Keep your cool this summer with these refreshingly sweet, fruity Lychee Cantaloupe Popsicles! Super easy to make, with delicious flavors that transition from one to the next as you enjoy this frozen treat!
With the temperatures hitting triple digits this week for the first time this year, Mr K and I have both been devouring popsicles every chance we get these days. Yes, my last post was also about popsicles – these mad awesome vanilla and chocolate protein popsicles. If you haven’t made them yet, there’s really no time to waste. You got nothing to lose, and all that protein to gain! Plus, they are vegan and gluten-free too. 🙂
The reason I love popsicles and I’m always willing to load up on them every summer is that there are SO MANY options and ideas for delicious popsicles and they are perfect to keep you cool. Since I’ve been baking my ass off these past few months for my upcoming baking book, I am ALL about no bake and frozen desserts right now! I really love making (and eating) fruity popsicles since they are a great way to make use of summer fruits.
One of my favorites is cantaloupe (or rockmelons as we Kiwis call it back home). It’s my favorite type of melon to eat because they are so juicy and naturally sweet. Another summer fruit that I used to devour was fresh lychee which was available in abundance where I used to live, but I simply can’t find fresh lychee anymore here in mid-Missouri. Thankfully, there’s canned lychee available year-round.
So I decided to combine those two favorite and make these sweet and refreshing Lychee Cantaloupe Popsicles! Fresh cantaloupe works well for these popsicles and if you can also find fresh lychee, go ahead and use them in this recipe (and just use water as the liquid and extra honey as a sweetener). But canned lychee also works just fine.
The one problem most people have when making melon popsicles is that blending cantaloupe (or any kind of melon) gives you the melon juice, plus the frothy pulp. Some prefer to strain this mix to separate the pulp from the juices, but I feel like throwing out that perfectly edible pulp is such a waste! So I have not strained the cantaloupe mix here, and that results in the cantaloupe mix forming two layers as the popsicles freeze (which is a really nifty thing as I’ll explain soon), but it is a good idea to keep this fruity base as smooth as possible and avoid too many frothy bubbles from forming.
To prevent frothy bubbles from forming, make sure to blend the fruits at medium speed. You’d be tempted to blend them at high speed, but higher the speed, more chance there is to create excessive froth. So start low, and then gradually increase the speed to medium.
And as I mentioned earlier, the fruity base in these popsicles end up forming two layers as they freeze, and I absolutely love that! The “juice” sinks to the bottom (which is actually the tip of the popsicle), and the pulp floats to the top (which is the base of the popsicle). You won’t be able to see that difference in these lychee cantaloupe popsicles, but you can sure taste it! The most prominent flavor in the top half is that delightfully sweet and fruity flavor of lychee, and then as you make your way down to the base, it gradually transitions into the sweet, smooth, refreshing flavor of cantaloupe. Two distinct flavors, one easy to make popsicle. You’ll love these lychee cantaloupe popsicles too! 🙂
STEP BY STEP RECIPE VIDEO
- 1 medium sized cantaloupe (approximately 1 lb 10 oz of cantaloupe flesh)
- 10 - 15 lychees (canned or fresh)
- ⅓ cup lychee syrup or water or coconut water
- 2 tbsp honey (rice syrup for vegan versions)
- Juice of ½ lemon (1½ tbsp)
- Place all the ingredients in a blender.
- Blend on low speed, gradually increasing to medium speed, until the fruits are blending smoothly, without forming a bubbly foam. (If the fruits get stuck in the blender, stop the blender and use a spatula to move the fruits around - do not increase the speed of the blender). Blend until smooth.
- Pour the puree into popsicle molds. Make sure to stir the puree between pouring it into molds, so that the juice doesn't separate from the pulp too much as your pouring.
- Insert the popsicle sticks and freeze for at least 4 hours (overnight is better) until the popsicles are completely frozen.
- Dip the popsicle mold in hot water for a few seconds to help release the popsicles cleanly (unmolded popsicles can be stored in individual freezer bags and in the freezer).
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