Buko-Melon Ice Pops

Summer's here and I'm dreading the Manila heat.  It can get pretty unbearable at times, but luckily Filipinos have devised a simple solution to get around the scorching weather.  For my very first Pinoy Foodista cooking challenge entry, I decided to make an age-old treat that transcends all Philippine social classes and age groups.  This is my take on the classic "Ice Candy".  I'm calling mine Buko-Melon Ice Pops instead.

My Lola used to own a sari-sari store and I used to hang out there A LOT as a kid.  It was called "3R Variety Store".  "3R" stood for my mom's and her two siblings' names which all starts with the letter R.  A truly Filipino way of naming things.  My Lola's store was one of the biggest wholesale sari-sari stores in Rosario (Pasig).  During my pre-teen years, I was there during most of my weekends and school breaks to supposedly give her a hand.  I fear I might've been more of a liability than anything else.  I'm quite sure that I ate and drank my fair share of her paninda.  I'd hijack her Sarsi, Marie biscuits, Presto Creams, and ice candies on a regular basis!

During the summertime, the sari-sari store would be overrun with kids buying ice candy.  They'd buy at least one ice candy every two to three hours.  The popular flavors were chocolate, orange, buko, and melon.  Chocolate was always the first to go.  Us (my younger brother and I) being the spoiled apos that we were, would just grab any one from my Lola's freezer whenever we felt like it.  We'd home in on the ice candies on those especially wilting afternoons.  These ice candies provided a much-needed reprieve and a welcome break from playing and running around all day outside; as we were prone to do when we were dropped off at our grandparents' place.  So yeah I'm dedicating this post to my Lola (and rightfully so).  Thanks for putting up with us, spoiling us silly, and giving us such priceless childhood memories! 

I've always loved fruits, so for this challenge, I'm combining two all-time Pinoy favorites in my ice pops; buko (coconut) and melon (cantaloupe).  Two equally refreshing ingredients that are staple desserts/snacks/beverages especially on hot days.

Buko-Melon Ice Pops

Makes approximately 12 ice pops.

• Coconut, shredded
• Cantaloupe, shredded 
• 1 1/2 C coconut juice
• 1 1/2 C water
• 3/4 C white sugar
• 1 T evaporated milk
• 12 12 oz. cups, cut in half
• 12 wooden spoons/popsicle sticks

Mix cantaloupe, coconut meat, coconut juice, water, sugar, and evaporated milk in a large pitcher stirring until combined.  Divide the shredded cantaloupe, coconut, and liquid into the molds.  Place them in the freezer for about 2-21/2 hours, or until semi-frozen.  Once the ice pops are semi-frozen, stick the wooden spoons (it was what I had on hand at the time but you may use popsicle sticks too) in the middle of each plastic cup and then return the ice pops to the freezer for another 4 hours or until frozen solid.

I had planned on using our old popsicle mold (Kool-aids) from way back when, but to my dismay, I recently found out that my mom already sold off the molds at one of our many garage sales.  Boo.  That was completely unexpected!  I had to push through with the project though and get creative.  I decided to use plastic cups as molds instead to still get my "ice pop" look.  You could also opt to use ice candy plastic bags instead and save yourself the trouble. 

Buko-melon ice pops are definitely refreshing, healthy, and inexpensive desserts.  The coconut juice adds another layer of flavor and somehow helps quench my thirst better.  The coconut and melon shreds gives this simple ice dessert texture, and reinforces the freshness of the ingredients.  These treats are lifesavers and it wouldn't hurt to stock a few in your freezer especially during these summer months. :)

Please click here to vote for my summer creation and here to find out more about Pinoy Foodista.  Thanks!