The frozen yogurt comes from the book "The Perfect Scoop" by David Lebovitz (Ten Speed Press, 2007), recipe available via Heidi Swanson, and it is the best one I can imagine.
The measurements for the fruit layer are somewhat loosey goosey. Depending on your fruit you might want more or less honey or lime, and you can scale the ratios accordingly. My only warning, it's best to be a miser with the alcohol — you might be able to sneak some more in, but too much will prevent the ice pops from setting properly, and nobody wants a droopy pop. That said, if you want to serve these doused with extra after the fact, go right ahead.
Turning out all the ice pops at once frees up your mould for another batch, and means kids can help themselves from the freezer, which is nice. It's helpful to colour the sticks of theirs with permanent marker, so they know which ones to grab.
As an aside, these pops were coincidentally patriotic, as this is the Canada Day weekend here. For the upcoming 4th of July or Bastille Day, a streak of blackberry or blueberry could dress them up for your celebrations. Hooray for holidays, pals!
Makes 10
INGREDIENTS
One batch homemade plain or vanilla frozen yogurt, or about 1 quart store bought (there will be some leftover)
10 ounces strawberries, hulled and chopped
2 tablespoons mild, runny honey
Juice and zest of 1 small lime, if you can get key limes, use them and use 2
1 1/2 tablespoons Campari, for the grownups
METHOD
In a medium bowl, stir together the strawberries, honey, most of the lime juice and all the zest. Let sit at room temperature for 20-30 minutes, stirring every now and again. Purée the fruit in a blender. Stir in the Campari and taste. It should be punchy, as the flavour will mellow once frozen. Keeping that in mind, add more lime juice or honey as needed. Divide the purée between 10 3-ounce popsicle moulds, rapping the mould on the counter to release any air pockets. Freeze for 15-20 minutes to firm up, or a full hour for a neat delineation between flavours.
If you are making the frozen yogurt from scratch, churn while the strawberry layer sets. If you're using store bought, put it in the refrigerator to soften.
Spoon the frozen yogurt on top of the strawberry purée. Use a chopstick or extra popsicle stick to release any air bubbles, and swirl the two mixtures, if desired. (Alternatively, the purée and frozen yogurt can be dolloped randomly, without freezing first, which will allow them to marble easily.) Cover and freeze according to manufacturer's instructions.
Once frozen, release the solid ice pops by running hot water over the moulds. Store the pops in a sealed, airtight container in the freezer, separating layers with parchment paper.
I originally called these boozy ice pops — by no means should there be a restriction on what to use. While Campari and soda is my thing, it might not be yours, so here are some other suggestions:
Pimm's No. 1 + strawberry + mint
Tequila + mango + mint or lime
Aperol + orange + raspberry
Kirsch + cherry + citrus
St. Germain + blueberry + mint
Proseco + blackberry + lemon thyme (remove thyme after steeping)
Gin + plum + ginger
Cachaça + watermelon + salt + lime
Bourbon + peach + mint
