Tropical Fruit Pops

Beat the heat with these healthy all-natural Tropical Mango Fruit Pops swirled with mango, pineapple, and strawberries! They’re kid and adult approved!

Lovingly dubbed “Rainbow Pops” by the chickpea, these frozen fruit bars are sure to cool down and freshen up even the most sweltering hot Summer day!

They’re a freezer staple around here!

Tropical Fruit Pops

I love when a recipe has a fun story behind it. Sometimes I just toss my happy butt into the kitchen and create something with whatever I have on hand but sometimes I’m on a quest!

Such is the case with these tropical fruit pops.

I tried the most amazing tropical frozen fruit pops at a local grocery store and haven’t been able to find them since. It’s like they legit vanished off the face of the Earth. I’ve googled my FACE off and nothing pops up. I couldn’t get these amazing pops off my mind, so clearly it was time to do some serious experimentation.

I’m so glad I did because these tropical mango pineapple strawberry fruit pops are flipping AWESOME!

I tested a few batches to get the flavor on point and also ensure you didn’t have a heaping cup-o-smoothie left over after blending the fruit together. Luckily my tot didn’t mind drinking the bonus smoothie that came with my first two voluminous test batches.

We brought a few handfuls of these sassy swirled fruit pops to our park playdate and the kiddos gobbled them up!

Frozen Fruit Pop Tips + Tricks

• You can make frozen pops with literally anything you have on hand: fresh fruit, frozen fruit, and juice all work great.
• You’ll need more liquid ingredients if using frozen fruit and less for fresh. Start with just a little and you can always add more as needed. Have fun experimenting!
• For smoother fruit pops, run your blended pop mixture through a mesh strainer to remove seeds and any wayward chunks. Love the texture? Leave ’em as is or go crazy by adding chunks of fresh fruit and even some shredded/flaked coconut to the mix.
• For fun layers, spoon or pour each layer of mixture into your pop molds, and pop in the freezer to set while you’re blending your next layer. Give it anywhere from 10 min to 60 minutes depending on how cold your fruit is to start (frozen fruit blends will set up faster than room temp fruit juice, for instance)
• Frozen ingredients expand, so make sure you leave a little space at the top of your pop mold to prevent the lid from sticking or from messy overflow. Usually 1/4 inch of spaces will cover it.
• If your mold uses a lid and wooden sticks, you can allow your pops to partially freeze, uncovered, for about an hour, then add the lid and carefully insert the sticks. The partially frozen slush will cradle the stick and help you keep it straight for easy removal. You can also place the sticks more  on the shallow side this way, allowing more of a handle for little (or large!) hands to grip.
• To remove pops from even the most stubborn sticky situation, fill an extra large bowl with water and lightly dip your pop mold into the water, steering clear of the top so you don’t submerge it. Pops will come out clean and easy and can go through a “second freeze” (see storage tip below) to make them extra firm and less likely to melt all over you.

Need smaller pops for kiddos who won’t finish the whole thing? I gotcha! I swear by this Zoku Mini Pop Mold for pint-sized frozen treats.

Now that all both adults and kiddos have deemed these frozen fruit pops delicious, let’s get on with the recipe, shall we?!

5 from 6 votes

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Tropical Fruit Pops

Beat the heat with these healthy all-natural Tropical Mango Fruit Pops swirled with mango, pineapple, and strawberries! They’re kid and adult approved!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword fruit pops

Prep Time 15 minutes

Freeze Time 5 hours

Total Time 15 minutes

Servings 10 servings

Calories 40 kcal

Author Jenn Laughlin – Peas and Crayons

Ingredients

• 4 oz frozen mango
• 4 oz fresh pineapple
• 4 oz frozen strawberries
• 1/2 banana or 2-3 oz extra berry, mango, or pineapple
• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk or coconut milk
• 1/4 cup fresh orange juice (lemon or lime juice work great too)
• 2 TBSP raw honey

TOOLS NEEDED

• 10 pop mold
• 10 wooden popsicle sticks

Instructions

1. Combine mango, pineapple, 1/2 cup almond milk, and 2 TBSP orange juice in you blender and blend until pureed.

2. Pulse honey in at the end for best results
3. Set mixture aside by pouring into in a measuring cup with a pourable spout, if you have one.
4. Next add strawberry and banana (or 2-3 extra ounces of your fruit of choice) to the blender with 1/2 cup almond milk and 2 TBSP orange juice and blend.
5. Pulse in honey at the end and set aside.
6. Using about half the mango-pineapple mixture, pour a little into each pop mold.
7. Top with your strawberry layer then repeat with the remaining mango mixture.
8. Insert a pop stick into each mixture and swirl together. You can also pop the mold into the freezer between each layer for a pretty striped pop. I go the easy swirl-y route, haha!
9. Leave a little bit of empty space at the top of each pop mold, pops will expand when they freeze.
10. Freeze until solid: Approx. 5 hours or overnight.
11. If your mold uses a lid and wooden sticks, you can allow your pops to partially freeze, uncovered, for about an hour, then add the lid and carefully insert the sticks. The partially frozen slush will cradle the stick and help you keep it straight for easy removal. This method is great because you can also place the sticks more on the shallow side this way, allowing more of a handle for little (or large!) hands to grip.

Recipe Notes

EASY REMOVAL TIP: To remove pops from even the most stubborn sticky situation, fill an extra large bowl with water and lightly dip your pop mold into the water, steering clear of the top so you don’t submerge it. Pops will come out clean and easy and can go through a “second freeze” (see storage tip below) to make them extra firm and less likely to melt all over you.

This recipe is for a standard 10-pop mold. I picked up this one on sale from Amazon and adore it!

No honey? No problem! Sub a kiss of agave nectar or your favorite sweetener and these pops will be gloriously VEGAN. You can even sip the sweetener entirely if you like your fruit pops plain, though they will be a bit more mild in flavor this way (hence my kiss-o-honey in the recipe)

See tips in post for perfect pops, every time! I use a combination of fresh and frozen fruit since that’s what we typically keep on hand. Feel free to use all fresh or all frozen, just make sure you adjust the liquid ratio up for frozen and down for fresh, easy peasy!

Nutrition Facts below are estimated using an online recipe nutrition calculator. Adjust as needed and enjoy!

Nutrition Facts

Tropical Fruit Pops

Amount Per Serving

Calories 40

% Daily Value*

Sodium 33mg1%

Potassium 82mg2%

Carbohydrates 9g3%

Sugar 7g8%

Vitamin A 140IU3%

Vitamin C 19.8mg24%

Calcium 35mg4%

Iron 0.1mg1%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Storage + Freezing Tip

Once you remove your pops from mold, individually wrap in baggies or in a tight layer or two of plastic wrap and freeze for an additional 30 minutes. The second freeze helps set the pops so they don’t melt immediately when you start eating them. Wrapped pops may be stored for a few weeks and are SO much cheaper than store bought!

We expect to have a fun arsenal of these Tropical Fruit Pops in our freezer all Summer long and hope you get a chance to try them too!