Papaya-Lemon Popsicles

Oh, I’ve been looking forward to these popsicles! In Mexico I fell in love with paletas – it’s so hard to say which was my favourite, but I definitely loved the lemon ones. I found these overripe papayas at Granville Island for $1 a piece – awesome deal! So this awesome find, combined with the gorgeous hot weather we’re experiencing right now, and with the abundance of lemons I bought the other day, I knew just what to do with them. Plus I have report cards to write, and I’ll do almost anything rather than that job.

When I was a kid the thing I looked forward to in my stocking was a papaya. They weren’t easy to find in Vancouver in the 70’s, so it was a real treat. We would squeeze a little lemon juice on them, and a tiny sprinkle of sugar. There popsicles are reminiscent of those Christmas mornings. I have used gelatine in these, so they have a softer bite, just like my Oma used to add to her raspberry popsicles.

Here’s a link to the popsicle maker I bought on Amazon. It does the job, and the popsicles look pretty!

What you need:

• about 3 cups of very ripe papaya
• the juice of 2-3 lemons, about 3/4 of a cup
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar (this makes the popsicles not very sweet – add more if you have a sweet tooth!)
• 1 package gelatine, 2 tablespoons

What you do:

1. Peel and seed the papaya; cut into rough chunks and place in a blender.
2. Add the lemon juice to the blender.
3. Heat  1/3 cup water and 1/4 cup sugar in a small pot until the sugar has dissolved.
4. Sprinkle the gelatine over 1/4 cup of cold water. Pour 1/4 cup of boiling water over the gelatine and stir continually until the gelatine has dissolved.
5. Puree the papaya for a few seconds, then add the sugar and gelatine mixtures. Puree for a few seconds, or longer if you prefer no chunks in your popsicles.
6. Pour the popsicles into moulds and freeze for about 6 hours. This is the hardest part!
7. Enjoy!