My dog won’t come out from underneath the couch.
Is it really so interesting underneath there?
Are you still pouting about that bath last week?
Or is there some problem with the dulcet tones of my Eye Of The Tiger performance coming from the kitchen?
Whatever. Just trying to keep you entertained, bud.
Seriously, B.? Quit teasing.
It must be the heat. Things are a little warm in this neck of the woods.
So I’m going to make popsicles! For you and me, not for B..
But he’ll get some chilled kibble and hopefully there will be smiles all around.
I love working with edible flowers in the kitchen. I like to keep it pretty whenever I can.
Pretty tasty! Oh my – someone please stop me RIGHT NOW.
Seriously, though, hibiscus flowers are often used in Latin aguas frescas: refreshing, flavored, water-based drinks.
But it’s super hot here, and agua just won’t do. So here come the pretty popsicles.
A friend recently recommended a super souped-up popsicle mold. I think it might have had spinners on it.
That’s cool. But I really like to keep things simple in terms of kitchen accessories. So I went with this compact mold that I found for a few dollars at a local national chain store.
It gets the job done.
And here are two quick tricks for removing your popsicles:
1. Run the cavities under warm water for 30 seconds before attempting to unmold, or;
2. Grab a cavity with your hand, holding it for at least 10 seconds and allowing the heat from your hand to loosen the pop.
Presto! Pretty Pops! And alliteration!
I made these pops from milk and heavy cream so they taste a little yogurt-y – I like creamy frozen stuff.
I also chose to sprinkle the bottoms of my pops with loose hibiscus flowers, and add just a few drops of food coloring to the base.
Again, more with the pretty.
The cavities in my mold are 3 ounces each. These pops took 25 minutes to become solid enough to support their sticks, and were completely frozen after 2 hours. Depending on the size of your cavities and the strength and settings of your freezer, your pops should be ready in approximately the same amount of time.
I know you’re hot.
Best not to stand in front of the open freezer door waiting for your popsicles to be ready. Try crawling under the couch for awhile instead. Just don’t forget to come out for your pretty pops.
Hibiscus Popsicles
3/4 c. whole milk
1/4 c. heavy cream
2 tbsp. honey
2 tbsp. white sugar, granulated
2 tbsp. water
1 heaping tbsp. dried hibiscus flowers + more for garnish (optional)
3 drops red food coloring (optional)
Bring sugar, water and honey to a boil in a small saucepan, stirring constantly to prevent the sugar from burning. Reduce to a simmer and continue cooking until the sugar dissolves, approximately 2-4 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
Meanwhile, process one heaping tablespoon of the dried flower pieces in a spice grinder until powdered. You may need to remove any large pieces that remain.
Whisk the cooled syrup, milk, cream, ground flowers and food coloring in a small bowl until blended.
Pour the base into molds, leaving 1/2″ headspace in each cavity. Sprinkle remaining flowers onto the top (popsicle bottoms) of each cavity, pressing lightly so that the flower pieces adhere to the pops.
Freeze partially (this took approximately 25 minutes in my freezer) and insert wood popsicle sticks into the center of each pop. Freeze completely before serving (this took approximately 2 hours in my freezer).
YIELD: 4- 3 ounce popsicles
These look amazing…I want to try hibiscus tea …and will get enough to make these too! I understand they have an avocado popsicle too…
these look awesome & i saw hibiscus at the store today (double yay!). my question is re: the “yogurt”-y element…could you sub in yogurt for the milk & cream? not only to make it a little lower in fat content, but i always have yogurt in the fridge; cream, not so much. since we’re talking substitutions, could i use turbinado sugar instead of granulated?
keep up the great work on this here blog – i’ve so enjoyed reading it since coming across it a few months back!
You can absolutely substitute turbinado sugar for the white granulated. Regarding the dairy substitution, I think it would be fine to replace yogurt for the milk and heavy cream. But if you go with a thick yogurt, like a Greek-style, you may want to thin the yogurt slightly with some water, just to make sure the popsicles freeze properly. Let me know how they turn out!
Beautiful popsicles. It’s not often that I apply the word elegant to this treat.
Love the pics!
Beautiful! I would have never thought of combining hibiscus with cream.
These popsicles are so pretty and your dog is ADORABLE. I live in Mexico and I make agua de Jamaica often. I’ve been wanting to make my little boys some homemade popsicles. I’ll make some of these along with the mango ones I already planned on.
Congrats on Foodbuzz Top 9!!
What a great way to start the weekend!
Just popping in to say Congrats on Top #1!!!
They look so pretty and I bet they were delicious too!Congrats on your top 9:)
those pops are beautiful, and I know they had to be delicious! Congrats on the top 9 today!
During a visit to the dentist yesterday, my hygenist and I started talking about scarlettabakes.com. We actually went online right there in the dentist’s office and were ooohing and aaahing over the pretty pink pops! It certainly was my idea of a great way to get through a session in the dentist’s chair!
innovative delicious we have hibiscus drinks but haven’t had in a popsicle
thank you for sharing
I’ve just finished some lavender popsicles
; flowers in the kitchen are nice, indeed.
Your popsicles look like jewelry!!! Great photos!
I’ve only made tea with hibiscus, and I’ve included it in some berry jam recipes… never thought to put it in popsicles… that’s awesome!!
Love the photo of your pooch… gorgeous!!
Definitely love the pretty pretty pink pops!
What a beautiful popsicle! I don’t even like popsicles, but this recipe seems to be changing my opinion. Great photos!
My husband’s cousin made hibiscus sorbet for us in Sicily once. Delicious!
These are absolutely stunning. I first discovered hibiscus as an infusion in Egypt and ever since, love to get my hands on it as it turns a vibrant purpley colour. Love that you’ve turned them into popsicles!
Very pretty popsicles! Your little pup looks like he is saying “you made me come out and I don’t even get a popsicle?”.
These are so nice. I have never tasted hibiscus..
Scarletta these are beautiful! I love using flowers in sweet recipes as well, so I will have to give hibiscus a try in frozen desserts! These would be perfect for a hot summer day!
These are so pretty! My daughter makes me buy the edible flowers when she see’s them in the supermarket. I will have to make these for her
Wow… those are so beautiful! I never would’ve thought to do that, but I just love the idea! Yum!
Wow, those are so pretty, and that was a cute post, and I’m not just talking about the doggie! We have 3 huge hibiscus plants in our yard, I have never tried to eat them….. I am going to do some research, thank you for this post!
These popsicles look beautiful especially with that hibiscus! Your dog is so adorable too!
Wow! Those look amazing! So refreshing and the color….
Did the dog come out from under the couch?
Not yet. Stay tuned…
I wish it was hot here, but we’re having rain yet again. Those pops really are pretty, and I have a beautiful hibiscus growing on my porch. I wonder if I can use flowers from it that have dried, or if I need to buy them?
As long as you haven’t used any chemical growing agents, I think drying your own hibiscus flowers is a fantastic idea!
These look really refreshing. The only edible hibiscus thing I have ever run across is the tea at Starbucks. I will need to get out more and try the tea-then that should lead me to making these popsicles. Thanks for sharing.
Perfect use of Hibiscus. I usually make tea with them at night but this is such a better use in these summery hot days. Thanks for sharing your recipe and enjoy the official beginning of summer.:-)
These look fabulous
It’s warming up here in So Cal these days, too, thank God! June Gloom sure has made its presence known. Where do you purchase edible hibiscus flowers?
Dried hibiscus flowers are readily available here in Arizona, likely because they’re so prevalent in Mexican cuisine. That said, I think you will be able to find them your local Hispanic market, or maybe even in the bulk dried herb section of your local health/whole food store. I hope this helps!
I made Jamaica on sunday! Yumm-o so refreshing!
http://wp.me/p1BkdR-3b
We always make popsicles out of it, but i’m def trying this ones too, I already love the milky and yogurty flavor you mention
Your popsicles are such a pretty color! Your dog is so cute!
My cat gets that look in her eye when I start to sing so it probably was the Eye of the Tiger performance rather than the bath
Hibiscus? I am going to have to hunt some down and try these popsicles – they are so imaginative and pretty and perfect for grown ups.
Your popsicles are gorgeous. They look incredibly refreshing. The pic of your dog made me giggle. So cute!