Years ago during a recipe contest, a reader submitted a recipe for chia chai banana pops. I liked the way she used coconut milk to make the popsicles creamy. But generally speaking, I prefer chia seeds in berry-based frozen desserts. I decided to combine the idea of creaminess with my preferred chia vehicle: strawberries. The result is strawberry chia popsicles with a smoother texture and great flavor.
Strawberry Chia Popsicles made with Simple, Clean Ingredients
Chia seeds add a little nutrition (and calcium!), but they also help to thicken the mixture so it has a little more body and is less icy. The agave adds just a little more sweetness, and the lemon juice perks up the strawberry flavor. You can adjust the sweetener up or down, depending on the sweet or tartness of your berries. I didn’t test the recipe with blueberries or raspberries, but I’m sure they would make good popsicles, too!
These measurements make more popsicles than the average recipe. I ended up with 12 small popsicles. Larger molds will of course make fewer popsicles.
Special Diet Notes: Strawberry Chia Popsicles
By ingredients, this recipe is dairy-free / non-dairy, egg-free, gluten-free, grain-free, optionally nut-free, peanut-free, soy-free, vegan, vegetarian, and optionally paleo-friendly (use a paleo-approved sweetener).
- 3 cups fresh or frozen strawberries, hulled
- 1½ cups plain dairy-free milk beverage (see Milk Beverage Note below)
- ⅛ cup (2 tablespoons) chia seeds
- 1 tablespoon agave nectar
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- Place the strawberries, milk beverage, chia seeds, agave nectar, and lemon juice in your blender and puree until smooth.
- Pour the into popsicle molds and freeze until set, approximately 4 hours.