No need to wait for the ice cream truck's clarion call for icy cold treats. (Inevitably, it arrived at dinnertime or naptime as it cruised through my neighborhood, to the annoyance of many, including this mother.)
You can make the icy pops yourself and -- of course you know this because you are reading the food section -- make them even better with fresh fruit and good ingredients. Before you shout "treats that are good for you so let's eat a lot!" keep in mind that just how healthful these treats are depends on the combination of ingredients you use (it may be a stretch to convince anyone that an icy pop made of premium ice cream is healthful, even though it tastes terrific).
At the very least, though, you will know what's in the treat that you or a loved one is licking and, for some of us, that matters. With great ingredients and molds available in all sorts of shapes, you have options at home that the Good Humor driver can only dream of.
From a fresh fruit-salad version, pictured here, to a banana-malt delight or a Mexican-style paleta, choices for icy pops are limited only by what's in your refrigerator. Let the kids help with the process and you'll have a cooking lesson, too.
You can use almost anything for the mixture -- consider what you'd put in a smoothie and use that as a starting point. Bases for the icy pops can start with juices and puréed fruit, yogurt, ice cream or pudding. Then have some fun with the extras -- think pieces of fruit, toasted nuts or coconut, chocolate or other candy bits (we can't be healthful all the time!).
For such a simple culinary process, there are a few recommendations that streamline the effort and make for better results. But should there be a mishap -- oh, no! the icy pop is crooked; the colors don't go together -- the "mistakes" will all be tasty.
• Plastic molds for making ice pops come in a variety of shapes -- rockets, stars, the traditional Fudgsicle style-- with built-in sticks to hold, are available in kitchen specialty stores and craft stores, as well as amazon.com. You can also use small paper cups and insert wooden pop sticks from supermarkets or craft stores. Or use wooden or bamboo cocktail sticks for smaller pops. Try muffin tins and papers for a mold, or silicone ice-cube molds for mini-versions. For more formal gatherings of adults, when a large dessert-on-a-stick would be awkward, try making any of these treats in shot glasses or timbale molds. For either, you can use a wooden craft stick, or simply serve the treat unmolded.
• If your mold doesn't have a handle to attach, you'll need to either add a wooden stick once the mixture is partially frozen, or use foil with a small cut in it on top of the mold and push the wooden stick through it to hold it in place while the mixture freezes.
