Why make your own ice lollies?

Who doesn’t like an ice lolly on a warm summers day, right? If your kids are anything like mine you get a pack of ice lollies or ice creams and they disappear suddenly as if by magic! So save yourself the money and make your own! Its super quick and easy and if you follow this recipe you won’t have to wait too long for them to freeze either, so kids and adults in your household will be cooling off in no time!

Whilst ice lollies and ice creams come in various different forms, this one is specifically a smoothie ice lolly. This is for two reasons, the first being that a smoothie ice lolly made from blended frozen fruit will freeze into an ice lolly much quicker as its already half frozen. I find these typically only take around an hour to freeze meaning you don’t have to listen too “is it ready yet?” all day long! You also may find you run into leakage issues if you have the same type of lolly mould as me with thinner water based recipes and you wont have that issue with a smoothie mix. The second reason is, its the best of both worlds, you have the the real blended fruit that you might find in an ice lolly but you also have the creaminess from the milk, what’s not to love?!

Do you have a diet restriction?

This recipe is great for those with the following dietary requirements

Vegan (if using plant based yogurt)
Vegetarian
Gluten Free
Dairy Free (if using plant based yogurt)
Nut Free
Low GI
Paleo

Step 1: Purchase an ice lolly mould

OK so down to the recipe. For this recipe before you even think of fruit you have to purchase a lolly holder or a lolly mould. these come in various shapes although I have found unless you want to pay an extortionate amount these lolly moulds are always super small. I couldn’t justify the price tag of the larger types I found so I settled for this silicone mould from Amazon with the knowledge that I’d just have to settle for smaller smoothie ice lollies. You could also try the makeshift version of empty yogurt pots and lolly sticks. With the variation of ice lollies moulds in size I have not added specific ingredient quantities in this recipe as it probably doesn’t apply to anybody that isn’t using the same lolly holders as me and I also tend to make smoothies to drink at the same time so I always make more than I need. You will also need a high powered blender for this recipe.

Step 2: Choose your fruit

Now you can choose your fruit. I buy a lot of frozen fruit anyway because its just so handy to have in the freezer but if you would rather you can buy fresh and freeze the fruit yourself. I chose to keep it simple this time around and just used mango and strawberry although I do tend to use every type of fruit I can find, and you really can chose any type of veg. You could also add in some spinach to make it even healthier. Put roughly 2 cups of fruit pieces in your blender. In the photos, I added the whole bowl of fruit (about 4 cups) but my smoothie made 8 lollies and over a pint of smoothie to drink as well.

Step 3: Blend the fruit into a smoothie

Pop the fruit in your bender along with 1/2 a cup of milk, you may need more milk later. You can use any milk you prefer, I personally switch between organic oat milk or cows milk. Start blending your fruit and milk together. If your fruit sticks to the side of the blender or above the blades add a little more milk and push it down with a spoon before trying again. Within a few minutes you should have a perfectly smooth, thick smoothie. Usually blending issues are down to not enough liquid however sometimes blenders just aren’t powerful enough to crush ice or frozen things and will simply knock them out of the path of the blade instead. I’ve recently bought a Ninja blender with smart IQ which means the blender can tell what I’ve put in my blender and how best to get the job done, so I can just switch it on and walk away without all the interfering you usually need to do with cheaper blenders.

Step 4: Mould your lollies and freeze

When your smoothie is at a thick but smooth consistency you can spoon it into your lolly moulds. Its probably too thick to pour. Transfer your lolly moulds into the freezer (on a flat surface else it will get messy!) and leave for 1-2 hours to set completely before popping them out and enjoying them!

Alternatives and substitutions:

If mango and strawberry isn’t your first choice why not try:

Summer berries
Tropical fruits
Cacao and mint
Pina Colada inspired
Matcha

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