DIY: Spa Popsicles

Nobody would have chased the ice cream truck when we were kids if we’d known about spa popsicles: avocado-lime, cucumber-lemon, honeydew melon, tomato. What flavor is growing in your garden?

Relying on less sugar and more thirst-quenching fresh fruit for their flavors, spa popsicles are a healthier alternative, too. Here’s a recipe from Rancho Valencia Spa in southern California, where citrus from the gardens gets juiced for popsicles and offered along with the spa treatments:

Avocado-Lime Popsicles

Ingredients:

• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 medium ripe avocados
• pinch of salt
• 2 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice

Instructions:

• Make a simple syrup by combining water and sugar in a saucepan and bringing it to a boil; boil until the sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
• Remove the flesh from the avocado, and puree it along with salt and simple syrup.
• Add lime juice and blend.
• Pour the mixture into molds and freeze until solid (for from three to five hours).

Photographs via Rancho Valencia, except where noted.

Above: Lemonade-cucumber popsicle.

Above: Since the San Diego climate is great for year-round edibles, these change seasonally according to what’s growing in the garden. For a recipe for Lemonade-Cucumber Spa Popsicles, go to Marcus Samuelsson. Image via Marcus Samuelsson.

Above: Other flavors at Rancho Valencia Spa include honeydew melon and avocado lime.

Above: Blood-orange popsicles.

Above: Avocado-lime popsicles.