Frozen Fruit Pops

One of the really neat things we registered for as a wedding gift was the popsicle molds shown below. We already had an ice cream maker so there was no need to register for another of those. Popsicles molds come in a variety of shapes, sizes and quality. These make a good sized star pop and the quality is exceptional. Since we FINALLY just got our household goods delivered and FINALLY unwrapped all of our wedding presents, it was time to try out all of the cool kitchen things we received as presents.

One night I got the idea to make frozen fruit pops using, yes, frozen fruit. I wanted to make them extra yummy, so instead of using water as my liquid I decided to try some juices or other flavored beverages. Since these are to be a healthy snack alternative to ice cream, I searched out only diet drinks and reduced calorie juices. I must say that my options here at the commissary are limited, but they have an awesome selection of frozen fruit.
These are some of the juice options I have tried.

In order to make these pops I needed a good way to puree the fruit. I bought this cuisinart mini food prep for Ryan a few years ago for his birthday. I just thought it was cute, I didn't know how useful it would be later on.

To make these pops I put the fruit in first. Yes, you can use fresh, but the frozen worked really well and are already cold. Plus they were cheap. I did of course check to make sure there was no additional sugar added or anything else that would prevent these from being identical to fresh fruit. The pops I am making here are peach.
After I chop the fruit I can add the liquid. This is necessary to make a puree that can go into the molds. I wish I had a recipe to share, but this is more of a make it up as you go activity. I almost always use a whole bag of frozen fruit, but adding the liquid depends on the consistency of the puree. Adding small amounts at a time will help to make sure it is not too watered down. Here I thought that diet peach ice tea would be great with my frozen peaches. I used to work at the Olive Garden, so if you have been there you might have seen or tried the bellini iced tea. We used frozen peaches as garnish. This is where I became addicted to frozen peaches...and this is my inspiration for this specific popsicle flavor.

Here is the puree just before it is ready to be placed in the molds and set in the freezer.

Now that they are in the molds they can be frozen. It takes about 4 hours. I usually make these in the afternoon so we can enjoy them after dinner. I have found that of the various recipes I have made, they range in calories from 20-50 a pop.

Here is the finished product of a different flavor. The peach pops were delicious. This flavor here is strawberry-kiwi (the kiwis were fresh) with a light coconut-pineapple juice. It was very tropical. I have also made strawberry with cran-raz juice. My current flavor in the freezer is raspberry with lemon fruit2o water and some lemon juice to make a raspberry lemonade pop.

The posibilites are endless. Next up for me is something with blueberries. We also bought some vanilla yogurt so we may try yogurt pops too. In the end I am really happy with these pops and the molds. The star shape makes it really fun. The good quality molds make it easy to use and easy to clean.

QUESTION: Do you make popsicles at home? Ice cream? What's your favorite flavor?