This month’s Recipe Redux theme is Floral Flavors. Participating bloggers were instructed to create healthy recipes utilizing edible flowers and share them with the internet world. There are a lot of flowers that add beauty and flavor the the culinary world: roses, lilac, saffron, squash blossoms, and lavender to name a few. I elected to use hibiscus: I love their beautiful, rich, red color and tart flavor. The sticky, hot weather in the Midwest has been calling for fruity popsicles lately, so this was a great opportunity to create a sweet and tart floraly treat.
Step aside, green tea, there’s a new king of beverages: hibiscus! Hibiscus tea, popular in Jamaica, Africa, Egypt, and Sudan, has a beautiful deep red color and a strong tart flavor (think Tazo Passion tea) and is used for refreshment and for medicinal purposes.
Hibiscus-mint popsicles with raspberries
Makes 4-8 popsicles
Note: When making these popsicles, keep in mind the tartness of hibiscus. I happen to love the tart flavor, but you can add additional honey during the brewing step to make them sweeter if you like.
Water
1/4 cup dried hibiscus flowers
1 tablespoon honey
15-20 fresh mint leaves
1/4 cup fresh or frozen raspberries
- Measure the amount of water needed to fill your popsicle molds and add 1/3 cup. Pour this amount of water into a small saucepan. Add the hibiscus flowers and honey and bring to a boil. Remove from heat.
- Tear up the mint leaves slightly and place in a mug. Pour the contents of the saucepan over the mint leaves and allow this mixture to steep together for 12-15 minutes, muddling occasionally with a wooden spoon. Hibiscus flowers are quite tart, so at this point, taste the tea and add additional honey according to taste.
- Strain the leaves from the steeped tea and pour the tea into a blender. Add the raspberries and blend until combined, about 10 seconds. Raspberries tend to froth up when they’re blended, so I like to strain the mixture again at this point to remove any foam and seeds.
- Pour the blended tea into popsicle molds and freeze for 2-3 hours or until solid. Run the molds under hot water for a few seconds to loosen your frozen treats.