What visions do you have when you hear the word summer?
For me it takes me straight back to my childhood – long days outdoors, swimming, the beach, that salty residue on your skin at the end of a glorious day, laughter, friendship and so much more.
I remember riding home from school on a hot summer’s day, dumping my school back at the front door and heading straight to the freezer for a cool lemon ice-block. The cold sweet treat was heaven and instantly transported me to my happy place!
My kids today crave that same experience. We walk home from school and they head straight to the kitchen looking for a refreshing treat. And whilst a lemon ice-block or a calipo (one of their favourites) is something they love, it’s not something we keep in our freezer. We indulge in those outside of the house. Instead we make our own home made ice-blocks and they are so easy, and it’s something my kids absolutely love. Best of all there are no limits to how many they can eat.
There are two kinds of ice-blocks we make.
FRUIT JUIICE – your favourite fruit, juiced at home (not store bought) popped into ice-block moulds. It’s that simple.
SMOOTHIES
These take a tiny bit more effort as there is a recipe involved and some blending required, but below are two super simple ones you can wizz up anytime.
Mango Smoothie – two mangoes cut up, a small handful of raw cashew nuts, 1/4 cup coconut water. The cashews make it creamy and the coconut water helps break down the mango pulp and adds a delicious subtle sweetness.
Banana Berry Smoothie – 2 bananas, one cup mixed berries (frozen is fine), handful cashew nuts and 1/4 cup coconut water. With the banana berry smoothie I placed half of this in the mould and then topped with mango smoothie to create this below berry banana and mango ice-block. To make an ice-block with two flavours the key is to make the smoothie mixture thick – that way the two flavours don’t blend together in the mould. Add some ice, or use frozen fruit to make the smoothie thick.
Ice Block Molds
There are so many molds you can buy and relatively low cost. Kmart has plenty. You could try Ikea or any kitchen store. Below are the two I use. Most of them come with plastic sticks but sometimes I like to use paddle pop sticks. ENJOY!!
