Cherry Ice Pops

My husband, Jerry enjoying his Cherry Ice Pop!

These Cherry Ice Pops are amazing! Light, refreshing, not too sweet and a beautiful texture. They are not as hard or crystalized as a popsicle, instead have a wonderful frozen, almost creamy texture.

I found this recipe in Bon Appetit and will have a ball experimenting with other flavors and fruits. A splash of bourbon in this particular Cherry Pop would become a frozen Manhattan. Think Jello-Shot, but more subtle and sophisticated. Limoncello Pop, possibly with blueberries…? Chocolate Orange Martini Pop…?

6 simple ingredients for the Cherry Pops.

I bought the cherry gelatin on Amazon. I didn’t know they made cherry gelatin, but what I like about this company is all natural ingredients. Simple Mixes includes: cane sugar; beef gelatin; natural flavor; citric acid; beet juice and annatto for color; salt; and sodium citrate.

These Cherry Pops are super easy to make and can be made, kept frozen, for as much as 2 weeks ahead. I have a 6 cup popsicle mold and this recipe made just a little more than the 6 pops. I filled them a bit too full so, as they froze some of the pop popped out, but that was not really a problem.

Start by bringing sweet cherries (I used frozen, but you could also use fresh pitted cherries) and 1 cup of water to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally until cherries are softened, about 10 minutes.

Yes that is my Mom’s circa 1960 Osterizer blender. Still going strong!

Carefully transfer to a blender; reserve the pan as you will use it again. Let cool slightly. Cover and blend until smooth. Strain the cherry juice through a fine-mesh sieve into a large measuring cup. Discard solids.

There were hardly any solids left after straining.

Return 1/2 cup cherry juice to reserved pan; add sugar and 1/2 cup water. Bring to a boil, then immediately remove pan from heat. Add gelatin and salt and stir until dissolved. Stir in remaining cherry juice and lemon juice.

Divide between ice pop molds and add a few maraschino cherries (I added 4 maraschinos per pop) in each mold. Bon Appetit suggests 3 per mold, but these frozen maraschinos were one of the best parts of the Cherry Pop. I think next time I’ll add 5! Insert the sticks, cover, and freeze ice pops at least 6 hours.

These would be great at a kids birthday party or fun for the adults with a little bit of alcohol added!

ENJOY!

Do you remember Michael Frank’s hit song, Popsicle Toes from 1976? I loved that song and thought the lyrics were amazing. I’m not sure why, but these Cherry Pops reminded me of Frank’s only Billboard hit, which topped out at #131. I love his voice. If you don’t know the song, check it out here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUghAJZ07nM

Print Pin

Cherry Pops

Light, refreshing and not too sweet. Whimsical, fun dessert. More "grown-up" than a popsicle, but also perfect for a kids birthday party!

Ingredients

• 2 cups Sweet cherries, frozen or pitted fresh
• 2 Tbsp. Sugar
• 2 Tbsp. Cherry powdered gelatin
• Pinch Kosher salt
• 2 Tbsp. Freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 4 Maraschino cherries per pop

Instructions

• Bring sweet cherries and 1 cup water to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until cherries are softened; about 10 minutes.
• Carefully transfer to a blender and let cool slightly. Blending hot liquids can literally blow the lid off your blender. Cover and blend until very smooth. Strain cherry juice through a fine-mesh sieve into a large measuring cup; discard solids.
• Return 1/2 cup cherry juice to reserved pan; add sugar and 1/2 cup water. Bring to a boil, then immediately remove the pan from the heat. Add gelatin and salt and stir until dissolved. Stir in remaining cherry juice and lemon juice.
• Divide between ice pop molds and add 4 maraschino cherries per pop. Insert sticks, cover and freeze ice pops at least 6 hours.