Spicy Mango Pops

Let’s spice things up a bit! Given my endless abundance of hot sauce that I received from Melinda’s Craft Pepper Sauces, I undecided that I needed to create a recipe that would bring some heat all the while cooling you down. Cue, these spicy mango pops.

Given the popularity of jalapeño margaritas and tajin seasoning, I decided to craft my own Mexican-inspired mango paletas. Using a splash of Melinda’s Mexicana sauce, these popsicles add a little bit of fiery flavour to the sweet juiciness of a freshly-cut mango.

As temperatures have been climbing, I think that everyone’s got icy treats on the brain. When I went to Dollarama—sure that I’d find a cheap popsicle mold—they had all run out! It took me about three locations until I was finally able to track them down. But, I guess it’s not that hard to believe that a shortage would happen. After all, the great thing about popsicle molds is that you can put just about anything inside them to freeze and you’ll always end up with a great little snack.

Last summer when I was living in Italy, I surprisingly found molds at my favourite store Flying Tiger and grabbed a tiny tray. Given the ridiculously hot temperatures and lack of air conditioning, snacking on popsicles was the only way to keep cool. I’d fill them with all-natural juices, blended fruit purées and sometimes even a leftover batch of coffee!

Since I’ve had some extra time to play with at home, I’ve ventured back into the kitchen. My whirlwind days of recipe development—which, to be honest, I’ve kind of missed—are back in full swing and I couldn’t be happier. I also couldn’t be happier to share some of the fruits of my labor with this spicy mango pop recipe.

Ready in a pinch, the only hard part about this recipe is having to wait until these bad boys are frozen. Sweet, tangy, and spicy, you’re going to love these!

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Spicy Mango Pops

* Makes 4 servings *

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups fresh mango, cubed

• 1/2 cup coconut milk, make sure to stir container

• 1/2 lime juiced and zested

• 3 tablespoon maple syrup

• 1 tablespoon Melinda’s Mexicana Hot Sauce

• Tajin seasoning

METHOD

1. Blend together mango, coconut milk, lime juice and zest, maple and hot sauce until smooth.

2. For assembly, add a sprinkle of tajin to each popsicle mold. Pour in mango purée and top with another sprinkle of tajin.

3. Let freeze for 6 hours before enjoying.