Sweet melon and tangy lime popsicles studded with chili spiced chunks! These easy-to-make watermelon popsicles can be made with any variety and color of the melon rainbow!
Ingredients: Melon. Sugar. Lime. Salt. Chile.
Sweet fruit and spicy chile is a quintessential Mexican sweets combo. These frozen treats are a riff off of my cousin Fany’s quintessentially Mexican Pineapple Paletas with Chile.
Why this Melon Popsicle Recipe Works
- Quick & Easy! Only 5 ingredients and 15 minutes later and you have a deliciously refreshing and endlessly customizable frozen treat!
- Using fresh watermelon puree! Puréeing fresh watermelon creates the most intensely flavored and concentrated juice.
- Adding seasoned chunks! Makes for a more interesting texture and a popsicle bursting with flavor.
- That pinch of salt! Boosts the fruity flavor and accentuates the sweetness of the fruit.
- Versatile & customizable: Recipe works just as well with watermelon as it does with any variety and color of the melon rainbow! Simply season with sugar and lime accordingly.
It’s the popsicles recipe that celebrates every color of the melon rainbow.
If it’s a melon variety, it can go in our popsicle! It’s an equal melon opportunity recipe.
There’s a whole wide melon world out there!
Keep in mind that melon varieties vary on the sweet-tart spectrum and modify sugar and lime accordingly.
How to Make this Melon Popsicle Recipe
- Puree melon with sugar, salt and lime
- Season to taste with additional sugar, salt and lime
- Toss melon chunks with chile flakes, sugar and sat.
- Divide the melon chunks equally into the popsicle’s molds
- Fill with juice
- Freeze and wait!
Recipe is a simple ration of melon to sugar and lime juice
For every cup 1 cup of melon puree, add 1 tablespoon of sugar, lime juice and a pinch of salt.
Pro-Tip: When using different varieties of melon, remember tart ones needs more sugar and sweet ones more lime. Season to taste!
Remember: it’s easier to addeth seasoning that to taketh away!
Start conservatively. Add more to taste
Make Puree. Remember season lightly. Make chunks.
Notes & Substitutions
Watermelon Substitutions: Any variety of melon can be used as an entirely different fruit can be as well! Mango, pineapple, berries… the fruit sky is the limit!
Or mix n’match melon varieties like I did here.
The key is to season the fruit juice to taste.
For example, a really juicy sweet watermelon in season will need less sugar than a tart lemon drop melon.
Melon varieties include (but are not limited to): watermelon (red, pink, yellow and white), cantaloupe, honeydew and more!
Pro-Tip: this recipe is a great way to use up any not-so-great melons you have, and your very best ones aren’t necessary. I’m not saying to go outta your way to use bad melon. I’m just saying we’re adding sugar and lime (+ maybe tequila?! See below) and this recipe will turn any mediocre watermelon into an exceptional popsicle!
Your very best melons isn’t necessary for this recipe!
Lime Substitute: Lime can be subsisted with any other citrus such as lemon, orange, blood orange, grapefruit, etc.
Just like with the melon, keep in mind that different types of citruses vary on the sweet-tart spectrum and adjust sugar accordingly.
Pro-Tip: Regardless of citrus type, use fresh juice (not that stuff in the squeezy bottle)!
Chile Flakes: I developed this recipe for Spice Tribe’s Maras Chile Flakes which have a bold and fruity heat that’s not overpowering.
My cousin Fany loves adding piquín chile from Oaxaca to her paletas and like she says, feel free to substitute it for ground guajillo, chipotle, or your personal favorite.
After all, the chile powder you use is a matter of personal taste. It isn’t just about the heat; it’s also about the flavor.
Pro-Tip: Pick chile based both on heat level and flavor.
Sugar Substitute: Other sweeteners can be substituted for the sugar, including brown sugar, honey, date syrup, maple syrup etc.
Chunks: To chunk or not to chunk, that is a personal question. Perhaps you want to toss in a pinch of chili to your blender as a gateway to fully spiced chunks. This recipe can be accommodating to your personal chunk needs!
Or keep the chunks but replace the melon part, such as adding coconut or berries to the molds instead and then pouring in the melon juice.
Straining the melon puree: Is not absolutely necessary. Especially if you’re starting with seedless watermelon.
Straining results in a smoother melon juice with the melon chunks much more visible.
Note: if you’re omitting the chunks, not straining will add some texture to your popsicles.
Optional addition – Tequila: Add two ounces of tequila (or more to taste) to the blender with the melon to booze up and adult-ify this recipe.
Popsicles are a quintessential summer treat!
Made with fresh melon and dotted with spiced chunks… so delicious and so refreshing!
Cooks Tips
- For tastiest results, use freshly squeezed lime juice.
- When filling the popsicles molds, remember to leave room at the top to allow for expansion!
- Freeze until fully frozen and solid, at least 4-8 hours (depending on your freezer) and preferably, overnight.
Enjoy these easy-to-make melon popsicles with a kick! Once ya go homemade popsicles, you’ll never go back to the processed junk with preservatives!
Watermelon Popsicles with Chile & Lime
Ingredients
- 4 cups of melon* chunks seedless or seeds removed, divided
- 4 tablespoons of sugar divided + more to taste
- 2 tablespoons of lime juice + more to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt divided
- 1 tablespoon Maras chile flakes
Instructions
- In a blender, purée 1 cup of melon, lime juice, 3 tablespoons of sugar, and a pinch of kosher salt until very smoot. Add a splash of water at a time, if necessary, so that the mixture liquefies.
- Strain melon juice with a fine mesh sieve into a bowl, pressing out the solids. Add more lime and sugar to taste. (Note: purée will taste slightly less sweet once frozen).
- Meanwhile, toss the remaining 3 cups of melon with the remaining tablespoon of sugar, salt and Maras chile flakes.
- Divide the chile spiced melon chunks evenly between popsicles molds and top with the melon juice. Leave about 1/2 - 3/4-inch empty for expansion. Add popsicle mold lid, insert sticks and freeze until fully frozen and solid, 4-8 hours depending on your freezer but preferably, overnight.
Notes
- For tastiest results, use freshly squeezed lime juice.
- When filling the popsicles molds, remember to leave room at the top to allow for expansion!
- Freeze until fully frozen and solid, at least 4-8 hours (depending on your freezer) and preferably, overnight.
Want More Watermelon Recipes?
Sweet and savory — here's how I use melon all summer long. And if you want to go deep on every color of the melon rainbow, start with the Melon Colors guide.
- Watermelon & Feta Salad — sweet, juicy watermelon and creamy briny feta. Ready in 20 minutes and you'll want it all summer long.
- Watermelon Gazpacho — watermelon, strawberries, tomato, jalapeño. The prettiest cold soup of summer.
- Tomato Watermelon Salad — sweet, salty, juicy, crunchy, and all the colors of summer.
If ya tried it, I'd love to hear — leave a comment below and tag me on IG, @danielagerson, so I can see too!
There's a whole lot more seasonal recipes and colorful produce guides waiting for ya on the site.
Let's make waves in the kitchen.
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