The following excerpt and recipe for Paletas is from Emma Hearst's cookbook "Flavors from the Farm." It features over 100 recipes — from beverages to soups to desserts — celebrating fresh food from her Upstate New York farmstead. It's available for purchase on Amazon.

Paletas, aka Mexican ice pops, aka the best Popsicles ever! Fresh fruit and bold flavors make these icy treats far better than what the ice cream truck brings by. You can make them tart and refreshing with chunks of fruit and juice or creamy and sweet with condensed milk. Nothing is more enjoyable on a hot summer day, and they can be garnished with everything from shavings of chocolate to chopped nuts to a dusting of chile powder. It’s a good idea to always have plenty of frozen goodies on hand that are fun for both kids and adults to eat. I’ll take mine upside down in a cup of vodka, please!

Paletas

  • Prep Time:20 mins
  • Cook Time:0
  • Total Time:20 mins
  • Servings:8
  • Easy

    Ingredients

  • 3 cups chopped fresh fruit
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/3 cup filtered water
  • 1/4 cup fresh citrus juice choice
Photo from Emma Hearst

  • Step 1

    In a blender, combine 1 1/2 cups of the fruit, the sugar, water, and citrus juice and blend until smooth.

  • Step 2

    Fill ice-pop molds half full with the puréed fruit. Tuck the remaining chopped fruit into the molds, then top with more purée if needed to fill the length, leaving about 1/2 inch at the top, as the pops will expand as they freeze. If using molds with covers with built-in sticks, cover the molds, slip into the freezer, and freeze until completely frozen, about 4 hours. If using molds that require the addition of a stick, freeze the molds for a couple of hours, add the sticks, and then return to the freezer until frozen solid.

  • Step 3

    Remove the ice pops from the molds (a very quick dip in warm water will loosen them) and enjoy as is or garnish as you wish. These can be stored in ziplock bags in the freezer for a few weeks.

    Photo from Emma Hearst

Reprinted with permission from Flavors from the Farm by Emma Hearst copyright © 2024. Published by Weldon Owen.