Sunday Brunch

No Sunday Brunch today. Well, actually there was, it was in a restaurant though. Just too warm to heat up the house. So in the spirit of staying cool, I decided to make Strawberry Paletas. My nephew gave me this wonderful book along with the molds for Christmas this past year. I'm really lucky as he always tries to find the most interesting and unique things for me.

 The book is filled with the most interesting paletas, or Mexican Ice Pops. Above is a Hibiscus-Raspberry  Paleta.

This one looks so very good. It's Sour Cream, Cherry and Tequilla Paletas. Yum!

Or how about this one? Yogurt and Blackberry Paletas.

There are also recipes for shaved ices like this Spicey Mango Ice,

and this Pomegranate Shaved Ice.
There is another section filled with drinks, many using horchata which is a rice milk and by the way, wonderful.
I looked the book up on Amazon, you can find the book here if you are interested. All of the reviews were good. One reviewer said, "Really, $11.00 for the secrets of freezing &!@#!!! My spouse's exact words after getting the invoice as we share an account; he would have never known but I got this via kindle. I've only just made the spicy pineapple, but it was seriously mind blowing. Our friend has made us some paletas from this book and they were equally as delicious and unique. The BEST $11 dollars I have spent in a while. You should get this book NOW. You won't regret it." As I said earlier, lucky me, it was a gift as I would not have thought to buy the book.
Today I decide to make the Strawberry Paletas.

The recipe is so simple. Begin with 4 cups of strawberries that have been washed, hulled and quartered. Pour 3/4 cup of sugar over the strawberries(You could probably use splenda if you are concerned about the sugar) and allow to sit for about 30 minutes so that the strawberries will begin to release their natural juices.

Combine strawberries with 1/2 cup of water and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until the strawberries have softened.

Add the juice of one lemon.

The recipe says to pour the mixture into a blender or food processor, I used my wand as I did not want the berries to be blended too fine.

Pour the mixture into molds(I was a bit messy!). If you don't have molds, you can use a glass or any other container that you would like. Allow the mixture to set for about 1 to 2 hours and then insert the popsicle sticks and then return to the freezer.

If using a conventional mold, snap on the lid and add the sticks now. Place in the freezer for approximately 4 to 5 hours, and then presto chango.......

you have a delious frozen treat!
Once again, if you are on my side of the world, I hope you're staying cool and if you are on the other side of the world, put this recipe away for a few months.
Hope you are all having a lovely Sunday whether your temperatures are hot or cold. Right about now I'm dreaming of a trip to New Zealand for a little skiing. Too bad, it's just not in the cards for now!
Happy Sunday Everyone!
Rhonda