Miles crossed

I am sitting on my patio and just finished a deliciously sweet and sticky popsicle.  Since my last post, we've moved almost 1,000 miles from Chicago to Dallas.  We said adios to our jobs, celebrated with friends and family, and said "see you later" to the city we called home for 7 years.  While in Chicago, D and I both started and finished graduate school, moved into our first apartment together, got married, made many lifelong friends, attended loads of concerts, ate/drank very well and fell in love with the Windy City. Now that we've moved, I've reflected on the aspects of Chicago that I miss, like our friends, favorite restaurants and views of Lake Michigan.  However, there are other parts that I'm happy I won't have to face anymore like the traffic and long commutes, the bitter cold of winter, and the need to feel like I'm always in a rush to get somewhere.  Dallas is very different than anywhere I've lived and so far I'm loving the heat, the constant sunshine (it's sunny on average 235 days a year here!), and the southern hospitality of strangers.

After living in one place for so long, it's incredible how many things you accumulate. For weeks leading up the move we packed what felt like thousands of boxes, used a ridiculous amount of bubble wrap, and tossed or donated many of our belongings. Somehow we managed to move everything and not one thing broke, which is a total miracle.  We're getting settled in our Dallas home and I'm feeling like a kid in a candy store in our kitchen since it has beautiful granite countertops, new appliances and so much cabinet space!  With all of our kitchen space, I decided it was high-time to purchase something that's been on my list for years: a popsicle mold.  Every summer in Chicago I went to buy a popsicle mold and decided against it since it's really only popsicle weather for two-three months out of the year in the Midwest. Now that we live in a place where the heat is a part of the everyday culture, I knew this kitchen accessory would get plenty of use.

For it's christening, I looked through several popsicle recipes such as strawberry-balsamic-mint, coffee and cream, and toasted coconut, but decided to go with something simple and refreshing. I made the Swirled Berry Yogurt popsicles from The Smitten Kitchen. I fell in love with this recipe because it's easy to make, can be adapted with any berry of your choice and they're also very pretty!  Strawberries are everywhere right now, so I went with these ruby jewels.  

With every bite you will find either berries - which taste like frozen jam - or sweet yogurt.  These are bound to make your summer afternoons and nights delicious.  I've even thought about eating them for breakfast because they're like a frozen smoothie and that constitutes as breakfast, right?

Swirled Berry Yogurt Popsicles

2 cups of berries - if they are large, I recommend lightly chopping them
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 lemon or 1 lime
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 cup plain unsweetened Greek-style yogurt

Place the berries, honey, and 1 tablespoon of lemon or lime juice in a non-reactive bowl, stir and set aside. Take the peel of the squeezed lemon/lime and put it in a small saucepan with the water and sugar. Cook on low heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Remove the citrus peel and chill the syrup completely.  To speed up the chilling process you can place the saucepan in a ice bath - it should cool in 5-10 minutes.  Once cooled, whisk the yogurt and syrup together.

Using a blender or food processor, blend the berries and leftover juices until smooth.  If you want to remove the seeds you can do so with a strainer.  I left them because that seemed like way too much work, it was 95 degrees outside and I needed a popsicle fast.

Assemble the popsicles by alternating the berry and yogurt mixture that you pour in. Repeat this until you reach 1/4 inch from the top of the mold.  This will allow for space when the popsicles freeze and expand.  Use a skewer or knife to swirl the mixture lightly in each popsicle (hint: this makes them pretty!). 

Snap on the popsicle mold lid and place in a freezer for 3-4 hours.  To remove, run the sides under hot water for a few seconds.  Once your popsicle is out, you can bask in the sun while enjoying your frozen jeweled treats.