Watermelon Float Popsicles | #popsicleweek

June is basically the best month of the year:

1. My birthday
2. Summer solstice
3. Popsicle week
4. See number one

While my birthday (which I now share with my friends’ new little guy, Henry!) and the start of summer are for sure reason enough to crown this month a winner, Billy of Wit & Vinegar guilds the lily year after year by adding #popsicleweek into the June lineup. 

Passionate Palmer Pops | Popsicle Week 2017

It’s Wit and Vinegar’s WORLD FAMOUS POPSICLE WEEK! The hottest (yet, chilliest/chillest) week of the year! Check out the 2017 popsicle week page for a plethora of pops. Some are covered in toasted marshmallow (!), some are made with pudding, others are boozy and fruity, a few have chunks of cake in them. And this, my friends, is mine: The Passionate Palmer Pop™. 

Coconut Lemon Bar Popsicles

It's summer! And it's popsicle week! 

The always awesome Billy is hosting popsicle week, which is basically just a big, giant internet popsicle party, wherein 37 bloggers (including yours truly!) post a bunch of really fun frozen treat recipes all week long. I'm so excited for you guys to make these coconut lemon bar pops, and to try all the other cool creations (cool… get it? like… frozen. but also like…rad. oh. you did get it?). Head over to Wit and Vinegar, where Billy's updating the popsicle page with the latest recipes as they come in. 

So, about this popsicle. Remember that one time when I didn't care about lemon bars, and then my friend Genevieve begged and begged, so I finally made them? And I threw a whole bunch of shredded coconut into the shortbread crust? And then I discovered that lemon bars are amazing and I'm silly for not caring about them? Remember that? Well, these popsicles are the frozen summer version of those lemon bars! They're so creamy and coconutty and lemony! With little bits of buttery crumbled cookie chunks! 

I asked for some popsicle flavor ideas on the ol' FB, and I heard a whole lotta coconut. And a whole lotta lemon. And a few lemon-coconut. So you people who said lemon or coconut or lemon and coconut? These are for you. And all you other people, who said things like boozy pops and Thai iced tea-sicles? You just head on over and check out all the other popsicle week posts! There's something for everyone. Except for Biscuit… she asked for a Fancy Feast popsicle, but I said no. You have to draw a line somewhere, ya know?

These are easy breezy. I used store-bought cookies and crunched 'em up, because it's summa and i'm not trying to be in front of an oven all day. I tried three different variations on the mix-ins: coconut and cookies mixed evenly in the liquid, coconut and cookies at the top end, and coconut and cookies at the bottom end. I think mixed evenly throughout works best, because you get cookie flavor in every bite, but if you want to try the other options, go for it! 

Coconut Lemon Bar Popsicles

Makes about 10 big popsicles

1 can full fat coconut milk (for full creaminess)

1 cup fresh lemon juice

1/4 cup honey

1/3-1/2 cup desiccated coconut (depending on how textury and coconutty you like it)

1/2 cup shortbread cookie crumbles 

Whisk together coconut milk, lemon juice, and honey until smooth (or whiz up in a blender). Stir in coconut and cookie crumbles. Pour into popsicle molds, and freeze until solid. Release from molds (I like running warm water over the outside of the mold) and enjoy! 

Creamy Coffee Popsicles

Lets talk about coffee for a minute. 

I have a bit of a coffee problem. As in, I drink a ton of it and can't start my day without it. I'm also kind of a coffee snob. I'm not a fan of a certain coffee chain that my city prides itself on—I like small local roasters and shops, a good bold flavor, and no add ons. No sugar-vanilla-double-triple-mocha--latte-whip for me, please. Give it to me black. Hot or iced. 

I'll occasionally add a small splash of (unflavored) cream or half n half if I'm feeling frisky, but never sugar. I just like the flavor of the coffee, alright!? I'll make an exception to my no-sugar-in-my-coffee rule when it comes to desserts like coffee ice cream. Or Vietnamese coffee, with swirls of sticky sweetened condensed milk. 

That's what I was going for with these pops originally, Vietnamese coffee popsicles. But, once the coffee and condensed milk are stirred together and frozen, you lose that swirly separation that makes Vietnamese coffee its own special beast. Instead, they took on a coffee ice cream vibe, and I can dig that. Super strong coffee ice cream on a stick? Ok, now that will appease both my dessert obsession and my coffee snobbery. 

Creamy Coffee Pops
From this pop recipe and this coffee recipe

Makes 8-10 depending on size of popsicle mold

I used David Lebovitz's recipe/proportions, but rather than brewing espresso, I made a batch of cold brew. Seriously, strong, dark cold brew is one of life's greatest inventions. And it's so, SO easy (Make it just to have in the fridge...your life will change). Just plan ahead. The cold brew needs to sit overnight, then pops will take 4-6 hours (or more) to freeze through. Also, these are super strong...and caffeinated. If you're planning on having these in evening, consider decaf coffee grounds. 

2/3 cup of ground coffee 
2 3/4 cups water
2/3 cup sweetened condensed milk

Add ground coffee and water to a large container and stir until all the grounds are wet. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Strain through cheesecloth and a fine-mesh sieve.

To make pops, whisk together the strained coffee and condensed milk, and pour into popsicle molds. Freeze until solid.