I make so many frozen pops around here and these Strawberry Beet Pops are a family favorite treat. (I’m calling them pops, Popsicle is trademarked term.) We start finding strawberries at the local farmer’s market in the springtime and right now, in the summer, it’s still strawberry season and I’ve been making these strawberry pops all the time. (You don’t need to use fresh strawberries to make them, though, frozen berries work great too!) They are perfect to cool you down on hot summer days (though we eat them year round in our home) and with the coconut milk base they are creamy, delicious, and nourishing. The coconut milk makes for a more filling snack too.

I love that the healthy fats from the coconut milk help balance all the fruit to keep the blood sugar more level, and they compliment each other beautifully. The creaminess also makes these pops like ice cream or a smoothie on a stick. And who doesn’t like that? We went down to southern Oregon to visit family last weekend and I made a version of these pops (without the beet powder that time) to share with everyone. They were a hit, much to my delight, and with the temperature as hot as it was, they were a welcome treat in the afternoon. (I get so much joy from sharing food with people and when what I make is enjoyed that is the best feeling.)

I enjoy coming up with new frozen pop recipes and have quite a few I’ve been wanting to share here, but I’ll start with these because they’re the most popular with the most people. I should start by telling you how this combination was inspired…

Our family had some strawberry beet ice cream at our favorite ice cream shop, Vanilla Jill’s. (For those of you who have been reading for awhile, you’ve certainly heard me mention Vanilla Jill’s before. They have so many flavors to choose from and we adore their coconut milk ice cream.) Throughout my life I had never been a strawberry ice cream fan because I couldn’t stand the fakey-strawberry-imitation flavor of the ones I had tried, but decided to give the one at Vanilla Jill’s a try since it was made with actual strawberries. We all agreed that it was amazing. Bracken immediately requested that I make strawberry beet pops at home, and that’s how the recipe was born.

{Oh, and those sprinkles? I bring along my favorite bee pollen, from Humble Bee Honey, whenever we go to get ice cream, so we can sprinkle some on top. It adds a slightly crunchy texture, a good nutritional boost, and our family just loves the way it tastes.} 

Strawberry Beet Pops

1 can coconut milk (13.5 oz.)
2 cups strawberries (fresh or frozen)
1/2 tsp. red beet powder
1 banana

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You’ll need a blender and popsicle molds to make this recipe. To make the pops simply blend up your ingredients, pour the mixture into the molds, and stick the molds in the freezer. It can take up to five hours for them to freeze. You’ll want to leave about one-quarter inch of room at the top of each mold because the pops will expand a little as they freeze. To remove the pops from the stainless steel molds we have, we hold them under running water until they come out easily.

We invested in stainless steel popsicle molds years ago and we love them. They have definitely been worth the money. We recently ordered another set so that I can make more popsicles at one time (12 rather than 6), which is a better use of my efforts in the kitchen.

I should mention that when I make this recipe I always have a little extra in our blender after I’ve filled all the molds, but luckily there’s always someone nearby who wants to drink it up like a smoothie!

It’s always great to add more vegetables to your diet, so why not add a little to your pops, right? You’ll notice there is not very much beet powder, despite the name of this recipe. You are welcome to add more, depending on your preference and the preference of those eating them. When I add too much beet powder my family tends to not enjoy them as much, so I just add a little to ours. We eats beets around here like crazy, so I’m not worried that we’re not getting enough beets in our diet, so I just add the amount of beet powder that everyone enjoys.

The banana is used to sweeten these up. You can use fresh or frozen strawberries for this. (I’ve noticed that fresh berries can sometimes make the pops look a little “frothier” on the bottom and when the frozen berries are used the pops look more solid at the end where you hold onto them. That doesn’t matter, they taste the same, but I simply mention it because if I’m going to photograph pops I typically use frozen berries for the blend.)

I want to mention the coconut milk that I’ve been using to make these pops. At some point I want to try making my own coconut milk, but in the meantime we’ve been buying our coconut milk from Thrive Market. Their coconut milk has two ingredients: organic coconut extract and water. I like that it doesn’t have all the additives, the can is BPA-free, and I also appreciate how affordable it is (only $1.99 per can) because we can go through a lot of coconut milk around here.

I’ve been meaning to write about Thrive Market here for some time. Jeff and I decided to join Thrive Market over a year ago and we’ve been so glad that we did. Their mission is to make healthy living easy and affordable for everyone. When you pay a yearly fee and join the Thrive community, you can purchase healthy food at wholesale prices (25 to 50% off retail.) When you join, it also sponsors a free membership for a low-income family.

It can get so expensive when you want to feed your family healthy, organic food. We find so many great deals there and save so much on our grocery bills by shopping at Thrive Market! I should also mention that there is free shipping on all orders over $49, so we simply wait to place our order until it’s over $49.

If you order through my link, you can get 15% off your first order from Thrive Market. For every person who becomes a paid member through my link, our family receives $25 to spend at Thrive, which we so appreciate. I want to say that I didn’t start this blog to make money, I began this space simply because it brought me joy to write and share with you here. And now, eight years later, I’m still not blogging for the money. I make a small amount of income from this blog to help support my family, and when you purchase through my link it helps support my efforts here, and I thank you for it. Please know that I only promote products and companies that I believe in and Thrive Market is a company that I love.

I know I’ve already gone on and on about the many reasons why I love these pops, but I also want to mention just how quick and easy they are to make. The days get full and busy and I know many of us don’t get as much time in the kitchen as we would like. That’s yet another thing that makes these pops so wonderful- they are something you can make in your kitchen in minutes, and after they freeze, you have a healthy and delicious treat all ready for you. Enjoy!