How to Make Homemade Popsicles

Co-authored by wikiHow Staff

Last Updated: August 6, 2020 Approved

There's nothing more refreshing than a popsicle on a hot summer's day. Next time you need an icy fix, don't wait for the ice cream truck to roll around! Make a batch of popsicles yourself. Whether you love fresh berry popsicles, chocolate popsicles, orange creamsicles or soda popsicles, wikiHow has you covered!

Ingredients

Fresh Berry Popsicles

3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup water
1 cup blueberries
1 cup strawberries, cut into small pieces
1 cup raspberries
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

Chocolate Popsicles

2 cups milk
1/2 cup water
3 tablespoons cocoa powder
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Orange Creamsicles

1 cup orange juice
2 1/2 cups vanilla ice cream
1 tablespoon orange zest

Watermelon Popsicles

Watermelon or watermelon juice

Soda Popsicles

3 cups soda or drink of your choice

Milkshake Popsicles

¹⁄₄ gallon (0.9 L) of ice cream (flavor of your choice)
About 1/4 cup milk

Method 1

Method 1 of 6:

Fresh Berry Popsicles

Swap out any type of fresh fruit for the berries to make this healthy, fresh popsicle treat. Try a melon-kiwi, banana-strawberry or orange-pineapple combo if you want to mix things up.

1
Wash and process your fruit. Make sure your blueberries, raspberries and strawberries are rinsed and clean. Remove the strawberries' stems and chop them into bite-sized pieces.
2
Make a simple syrup. Place the water and sugar in a small saucepan over medium low heat. Heat the mixture, stirring constantly, until the sugar dissolves into the water. Remove it from heat and set it aside. You now have a tasty syrup to sweeten your popsicles.^{[1]
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- For a minty fresh flavor, add some mint leaves to the mixture as it cooks, then take them out before using the syrup.
- If you don't want to make syrup, you can substitute any type of fruit juice instead.
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3
Blend the berries and lemon juice. Place the berries and lemon juice in a blender and blend until completely smooth. If you like chunks of fruit in your popsicles, you can leave some fruit out and stir it in after the mixture has been blended.
4
Stir in 1/3 cup simple syrup. If you want your popsicles sweeter, you can add more simple syrup. You can also swap it out for grape juice, cranberry juice, lemon-lime soda, or any other sweet liquid.
5
Pour the mixture into popsicle molds. This recipe will make six large popsicles. If you don't have popsicle molds you can make mini popsicles using an ice cube tray!
6
Freeze the popsicles until they're hard. Put them in the freezer and leave them alone for at least 3 hours or overnight, so they'll be nice and hard when you take them out to eat them.

Method 2

Method 2 of 6:

Chocolate Popsicles

These fudge-like chocolate popsicles are the perfect way to satisfy a chocolate craving midsummer. If you're out of one of the ingredients, just swap it for something else in your pantry - you can't go wrong with this recipe.

1
Mix the milk and water in a bowl. You can use any type of milk you want for these popsicles - whole milk, skim, goat's milk, coconut milk, almond milk, and so on. Stir your milk and water together.^{[2]
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- If you want extra creamy popsicles, swap out the water for whole milk, half and half or heavy cream.
2
Stir in the cocoa, vanilla and sugar. Pour the cocoa and sugar into the bowl and stir with a whisk until they are completely dissolved in your milk and water mixture.
- You can substitute honey, stevia, agave nectar, or any other sweetener for the sugar.
- Instead of vanilla, try using almond extract, a few drops of peppermint extract, or another flavoring.
3
Pour the mixture into popsicle molds. Get creative and use ice cube trays if you don't have popsicle molds.
4
Freeze the popsicles. Let them stay in the freezer for 3 hours or overnight, until they're completely hard.

Method 3

Method 3 of 6:

Orange Creamsicles

Everyone's favorite childhood treat is easy to make at home! This fresh homemade version of classic creamsicles tastes even better than the original.

1
Zest an orange. The bright, fresh flavor from these popsicles comes from the orange zest. Use a zester, microplane or grater to zest an orange until you've collected 1 tablespoon.
2
Blend the orange juice, ice cream and zest. Place them all in a blender and blend until completely smooth.^{[3]
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- Lemonade or grapefruit juice also taste delicious in popsicle form.
- You can sub the orange juice for root beer if you want a root beer float-inspired concoction.
3
Pour the mixture into popsicle molds.
4
Freeze the popsicles until they're solid. It will take at least 3 hours. Resist the temptation to take them out before they're hard - these popsicles melt quite easily!

Method 4

Method 4 of 6:

Watermelon Popsicles

1
Blend the watermelon. Skip this step if you already have juice.
2
Pour the juice into molds and freeze for at least 3 hours, preferably 1-10 days or so.
3
Remove the popsicles.
4
Enjoy your popsicle(s)!
5
Finished.

Method 5

Method 5 of 6:

Soda Popsicles

You can make popsicles using nothing but a can or two of soda! Get creative and use whatever beverage you think will taste best frozen.

1
Choose the type of soda or drink you want to use. This will be the flavor of your popsicle. You can choose lemonade, grape juice, Kool-Aid, or whatever else tickles your fancy.
2
Carefully pour the drink into molds. Fill up each popsicle mold so it is almost full. If you don't have molds, you can use paper cups or ice cube trays.
- If you're using an ice cube tray, you can create handles out of toothpicks. Put plastic wrap over the tray, and place two toothpicks into each cup. The toothpicks should have a small amount of space between them.
3
Let the popsicles freeze completely. This may take a few hours.
4
Take out the tray when the popsicles are hard. Once the popsicles have all completely solidified, remove the tray from the freezer. Do not tug on the toothpicks or stick, but instead press from the bottom of the cup to remove the popsicle.
5
Serve and enjoy. What ever remainders you have, you can put back in the freezer until next time.

Method 6

Method 6 of 6:

Milkshake Popsicles

1
Mix the ice cream and milk in a blender on the blend setting. Blend for about 5 seconds.
2
Pour the blended mixture into a popsicle mold. Set the timer for 90:00 minutes. Place the mold in the freezer.
3
When you remove the molds from the freezer, don't just pull the sticks out, as that will ruin your popsicle. Instead, run some warm water over the mold for a few seconds. Now pull out the stick and you'll have concocted a lovely milky, icy treat.

Community Q&A

Question

What will happen if I only freeze the milk without adding the ice cream?

Community Answer

Your popsicles will not taste very good and they will not be the same soft texture.
Question

How long does it take for the Popsicles to mold?

Pat Southwood-Theron

Community Answer

Depends on how cold your freezer is set. Generally about four to five hours.
Question

How do I make soda popsicles without them turning into slush?

Community Answer

Put them in popsicle molds and freeze them overnight.

Warnings

Wash hands before and after handling food, especially in food preparation.

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Observe children as they eat the popsicles. Immediately throw away toothpicks once the treat has been consumed. Toothpicks are sharp and can be easily swallowed. If anything hazardous has been swallowed, call medical assistance immediately.

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Always observe children in the kitchen. Never allow them to handle sharp, hot, or heavy objects.

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