Summer has officially come to Georgia. It’s broken 90 every day for the past week and the thunderstorms are starting to pop up more and more often. Today it is absolutely magnificent outside, which is why I’m so glad I made a batch of popsicles last night to enjoy on my porch this afternoon. I’ve seen the grapefruit and rosemary combo everywhere recently, and rightly so! It’s so refreshing. Fresh rosemary is one of my favorite smells in the whole world, and combining it with the sweet tangy bite of grapefruit is absolutely perfect.
gratuitous rosemary macro shot, mmmm
You can make popsicles in pretty much any container. Tiny Dixie cups with sticks jammed in them are the simplest way, or you can go crazy and get one of these new Zoku things everyone seems to be talking about now. I can’t seem to justify spending 50 bucks on something that makes three popsicles at a time, though, even if it does freeze them in less than 10 minutes. I really want to get one of those silicone popsicle forms that makes 18 at a time, but for now I have this kind of shitty one that I got at Ikea for $1.50. Winning.
Though it be but little it is fierce.
This recipe fills my 6-count mold with enough to spare for two cocktails.
Ingredients
- 2 cups freshly squeezed ruby red grapefruit juice (I used 3 grapefruits for this)
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup water
- 3 sprigs fresh rosemary
Remember when we talked about making simple syrups last week? We’re gonna do that again. So strip the leaves from the rosemary sprigs and give them a rough chop. You should end up with 2-3 tablespoons worth of fresh and piney bits. Throw those in a little saucepan with the sugar and water, bring to a boil, stir, then kill the heat and let it steep for 30 minutes. You can juice your grapefruits while you’re waiting. Try your best to get the ruby or pink grapefruits because they’re sweeter and give a much nicer color to the pops.
beautiful
Once your syrup has steeped and cooled, strain out the rosemary and mix the syrup into the grapefruit juice. Pour this mixture carefully into the popsicle mold of your choice and freeze overnight. In the morning, you will have delicious ice pops that taste of both summer and winter at the same time.
boom
The best part is, once you’ve filled your mold you will inevitably have some juice-syrup mix left over. Or if you’re me, you kind of made sure that you would. Throw the leftovers in a shaker with some ice and vodka, shake it up, and pour into a chilled glass. Garnish with a wee sprig o’ rosemary and a twist of grapefruit. Enjoy this concoction while your pops are freezing for instant gratification.
Cooking Up Happy 