Mango-Blood Orange Paletas

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Mango-Blood Orange Paletas

Cooking time:

6 hours and 10 minutes total
10 minutes of preparation
6 hours of cooking

Serves: 8

Recipe

Ingredients:

500 g ripe fresh mangoes, cubed
100 g sugar
150 ml blood orange juice (see author notes)
3 tbsp freshly-squeezed lime juice

Description

We all know the colorful, sugary popsicles from the supermarkets or ice creams stands on the streets and by the beach... and yes, cold sugar may seem refreshing on a hot summer day, but have you ever tried the Mexican-style paletas? This healthy alternative is packed with fruits and will transport you directly to the white sandy beaches with tropical palm trees along the Mexican coast at the very first bite.

The birthplace of the popsicle is a bit hard to track down, but nevertheless, Mexicans have been enjoying these delicious, frozen treasures for decades. Almost every town has a “paleteria” where the make popsicles in a multitude of flavors. Fortunately, these Mexican treats can easily be recreated and customized at home. You can start out with one of our favorite combinations, mango and blood orange with Jitomate Rojo Sauce, and experiment with other substitute and additions to find your own favorite!

Method

Peel, deseed and roughly chop the mango and add to a blender with the rest of the ingredients (see author notes).
Blend until smooth and add more sugar or lime based on your preference.
For the daring: Add a splash of Jitomate Rojo Sauce! Don’t worry, you won’t be spitting fire when enjoying your popsicle, but it will add some tang, acidity and a light kick of spice to compliment the flavors of the mango and orange.
Add the blended fruit mixture to the popsicle molds, but leave about 1 cm or half an inch of space since it will expand a bit in the freezer.
If your molds have built-in popsicle sticks, place the molds directly in the freezer for at least 6 hours until completely firm. If not, take the molds out after about an hour and place popsicle sticks (e.g. wooden or plastic) into the slushy mixture and return to the freezer for 5-6 hours.
Once the popsicles are completely firm, buen provecho! A refreshing snack on a hot summer day.

Author notes

You can pick any type of ripe fresh fruit such as berries, melons, mango or whichever fruit is your favorite.
You can substitute the juice with any type of liquid. Why not try some with coconut milk, tea, juice or almond milk?
If you don’t have pre-made popsicle molds, you can use single-use cups or similar and pop in a wooden stick after an hour in the freezer once the mixture has a slushy consistency. Please note that it may take longer than 6 hours in the freezer for the popsicles to be completely firm since the molds will be bigger.
You can also choose to reserve half of the fruit, finely dice it and add to the popsicle molds if you want small chunks of fruit in your paletas.