In my time on this planet, I can honestly say that before a few days ago, I’d never been “wowed” by a premade popsicle before. I mean, sugar, water/milk, flavoring. Kinda meh if you ask me. Before this week, I would have rather taken my sweets in the form of cinnamon rolls or a margarita.

After starting our @TangerineTravels through Mexico, however, we discovered this little shop in San Blas that completely changed my perspective of popsicles forever. And I feel compelled to share this with the world in case there are others who have only been exposed to the sugar-laden and boring frozen desserts that are somehow still called popsicles.

Even if you only have high-fructose corn syrup ‘sicles from the store, it’s pretty easy to make your own with an inexpensive popsicle mold. You can often find them for around $1 USD.

Pick Your Base

The most common popsicle bases are either water or milk. You can also use fresh-squeezed fruit juice, non-dairy milk, or yogurt. If it’s your first time doing this, go with one of the first two.

Pick Your Sweetener

If you’re trying to make these a healthier treat, sweeten them with a natural alternative like honey, stevia, or pure maple syrup. You can also use unrefined cane sugar, dissolved in your base liquid. Add a sufficient amount to meet your preferences.

Pick Your Filling

This is the part most manufactured popsicles are sorely lacking. They’re just filled with sugar and water/milk and nothing else. No fruit, no nuts—nothing! Now is your chance to get creative and have fun with it. Add one or more ingredients such as:

• Crushed almonds
• Chocolate chips
• Sliced kiwi
• Spices (cinnamon is a great one!)
• Chia seeds
• (My personal favorite) whole pieces of fresh coconut.

You can add as many or as few as you’d like, but make sure there is still enough liquid in the mixture to freeze around all the pieces.

Mix It All Up!

Add your sweetener to your base and mix thoroughly. Depending on your chosen ingredients, you’ll either want to add them and stir again (i.e., with spices) or pour the liquid into the popsicle molds and drop in your additions after. To add the ingredients in the mold, fill the liquid to about 75% capacity. Add the fruit, nuts, seeds, or candies to the mold and balance your popsicle stick in the middle.

F-f-f-freeze!

Once you have all the ingredients in each mold, put them in the freezer to become solid. I recommend doing this before bed so they have plenty of time to freeze overnight and will be ready for you the next day.

Once you’ve gotten the hang of it, you can try new, more complicated recipes. One of my favorites is to “paint” strips of nut butter on the inside of the mold before pouring yogurt, nuts, and berries into the mold. With no added sugar, it’s a great treat (but perfectly healthy option) for breakfast.

What’s the best popsicle you’ve ever had?

Share in the comments below.