Sasha's Kitchen: Strawberry-Blueberry Popsicles

Popsicles are the perfect summer treat. I had never made my own before, but really why not? It's easy enough to do if you have the right molds, and nothing could be a more refreshing summer treat than making your own with fresh local fruits and berries. I came across some basic recipes in Bon Appetit  and decided to give it a try using some popsicle molds that I bought at the Brooklyn Kitchen in Williamsburg. The molds are from a company called Tovolo than makes great freezer pop and ice cream sandwich molds. The key to making good popsicles from fresh fruit is balancing the fruit with a bit of citrus. I can't wait to use the molds again to make these banana pudding and chocolate sea salt pops next time!

Strawberry-Blueberry Popsicles (from Bon Appetit)
strawberry portion
1 lb fresh strawberries, hulled and halved
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp fresh lemon juice

blueberry portion
12 oz fresh blueberries
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp fresh lime juice

Puree the strawberries, sugar and lemon juice in a food processor with 1/4 cup of water until smooth. Strain using a wire mesh strainer, pressing on solids to extract the puree. Set aside. Puree the blueberries, sugar and lime juice with 3 T of water in a food processor, and once again, strain.

Pour some of the strawberry puree into the popsicle molds and freeze until just firm, about 30 minutes. Then, pour some of the blueberry puree on top and freeze for 30 minutes, alternating layers as you choose to. I just made bi-color strawberry-blueberry ice pops. One done, add caps and freeze until firm. To eat, dip bottoms of molds in hot water for 20-30 seconds to loosen the pops.