Paleta de Sandia y Frutas {fruit salad on a stick}

With the 4th of July coming around the corner… are you looking for a fun, easy way to serve up a fruit salad?

How about serving it popsicle-style? Or should I say, paleta-style?

For those of you who are wondering, paleta is simply the spanish word for popsicle or to be more specific, it is a Latin American ice pop usually made from fresh fruit. The name comes from palo, or “stick”, and the diminutive ending -eta, referencing the little flat stick frozen into each item.

Walk into any paletería, you will find at least 50 different flavors of paletas… using natural ingredients and divided in two categories: cream-based and water-based. They are made from juices and often include bits of frozen fruit. Although most flavors are sweetened with cane sugar, some are not. It’s amazing.

Fortunately, we have a couple paleterías in Tegucigalpa. We love stopping by on our way home after a long day in the city, which is about once or twice a month. My favorite is the coconut and piña colada. I should try to make the piña colada myself at home one of these days… hmm.

Here I am going to share with you my version of paleta de sandia y frutas, using my homemade agua de sandia (lightly sweetened with honey). It is super easy to make and a fabulous way to use up all those juicy watermelons in season right now. Plus, in this case, it is perfect for making these paletas or you can simply freeze them in ice cube trays to use in smoothies later!

The fruit salad on a stick is best the Honduran way… in a small plastic cup with a wood stick because you can get more fruits in a cup then in a regular popsicle mold. You get to have little bit of everything and there is a wonderful mixture of tangy, sweet, creamy and chewy all in one paleta.

Enjoy and have a wonderful 4th of July!

Pelata de Sandia y Frutas {fruit salad on a stick}

Author:

Marillyn Beard

Ingredients

small cups
wood sticks
diced fruits of your choice
Agua de Sandia

Instructions

Put out the small cups on a plate or cookie sheet.
Take flat pieces of fruit and stick your wood sticks into them (helps hold the sticks upright). Set inside the cups.
Fill the cups with diced fruits (I used bananas, kiwi, strawberry, pineapple, blackberry, mango and coconut flakes).
Pour agua de sandia into the cups and fill to the top (leave a little room for expansion). Put in the freezer.
When frozen, run warm water over the cups to loosen and enjoy!!

Marillyn Beard is a deaf missionary wife & mama living on a farm in Honduras with her wonderful husband and 4 beautiful kids. Together they are heading up a ministry called Rancho Oasis for Youth. Marillyn takes care of her family naturally by using herbs, homeopathy, essential oils and a wholesome diet. She loves to bake wholesome treats, whip up homemade ice cream, experiment with lacto-ferments, work in the garden and care for the farm animals with her family. Between washing diapers, cooking, and caring for her family she shares her interesting & noisy life at Just Making Noise.