Kiwi Lime Pie Popsicles

Welcome to #Popsicleweek!!  Creamy, non-dairy kiwi lime popsicles with a graham "crust" and torched meringue topping.

Kiwi Lime Pie Popsicles with torched meringue.  Non-dairy

You know you are an adult/mom when you go out and buy yourself a blender for Mother's Day.  It's not because Brett forgot to get me a gift nor am I complaining for the seemingly" unromantic" gift, it was something I requested months in advance.  My very first Vitamix!!  You guys, I am so in love.  Now I get it.  It's magical.  I was never really living before now.

It's easier to "justify" the hefty price tag on kitchen appliances when you work with food for a living.  But dang those blenders are pretty expensive.  Sure I use my Kitchen Aid mixer(s) daily (the two I have are still going strong after surviving my bakery days), but a blender?  I wasn't sure...

What I do know is how much this toddler of mine loves smoothies and how it's nearly impossible to get any type of vegetable into his growing body unless in liquid form.  So the questions was, how many green smoothies do we need to make with the new blender to cancel out all the $8 Caribbean Dreams from Whole Foods he pounds?  I didn't actually do the math, but I felt pretty good throwing the new "smoothie maker" (because that's really what it's for, right?) into the Costco cart.

Kiwi Lime Pie Popsicles with torched meringue.  Non-dairy

Okay, obviously a high-powered blender is much more than just a smoothie maker.  It makes popsicles too!  Especially these Kiwi Lime Pie Popsicles that I made with soaked cashews.  Soooo good, guys!

The inspiration behind these popsicles comes from an old Friends episode – the one where Ross mistakes Monica's Kiwi Lime Pie for regular Key Lime Pie and ends up in the hospital with an allergic reaction.  He's afraid of needles and asks the doc if they could use the needle like a squirt gun to administer the meds.  Does anyone else remember this?  Are Brett and I the only couple that watches Friends on Netflix on a loop?  Like, when the last episode finishes, we just start over again?  Admittedly, we might have a problem.... even Everett knows when to clap during the intro...

Anyways, Kiwi Lime Pie Pops!!  The problem I always have when making homemade popsicles, as well as muffins, is that I always try to make them too healthy.  As a result, my pops are usually icy from not using enough sugar and my muffins are always dry and bland.  But not this time, folks!  I decided to blend soaked cashews with coconut milk to make the pops extra creamy.  Can you believe my non-dairy pops turned out creamier than any other milk or yogurt-based popsicles I've made in the past?  I was afraid the coconut flavor would overpower nearly any other ingredient, so I decided to add sweet yet tart kiwis and loads of fresh lime juice.  After pouring the blend into the molds and chilling for a couple hours, I simply crushed up some cinnamon graham crackers and sprinkled them into the bottom of the pops as the "crust."

Kiwi Lime Pie Popsicles with torched meringue.  Non-dairy
Kiwi Lime Pie Popsicles with torched meringue.  Non-dairy

I think I first saw torched meringue on a fudgesicle to make the ultimate s'more pop done by Donna Hay last year.  I chickened out on making my own then, but have since seen tons of different variations around the web.  This year, I wanted to give it a try.  Even though the idea is not totally new, I can't ever seem to pass up using my culinary torch.  The meringue is actually super easy to add onto the frozen pops and stays soft and chewy in the freezer.  Just torch and place them back on a sheet pan in the freezer and cover until ready to eat.

Be sure to head on over to Wit and Vinegar for the official POPSICLE WEEk round-up!  There should be like 120 participants this year.  So as Everett would say (we just taught him this), "Stay cool, my baby!"

Kiwi Lime Pie Popsicles
adapted from Minimalist Baker
makes about 10 popsicles

1 cup raw cashews, soaked 4 to 6 hours
1 cup full-fat coconut milk
juice from 3 large limes (about 1/3 cup)
3 ripe golden kiwis, skin removed or 4 regular kiwis
1/2 cup honey or agave nectar, or to taste

1 cup crushed graham crackers

2 large egg whites
2/3 cup sugar

Place the soaked cashews, coconut milk, lime juice, kiwis, and honey in a high-powered blender.    Blend on high until creamy and smooth**

Distribute evenly in the popsicle molds and freeze for about 1-2 hours,  Sprinkle in the graham cracker crumbs and press them gently into the "batter."  Insert the sticks and freeze until solid.

When ready (once the pops are frozen), place the egg whites and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer.  Fill a saucepan with a few inches on water and bring to a simmer.  Lower the heat and place the mixer bowl on top to create a double-boiler.  Whisking intermittently, heat the egg white mixture until 160 degrees on a candy thermometer.

Carefully remove the mixer bowl and place it on a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment.  Whisk on high util stiff peaks and the mixture has returned to room temperature (about 8 minutes).  

Dip, dollop, and swirl the meringue on the frozen popsicles.  Place on a sheet pan and refreeze for 20 to 30 minutes.  Remove from the freezer and toast the meringue with a culinary torch!  Enjoy immediately, or place back on a sheet pan, cover and freeze.


**the seeds from the kiwis may make the mixture seem slightly grainy.  I ended up blending just a bit longer than normal to compensate.  You can try straining them out, but it wasn't worth the trouble for me.  Once frozen, you can hardly notice.