mango-Pineapple & Cream Pops

Yield: 8-12, depending on your molds, print recipe

3/4 c. strawberries, frozen
3/4 c. mango, frozen 
1/4 c. pineapple, frozen
1/2 c. cream (or half and half, though they won't be as creamy- that's what I had lyin' around)
1/2 c. ice cream (your choice, what's your flavor?)
1 tsp. vanilla

2 T   honey
2 T   huckleberry honey

Whatever odds and ends food that you find in your kitchen

I threw all of these in our new Ninja Master Prep Blender and let 'er rip. The honey stuck a bit because everything was hella cold, but we can't all be perfect.

What we had left this time.

I made vanilla-cinnamon ice cream the week before with my friend, Becky. We also made apricot jam! That's a whole other post though ;)

The contenders in tonight's Pop Battle

The tools!

Elias put chocolate covered blueberries, cherries, and coconut in his set. He later told me that he didn't even like coconut and didn't want to eat his own creation. Way to go, Kid.

Camryn added some huckleberry honey!

Mixed to a thick consistency, like soft serve.

Camryn said it sounded like someone was SCREAMING!!!!! (For ice cream?) (I had to. Don't judge me.)

Into the freezer we go. 4-6 hours, over night is best.

Things to remember: 
-Tip #1: TASTE! Always taste your food as you go along. If it's not sweet enough, add more honey. If it's not creamy enough, ADD MORE CREAM! Use your dome and your taste buds, they won't steer you wrong.  
Tip #2: Layering. If you throw the bits of coconut or whatever you've got in, the stuff'll sink right to the bottom (which is really the top). Fill molds halfway, freeze for an hour. Add other stuff. Fill to the top. Freeze normally. 
Tip #3: After you've filled your molds, give them a few taps on the counter. Air bubbles will be released and you'll be able to get a few more spoonfuls in there.

Ice Ice Baby,

Best Summer Purchase EVERRRR

Popsicle molds!!

 My niece, Camryn, helped make watermelon popsicles a while back. It's so fun to do family projects, insanely cheaper than the boxed ones...AND BETTER FOR YA! Plus, the popsicle molds were really cheap (less than $8/pack of 6 and 4) and they're reusable.

Watermelon Popsicles

1/2 medium sized watermelon (like the size of your head), diced

1 lemon, juiced

2 tsp. sugar to taste, optional

Popsicle molds

Patience

Now, I'll tell you, this could've been a lot easier to do. Like, a lot freakin easier than I made it. I could've pulled out the blender and thrown all the stuff in and hit the puree button. But guess what?

THAT'S A WHOLE BUNCH OF NO FUN.

Camryn wanted to help, and in omitting the blender altogether, we made that possible. Our friend, Monica, was over and helped her "juice" the watermelon (pressed it through a collander into a bowl).

They had a lot of fun doing this, but I'm pretty sure they were incredibly unsanitary…I saw them sneaking bites. Brats.

As they pressed the watermelon (like you would grapes for wine), I added lemon juice. I ended up adding two lemons, but I went overboard. I should've tasted after the first one. Rookie mistake. (Sidenote: here's where you add the sugar if you want.)

Throw the tops on…(Goofballs)

Important things to remember:

Tip: Use a funnel and ladle to fill the popsicle molds. No one likes a messy and sticky kitchen. Also, make sure the lids are on tight and pour slowly!

Et voila!

Here are the molds we used: Rockets and the other ones were ice cream cones! SO. FRIGGIN. CUTE. Toss them in the freezer for at least 4 hours, but overnight would be better to ensure they're firm enough to stand on their own.

The half watermelon had tons of juice so we saved some for the next batch. (If I had to guess, it was about a quart and a half)

So, I'd love to show you a picture of the finished product, but wouldn't you know it- our damn refrigerator broke that same night! They never froze! So bummed. In other news, I'm pretty sure my little brother drank the juice even though the bag said not to. Cool.

We're gonna make them again once we get a new fridge this weekend. It's so hot outside, these things are necessary! 

Total for 25ish popsicles (that we would've made with the extra juice): $2.50! If we would've used the whole watermelon, we definitely could've made at least a million. Just saying. 

Enjoy your weekend, all! We are up in the few hundreds in views- so awesome, thanks! 

Sincerely,

Thing 2

P.S. Don't ever leave Mon alone with my phone again.

P.P.S Don't worry, Thing 1 is working on her posts…I think.

P.P.P.S Maybe this was a bad idea…Should've made it thefrugalasian.com lol