Easy Cherry & Lime Popsicles

13th June 2013

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Brianna Shales

When I first plotted out this week’s post (months ago), I envisioned making fruit kabobs with my son as a way to turn snack time into a fun and educational activity. As the time drew near and it was finally time to act on my plans, I realized that: 1) my busy boy would never sit still long enough for an activity like this, 2) he would demand to eat the fruit before it ever made it on the stick, and 3) sticks and toddlers are probably not the best recipe for success. So, just as we moms do many times in our day, I changed course, and turned to Pinterest for inspiration on what great snack I could recreate with Stemilt cherries. My search quickly ended after coming across a recipe for Cherry Limeade Pops from a blog called Will Cook for Smiles.

Not only did the cherry and lime combination really appeal to me, but so did the look of her pops! On a mission, I visited the Stemilt Sincerely Fresh online store for my first cherry purchase of the year (what took me so long?!), ran to Target for a popsicle mold, and got to work on these (during nap time of course).

Before I tell you how easy these were to make, I must share something about myself. I am a perfectionist at work and pride myself on being organized and thorough. When I get in the kitchen, this trait goes out the window! I’m a mess, the kitchen is a mess, and whatever I’m making usually looks like a mess once complete. Even though these pops were easy to make and assemble, the process to get there was not so pretty (picture cherry juice everywhere), which is why you won’t see step-by-step pictures. If you need those, refer to the original post that inspired me.

To make the cherry and lime popsicles, I started off by washing the cherries, limes, and popsicle molds. Next, I removed each cherry stem, and carefully sliced each cherry into small, relatively even slivers, making sure to go around, and not through, the pit. Once all the cherries were sliced, I filled the molds with the fruit, stuffing them pretty full in order to make cherry the prominent flavor in these pops.

Next, I boiled a cup of water to start the limeade portion. I added the zest of one lime and the juice of two to the warm water, stirring to mix. To make the original recipe unique, I used agave nectar instead of sugar. Agave nectar is sweeter and thinner than honey and a great sugar substitute. The best part? You don’t need much at all! I love the combination of lime and agave nectar, so I knew this would be a success. One last stir and then I filled each mold of cherries with water before closing them up with the handle and placing them in the freezer. (Note: I had quite a bit of limeade left over because I filled the cups with so many cherries. The leftover limeade would be great to mix with sparkling water).

Once they were nice and frozen (about 6 hours), I wriggled each pop out of the mold with the help of some warm water in order to enjoy. I snuck a taste of these and I loved the dominant cherry flavor, with just a hint of sweet and sour from the lime and agave nectar. I would definitely make these again. This treat was easy and fun to make and such a creative way for enjoying cherries. Most importantly, it was kid approved.