Cantaloupe and Campari Pops
Ghiaccioli fatti in casa
It’s summer. It’s hot. Want an ice pop? Or perhaps an aperitivo – maybe some Campari over ice? The truth is you can have both. Try a Cantaloupe & Campari Pop, a remarkably refreshing Aperitivo on a Stick (sorry, I couldn’t help myself on that one.) And all the credit goes to the just released book People’s Pops, published by Ten Speed Press.
People’s Pops
The authors Nathalie Jordi, David Carrell and Joel Horowitz, have come up with fifty-five recipes for icy treats using fruits, vegetables, herbs, spices, roses, liquor and other flavorings. In their shops they sell no boozy pops; there is however no such restriction in my home. But then my loyal readers, knowing my penchant to imbibe, probably wondered just how long it would be until Campari, that carmine colored elixir, made its way into something like this. You guys probably had a betting pool going.
This recipe reminded me of fruit ices we used to get in Palm Springs when I was a kid. On those super hot days they were so refreshing. There was orange, lemon, watermelon and my favorite, cantaloupe. The addition of Campari elevates this to a whole new level.
Campari is one of Italy’s best selling liquors with over 2,800,000 cases sold yearly in over 190 countries. Its blend of orange and rhubarb coupled with ginseng and herbs – all secret of course, complements the sweetened cantaloupe puree in a way I never imagined, and it imbues the pops with the prettiest color, amping up the impact of the fruit. The authors wisely advise caution in adding the Campari, and I would second that. The recipe directs you to dribble it in, tasting as you go, insurance that Campari’s very assertive flavor will not overpower you. Some may want the entire 4 tablespoons called for, others less. The bitter Campari finish will remain, but is in no way unwelcome, giving these pops a most adult taste. If you are a fan of Campari, you’re going to like these.
A note – When you put the Pops in the freezer, make sure it is very cold, and once you shut that freezer door – don’t open it until you are ready to remove the Pops. The colder the freezer remains, the smaller the ice crystals in the Pops (or anything you freeze) will be. And smaller is better. Keep it cold. This rule holds for anything you freeze, especially delicate items like berries.
Ice Pop makers are available from Amazon.
© Jennifer May
From the book
MAKES 10 POPS
1 cantaloupe, about 2 pounds, peeled and seeded
3/4 cup (6 fl oz) simple syrup
1/4 cup (2 fl oz) Campari
Cut the cantaloupe into large chunks and purée in a food processor. You should have about 21/4 cups (18 fl oz) of purée.
Transfer the puréed cantaloupe to a bowl or measuring pitcher with a pouring spout. Add the simple syrup until the cantaloupe tastes quite sweet. Now dribble in the Campari until you can detect its flavor. Campari is less alcoholic than most spirits, so this mixture can handle more of it, but it has such a strong presence that you want to be careful not to overdo it.
Pour the mixture into your ice pop molds, leaving a little bit of room at the top for the mixture to expand. Insert sticks and freeze until solid, 4 to 5 hours. Unmold and transfer to plastic bags for storage or serve at once.
cantaloupes
Okay, okay. We know we already anointed peaches as the epitome of summer, but melons, those buxom orbs with their waffle-weave shells and floral aroma, are without a doubt another high point. A table stacked tall with gorgeous melons makes us lusty like no other fruit.
To prep a cantaloupe for puréeing, cut it around its equator and scoop out and dump the seeds and fibers inside. Set each half on a cutting board, cut side down, and lop 1/2 inch off the top horizontally so that you’ve cut off a flap approximately the size of a circle made by your thumb and finger. Now get the rest of the rind off by slicing longitudinally, as if you had the northern hemisphere on your cutting board and were cutting the surface off each time zone around the world. Once you’re done with both hemispheres, your cantaloupe is ready to purée.
Buy only cantaloupes that smell delicious even before cutting, because a scentless cantaloupe is probably a flavorless one. Along with the ideas in this chapter, cantaloupe pairs beautifully with lavender, hyssop, and tequila.
simple syrup
2/3 cup (5 oz) organic cane sugar
2/3 cup (5 fl oz) water
Combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is transparent. Turn off the heat and let cool. Add any spices before the mixture starts to simmer; add any herbs only after you’ve turned off the heat. Store plain and infused syrups in sealed containers in the fridge.
MAKES 1 CUP (8 FL OZ)
Reprinted with permission from:
People’s Pops: 55 Recipes for Ice Pops, Shave Ice, and Boozy Pops from Brooklyn’s Coolest Pop Shop
by Nathalie Jordi, David Carrell, and Joel Horowitz
© 2012. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group.
Note: You can click on any picture to see a slide show!
I have no affiliation with any product, manufacturer, or site mentioned in this article.
Wednesday, July 11th 2012 at 4:38 am |
Your recipe for Cantaloupe and Campari comes a few weeks too late as the melon season in Sicilia has passed! One of the good things about living in Italy is that everything is always fresh but that means that when the cantaloupe season has passed, you can forget about eating them until next year. The same is true, by the way, with the fish: the tuna season is finishing now and we won’t see fresh tuna again until next May unless, God forbid, we open a can. Cantaloupe have been replaced by chin dripping peaches (the tasty kind I haven’t has since my childhood in California), plums of many colors; the first watermelon are beginning to appear but no one is buying them yet, only the tourist who don’t know that to taste real watermelon flavor one must wait until, at the very earlist, the last week in July. But the best treat of all is that mulberry season has begun and it is worth staining one’s hands, arms, lips and clothes for their extradinary flavor. The local ice cream store, in addition to its year round standards of chocolate, pistacchio, Baci, etc., features seasonal fruit ice cream when it comes into season. I swear on my favorite cookbook that Mulberry ice cream–gelsi–is the answer to anyone’s greatest desire. This is ample compensation for the lack of cataloupe, and I think I will celebrate the arrival of Mulberries with an iced Campari! Do Mulberries exist in the States? Until I moved to Italy they were the stuff of nursery rhymes.
Wednesday, July 11th 2012 at 8:37 am |
Hi Lynn,
It is wonderful to see you here. I have heard that your fruit in Sicilia is heavenly, and your descriptions now have convinced me. Pity about cantaloupe season being over though. You would have loved these Pops. They are just coming into season here in California. But there are more fruits and more Pop recipes to come. Speaking of watermelon, are you a fan of Gelo di Melone? What a classic.
It sounds like summer in Sicilia is an absolute food fest. The markets must be a riot of color, not to mention activity, the stuff of a food lover’s dreams. Funny you should write that you have not had such tasty peaches since your childhood. I second that. Much of the fruit is now almost without scent and very much without taste. Sometimes we get really delectable, as you say chin dripping peaches, but that is not every day and not every peach. Gone are the days when one walked by a mountain of apricots and inhaled their scent. Commercial farming has rendered widely available, really delectable fruit a thing of the past. But the good news is that a new crop of small farmers are working to bring back older varieties and are growing them with great care and picking them when ripe. All is not lost!
We do have mulberries here, although the northeast is where one sees them the most. For me they are the stuff of nursery rhymes.
Thank you so much for stopping by, and especially for your comment. Your very evocative descriptions have got me hooked, Lynn. I am going to order a copy of “Two Seas.”
Wednesday, July 11th 2012 at 3:16 pm |
OK, so now you’ve enticed me again. I’ve never been a Campari fan, but these popsicles and the description of what’s in Campari make me want to give it another try. I’m off to the liquor store now.
Wednesday, July 11th 2012 at 7:25 pm |
Hi Linda,
Oh this is TOO cool. I really think you will like these, and like the recipe says, add the Campari bit by bit. The full four tablespoons will give lots of good flavor AND the signature bitter finish, so if you are just getting into Campari, I suggest perhaps three tablespoons. Taste as you go. I am dying to hear what you think, and please send a photo to me. I would love to display it along with a link to your site in my Readers’ Gallery. This Boozy Pop thing could become a habit.
Saturday, July 14th 2012 at 12:26 am |
Can’t wait to start trying to make ALL of these!
Saturday, July 14th 2012 at 7:08 am |
Hi Elizabeth,
You will love them. They are, shall I say, right up our alley… I’d love to see a photo of your finished Pops. The word this summer is “Chill out with a Boozy Pop.” Thanks so much for stopping by.
Sunday, August 11th 2013 at 8:06 am |
Fantastic. Def on my summer to do list now! Today I have peaches on the brain but this melon Campari idea has caught me.
Sunday, August 11th 2013 at 10:50 am |
Hi Trevor,
Yup – the Ice Pop idea is tailor made for you. I await your creations…
Monday, August 18th 2014 at 12:54 pm |
What a fabulously sneaky way to enjoy Campari and beat the heat. GREG
Tuesday, August 19th 2014 at 7:55 am |
This one is right up your alley, Greg. Cheers!