Not cake, but ice.
Two weekends ago when I spent the afternoon judging for Hands On Atlanta, we all had a special treat. During the event, the King of Pops was on site selling his handcrafted popsicles. Usually he’s pushing his cute cart around the streets of Atlanta, but instead he was kicking it inside with us for the event. I was super-excited because I had already heard his story a few weeks before when a friend ran into him at the local farmer’s market. He was buying gobs of strawberries. So many, it prompted her to ask what the heck he was going to do with all of them. Then he handed her his card in the shape of a popsicle. Turns out he’s the King of Pops.
When she told me about meeting him, I decided I was going to track down his cart one day to try some of his icey pops. Luckily, that Saturday, all I had to do was turn around and there he was.
Say Hi. This is Steven. The King of Pops.
Follow him on Twitter if you’re in Atlanta and you can keep up with his flavors and where he’ll be next. He was also featured just yesterday on CNN. Check him out here.
I had the Blackberry Mojito – YUM – but I’m still hitting myself for not trying the Chocolate Sea Salt, too.
You know, I think the only kind I’ve ever made myself are the ones you buy at the grocery store. You know the flavored water kind in those long plastic tubes.
Yeah, those.
So, I decided I wanted to make my own handcrafted popsicles with real fruit.
I just used some paper candy cups I had on hand and wooden popsicle sticks to play with.
It’s really easy to make your own.
Pick a fruit. 2 cups strawberries in this case. Hull and half them.
Throw them in a food processor with 1 Tablespoon super fine sugar, 1 teaspoon lemon juice and a pinch of salt.
Then blend it all together until completely smooth.
Pour and freeze.
These were layered with yogurt in between the strawberry. They were pretty tasty and the perfect size for me.
The recipe came from the book, Ice Pops which has tons more treats like these.
And because Steven can’t show up to everyone’s house with his cart filled with handcrafted popsicles, here’s a chance to win your own Quick Popsicle Maker for fast freezing fun…
…along with the book, too.
Enter for a chance to win:
Zoku Quick Popsicle Maker and Ice Pops book
Just leave a comment on this post and tell me your favorite fruit flavor.
Deadline to enter is Tuesday, July, 6th at 5:00 pm ET. Sorry, Time’s Up! Winner Announced Below.
One winner will be chosen at random and announced sometime Tuesday evening.
P.S. Giveaway purchased and sponsored by me, but you can find the book and Zoku pop maker at Williams-Sonoma.
Good luck and stay cool!
And the winner is… #4035. Congrats Marta. You get the Ice Pops book and Zoku Pop Maker. Now you can make your own Raspberry Lime Pops.
Next… I had a treat in my inbox today. Statistician Don… you know Pioneer Woman’s Statistician Don? The numbers guy?
Well, his wife told him about the giveaway I was having and he took time out to pull together these numbers for me. Then I made a little bar chart for you guys from all his hard work. Check out your favorite fruits.
Thanks Don! You’re the sweetest.
My favorite would be a mixed berry or strawberry banana.
Strawberry-watermelon with a hint of orange or lemon!
Mango! The bestest!
fruit!?! give me a good ol’ Jello Chocolate pudding pop. but if I had to pick fruit it would be strawberry
I’d have to say my favorite fruit mix would include pineapple and other tropical fruits. I was always a sucker for tropical punches.
strawberries and cream!
blueberry, or grape. YUMMM!!!!!!!!! ;]
strawberry…no, peach…hmm, pineapple may be good? How about a mix of them all!!
Strawberries!!! Love them!
Watermelon! I love watermelon!
My favorite is raspberry! Yum!!
KEY LIME!!
I love strawberry!! That book looks awesome!
Love our latest creating, Strawberry Smoothie Pops!
cherry!! def. my fave fruit flavor, love it!!
Peach! Yumm!
Lime! Or lemon! Or how about lemon/lime!
Love it !!!! This is perfect for our summer in Dubai !!
Now that’s one tasty & healthy way to get a treat. Would love a shot at winning this :)
What a fun prize! I think my favorite is lime. Yum. Pick me!
mango!
Wow! We used to make koolaid popsicles as kids (eww)…I’d love to make these!!
I would be so happy to make strawberry lemonade Zoku pops!!! Then I’d have to try out some of the other recipes, especially the yogurt ones.
My favorite flavor is lemon or cherry…maybe lemon-cherry. My kids, however, will eat anything. Wonder if they would like a little basil in their pops?
Watermelon. I’m eating some now. I’m imagining it frozen and on a stick. That would be amazing, I’m sure.
Coconut is my favorite!! =]
I love anything raspberry or watermelon!!! I love your blog!!
Grape!
Kiwi would be my favorite fruit by far!!
Key Lime. Yum! Although, I’m not sure that would work in a popsicle. But I’d love to try.
Anything with strawberry would be my favorite…mmm.
Watermelon! What a great idea!
I saw the Zoku at MOA last month. What a great idea! I love mandarin orange and lime pops!
Orange, definitely orange!
Strawberry is my fave with Watermelon in a close second!
Pineapple. And I use it every chance I get!
Love this!! My favorite is orange :)
this is such a great giveaway! right in the middle on summer, the best treat for us! my summer favorite fruit is of course watermelon.
I love pops! Whatever fruit is fresh== favorite is chocolate cherry, or chocolate anything. I also love fresh apricot, peach, lemons, limes, blueberries, raspberries.
Raspberries!!
coconut! Yummy!
rasberry!
Popsicles are tres popular in our house! Watermelon is a favorite.
Mmmmm! Strawberry!
Coconut hands down! But I also love any type of berry. I also would have loved to try the chocolate sea salt!
I love Popsicles and most any fruit frozen!!! Strawberry is so delicious!!! I like everything I see here!! Wow! What a treat to win!!!
Bosenberry is my favorite, but any fruit is good as a pop! This would be a great way to get fruit in my kids. Yum!
I have always had a thing for orange popsicles.
Definitely strawberry!!
I love mango!!! i can eat it all day!
Raspberry… passionfruit.. no… it’s raspberry all the way, baby!
Chocolate Raspberry please or perhaps, Pistachio
:-)
I LOVE Lemon & Strwaberry.
Thank you for this post!!! I was trying to remember the name of the Popsicle guy from the event and I couldn’t! :) and I had the chocolate with salt… :) it was really good!!
Nectarines are in right now. But how fun to make your own creations and be a taste tester.
Those pops look so yummy!! Perfect summer treat
Fruit flavors are so yummy it’s nearly impossible to choose, but I think I’ll go with blackberry.
I looove fruit popsicles! Sounds healthy and yummy!
Strawberry is my favorite fruit, but my favorite fruit flavor in popsicles is fresh pineapple! YUM!
Lime!!!!! With watermelon and tangerine close seconds.
Dewberry! (admittedly I’ve never had a frozen fruit with this flavor, but it’s my favorite pie, so how could it be bad?!)
Mango is my favorite flavor!
Strawberry!
BLUEBERRY!
Hands down, strawberry is my favorite flavor!!
Definitely strawberry!!
MMMmmmmmmmmmmmm raspberry has got to be my favorite REAL fruit flavor… however, if i go for the fake stuff, blue raspberry of cherries are good!
mango
I love lime or raspberry! This looks like fun, especially for a preggo mama who is craving frozen fruit!!!
YUM! I’d be rockin some strawberry banana pops!
strawberry-banana is a never fail!!!! >.<
Peach
Raspberry
Strawberry
Strawberry Lemonade
OHHHH there are way too many to choose!!!!
Of course – Chocolate Sea Salt sounds yummy!!!!
Oh my goodness I would love the Zoku. I love making ice pops. My favorite fruit flavor is banana. Although all of Steven’s flavors sound great especially the chocolate sea salt :)
I can’t choose between watermelon and banana. I think I’ll stick with banana, though, possibly with chocolate pudding.
The “I’ve got a Popsicle” song is now stuck in my head.
lemon! clean and fresh. though any cold flavor on a hot day!
Watermelon or banana!
Strawberry!
MANGO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I love mango! If you tell me something involves mango, I’m sold in an instant. That looks like so much fun!
hmm… I would have to say …Mango!
I think my only attempt at making pops was as a kid freezing orange juice in ice trays but it was still yum! lol
Homemade pureed strawberries with some agave nectar and lemon juice. They are the best popsicles and I like making them for my children. One of those popsicle makers would be awesome in myhousehold. :) You do great work and take awesome photos.
Gosh it’s hard to choose just one flavor! Lemon, mango, watermelon, lychee. Those all speak of summer to me!!
Yum, Yum, strawberry!
I would love to make strawberry-pineapple pops!! They all look so pretty!!
Raspberry is my absolute favorite fruit flavor, but I’ve been loving the fresh peaches lately, too! :)
Peach! :)
cherry or strawberry! yum!!!
Raspberry, chocolate raspberry to be exact!
Yum, popsicles! My go-to fruit flavor is strawberry, but what I really love to do is mix it up: strawberry/pineapple, strawberry/raspberry, pomegranate/blueberry, peach/blueberry…I love the fruits of summer!
I love pomegranate! It’s such a happy, bright flavor :-)
I love Mango – yum!
BERRY, any berry!
CHOCOLATE!!! MMMMM!!!
I love all fruit. But I love raspberry. And mango. And lychee. And pistachio. Does pistachio count as a fruit? Why not. I say it does.
Everything with Strawberry!!!!!!!
Definitely banana!
i love a berry mixture! also i make a killer “banana bread” Popsicle!
So fun! I’ll bet there are lots of recipes in there that my little food allergic kids could eat!!
Raspberry Lime sounds so yummy right now! I would LOVE to win this book! Choose me! Choose me! I’m a prego lady who craves fruit right now :) I’d love to make them into yummy frozen treats for me AND my wonderful huuby!
I love to make homemade popsicles! I usually use fresh raspberries and yogurt!
Well, it’s only half fruit but I’m definitely going to go with piña colada ;)
Would love some of these in this hot vegas weather!!!
Strawberry!!!!
I love nectarines and peaches.
Starfruit. Hands down.
MMMMM I wish we had a king of pops in NYC! My favorite fruit flavor is strawberry-banana (although I sadly try to keep away from bananas in the summer because of mosquitos!)
I love mangoes, and would probably layer them with strawberries for the ultimate popsicle!
Pineapple!
Strawberry… or grape…or peach…or pineapple…really not fussy!
ooohhh. I’ve heard wonderful things about this popscicle maker!
Cherry and Pineapple – the ultimate Popsicle.
I have to say my favorite would be anything with STRAWBERRIES:) I LOVE strawberries and so does my 6 year old son. He could live on them alone:)
Thanks for this great giveaway!!!
I like mango best, it just screams summer to me.
This is so cliche, but I love Strawberry!
Raspberry, definitely. There’s just something awesome about the tarty sweetness. It’s like a candy hooker!
Raspberry or Black Cherry. Yum Yum YUM!
I love the spicy ones! oh my my my :)
I want to make some, and I could even make some to the workers outside my house, since the hurricane alex did a big mess in my backyard… you can see pictures in my blog.
I love raspberry and lime, that would be yummy!!!! I need to go out and find this book, what a fun activity to do with the kids!!!!
There is nothing better on a hot Phoenix day than a limon popsicle from the paletta man.
Strawberry!
Strawberry, hands down! Although I’ve become quite the fan of mango lately…
Cherry, for sure. Sweet or tart-love them both.
My favorite flavor is orange ~ wonder how REAL orange Popsicles would be? Hmmm…
Grape has always been my favourite popsicle flavour!
My favorite flavor is papaya, which is terrible because you can’t ever find papaya popsicles, with this I could make my own!
Strawberry! Yum!!
Mango. Yeah… or Figs… or just Watermelon… GAH SO MANY CHOICES
Raspberry!
MMM Raspberry or Lemon!!!
OMG, i live in Atlanta and visit the King of Pops whenever i can. my fave is mexican chocolate. and i love lemon basil, too!
Watermelon!
Mango and banana mixed. So yummy!
Sounds awesome!!
Today, I’d have to say pineapple!
I would have to say…Mango Kiwi!!! SOOOOOOO yummy!!!
Strawberry! Very cool idea.
MMMMMMMMMMM I LOVE this post!! Popsicles are my FAV!!
My fav flavor would be Watermelon! mmmmmm!!
I am all about raspeberry this summer!
Perfect for the summer! I want to have one to use as a summer treat project with my little cousins! They’ll love it!
We LOVE homemade pops at our house! Our fav flavor would have to be strawberry!…I have never seen the quick pop maker…I will have to check it out…waiting is always the worst part!
Mmm…raspberry all the way!
definitely fresh peach…. yummers!
Yum! I’d love to try hand-made popsicles!
Yum! Strawberry ice pops would be so good right now.
Looks amazing!! I am all about watermelon- maybe with a little basil.
Pineapple.
mango, pineapple, coconut, anything tropicaly ( is that a word?) it is now, and i know of two people who would love this, one, my father, who will and has been known to polish a box a Popsicles by himself, and two, my five year old, that would be great after she climbs out the pool on a summer day
Raspberry! This looks like SO much fun!
Those look so yummy!! My favorite fruit flavor would have to be peach! I would love to win!!
I am waiting until later this week for the hot weather and then I think I will make either watermelon or cucumber honeydew! :) Something new and different for our family. :)
Fresh bing cherries layered with yogurt and a drizzle of chocolate
I love orange cream pops! I would love to try some of those recipes!!
Those flavors look great though I could always go for plain old orange or orange creamsicle. Hmm…perhaps peach orange creamsicle. That would work too!
Apricot. But I’ll settle for peach too. or melon… oh, who am I kidding, I love them all!
Pina colada! Looks like lots of fun.
I love strawberry banana. And OMGosh..I need that book!
Strawberry, of course! I would play around with other flavors if I had the pop maker.
strawberry.
I just tried two different kind of fresh fruit smoothies with my girls. Can’t wait to try these now. Oh, and it’d be so fun to win your giveaway too.
Thanks!!
I love grape!
Strawberry. YUM!!!
I simply love orange & kiwi juice! With this weather (in Holland) I’d sure like to make a popsicle of it. :-)
strawberry!
I LOVE peach! And I especially love Steve’s (King of Pop’s), peach pops… they are SO yummy… I can’t say enough about his pops… It’s a treat to stop by his stand in the afternnon on my way home from work!!!
My Favorite Flavor would be either Watermelon or Kiwi
Love it! Our favorite is watermelon!
Oh this is a tough one……I’ll go with strawberry!
Those look so yummy… I’d have to say cantalope.
Depends for what! Popsicles = orange, actual fruit = grapes, candy = cherry, (except in the case of Jolly Ranchers, because then its watermelon!). I also like sour apple…can my answer just be all of them?
I love berry flavors especially strawberry or raspberry.
my favorite is mango, hands down. those look so good!
This would be perfect for the hot weather we are having! My favorite fruit flavor is strawberry banana – yum!
I am Hungarian and we use Morello Cherries in many desserts, so it has to be my favorite fruit flavor.
mm, coconut
Ooo, cantaloupe sounds wonderful!
Mango!
This post makes me want a yummy, cold pop.. real bad!!!
How fun would it be to make your own pops? I would love to try them in my favorite flavor of mango!!!!! MMM.
Thanks for the chance! :)
Definitely either strawberry or Oregon marionberry! Yum!
I’d have to say my favorite fruit flavor is banana, but NOT frozen bananas! Hate the texture!! Frozen, I’ll have to go with watermelon or raspberry. Yum!
Mango is definitely my favorite!!
Mango!! I could eat mango twice a day every day. :)
Raspberry!
Yum! those look amazing. I never thought about making popsicles from real fruit… I am definitely going to have to try it now :)
Orange and Vanilla Cream!!! yummy!!!
I love em ALL!!!!!! popsicles in general. i’m so glad you did a post on em!!!! :)
I’n in middle of winter. But happens that I LOVE iced things in winter. Once with my boyfriend, after class, we found out that it was rainning strongly!! and the first thing I said to him was “I want ice cream” !! we didn’t have a umbrella, and we were all wet already, but I didn’t care about that, I just cared about ice cream. So we ran to the ice cream shop near college and ate a giant ice cream *w* (and that’s crazy, ’cause I get sick really easy xD)
Anyways xD I’m sure my mom would make me keep that thing closed until summer u.u and I’m dying to try those! even if I don’t win xD but I don’t like frozen strawberries and those are the only ones I can find now…. I think I’ll make them with orange, or kiwii, there is a bunch of kiwiis sitting in my kitchen, waiting patiently to be eaten
Banana is my fave fruit and flavor for frozen treats. I’d make chocolate banana pops……yum.
Pineapple
Pomegranate!
This takes me back. My mom used to make popsicles for us when I was a kid! We didn’t have a lot of money, and she was always looking for ways to cut costs. She bought some molds and would fill them with chocolate milk, hoping we’d be as happy with that as with a fudgesicle. Actually they were pretty good!
Lucky for us we lived next to a milkman who would sell us ice cream bars for a nickel. Ahh, those were the days!
damn as if this post wasn’t great enough already, there’s a giveaway as well?! my favourite fruit flavour… mm… RASPBERRIES!
Strawberry-Banana! Those look absolutely delish!
Love anything tropical or citrus but any of them are great on a hot summer day!
strawberry strawberry yum yum yum
So unoriginal, but my favorite is strawberry! Kiwi is a close second.
Mmmmm, definetly MANGOES!!
I love making homemade popsicles. So much better than storebought. My faves are mango creamsicle and pina colada!
i LOVE mango. mmmmm…
Kiwi strawberry. Delicious!
The possiblities could be endless with this but I would have to say strawberry or blackberry.
Raspberry every time.
Orange Creamsicle!