These creamy lemon popsicles are made with ice cream (technically lemon sherbet) instead of lemon-flavored water. The creamy lemon popsicles have a lush texture and slight tartness and there are candied peels mixed in for extra pizzazz.

Served alongside slices of sweet summer fruits, it’s the perfect light treat! It’s also very easy to make your own creamy lemon popsicles. You first make candied peels (or you can buy them), make a simpler version of a lemon ice cream custard, churn it and then fill your popsicle mold and place it in the freezer.

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Sherbet
🍋 Lemon juice
💭 F A Q

Sherbet

I didn’t acquire an adult taste for frozen fruity desserts (yet). I always find sorbets to be too icy, too sour, too bitter,… A total disservice to the fruits. I would rather have the fruit or more likely scoops of creamy fruity ice cream. But sherbet, being a cross between sorbet and ice cream, I can get on board with it.

By law, sherbet should, only, contain 2% dairy (milk or cream), the rest being fruits or sugar. It makes for a richer and creamier treat, compared to sorbet (which doesn’t contain any fat). I will admit that my sherbets are much closer to ice cream than sorbets when you check the fat content. For my defense, I come from the land of butter and crème fraîche. However, even if my lemon sherbet is almost as creamy as ice cream it’s far less complicated to make.

This recipe is not custard-based, meaning it doesn’t contain any egg yolks that you need to slowly cook on the stove with the rest of the ingredients until the mixture thickens. The creamy part of my lemon sherbet comes from the heavy cream that will be whipped to soft peaks before being incorporated into the rest. It is far simpler than making a custard, without any compromises on texture. Sherbet makes for really creamy lemon popsicles.

creamy lemon popsicles on baking parchment

🍋 Lemon juice

As for the sourness or bitterness that I don’t enjoy in frozen treats, I fought it by using the best lemons I could find and limiting how much juice I used. I started with 3 lemons and then slowly decreased to 2. While testing for lemon quantities I had in mind a special lemon candy I used to have at birthday parties as a child. It was very creamy with just a hint of lemon tartness at the end. That’s the flavor I tried to recreate for these creamy lemon popsicles. You can add more lemon juice if you prefer a sharper lemon taste.

💭 Faq

➝ Why is cornstarch added to sherbets? Cornstarch works as a stabilizer. It prevents the formation of ice crystals, making the ice cream smoother and silkier. Vodka is also added to the same effect as it lowers the sherbet’s freezing point.

➝ How to unmold popsicles? What works best for me is to plunge the molds ¾ deep into hot water for 20 seconds before pulling the sticks while pushing the top of the creamy lemon popsicles upward with my other hand. If you don’t have a popsicle mold, you could serve the sherbet as ice cream by freezing it in a container with a tight-fitting lid and serving scoops.

➝ How long can I keep homemade popsicles in the freezer? As these creamy lemon popsicles are made of sherbet, not sorbet you can only keep them for 2 weeks because they are made with dairy. If your popsicles were sorbet-based (only containing a mix of water and sugar) you could keep them for up to 4 months, but after 1 month they would get icier and icier anyway.

Creamy lemon popsicles

Author: Amélie
Prep Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
chilling and freezing: 8 hours
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 9 hour 40 minutes
Yield: 8 popsicles 1x
Category: Dessert
Method: Ice cream maker
Cuisine: British

Print Recipe

Description

These creamy lemon popsicles are made with sherbet and candied lemon peels mixed in for extra pizzazz. Served alongside slices of sweet summer fruits, it’s a perfect light treat!

Ingredients

Scale

For the candied lemon peels:

2 lemons
100g granulated sugar (½ cup) + 1 tbsp to sprinkle
200ml water (¾ cup+ 1 tbsp)

For the lemon sherbet:

240ml whole milk (1 cup)
135g granulated sugar (⅔ cup)
100ml of freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 2 big lemons) (around ⅓ cup +1 tbsp)
1 tbsp cornstarch
240g heavy cream (1 cup)
2 tsp yellow food coloring
1 tbsp vodka

Instructions

Keep in mind that the ice cream maker bowl needs to be placed in the freezer for at least 24 hours before using it to churn the ice cream.

For the candied lemon peels:

candied lemon peels instructions

Cook the lemon peels. Wash the lemons and with a peeler, delicately peel the zest. Try to avoid peeling the white pith as much as possible, as it’s bitter. Put the sugar and water in a medium-sized heavy-based pan over medium heat. Gently bring to a boil and stir from time to time to dissolve the sugar. When the water is boiling put the lemon peels, lower the heat and cook for 12 min. The peels are ready once they become almost translucent.
Dry them out. Take them out of the pan with a slotted spoon or a fork and place them on a baking tray lined with baking parchment. Let them cool down and dry completely for a few hours. Then cut them into small pieces with a sharp knife. Sprinkle the granulated sugar on top of the chopped candied lemon peels and mix. It should prevent them from sticking to one another.

For the lemon sherbet:

lemon sherbet recipe

Make the lemon sherbet. Put the sugar and milk in a medium-sized heavy-based pan over low heat. Cook for 3 to 5 min or until the sugar has completely dissolved, stirring from time to time. Pour the milk mixture into a mixing bowl and let cool down completely. Dilute the cornstarch in the lemon juice in a small bowl and mix well. Pour this into the mixing bowl and whisk well.
Whip the cream. With a hand mixer, whisk the cream until you reach the soft peaks stage. It helps to put the bowl in which you will whisk the cream for 30 min in the freezer beforehand. Delicately fold the whipped cream little by little into the milk mixture.
Chill and churn. When everything is combined, cover tightly with plastic wrap, pressing it directly onto the surface of the lemon sherbet ‘custard’. Refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight. After chilling, add the food coloring and vodka and whisk the custard until smooth. I find pale yellow prettier but if you prefer a brighter yellow, feel free to add more coloring. Scrape the custard into your ice cream maker. Churn according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Near the end add the candied lemon peels* cut into small pieces.
Fill the mold. Fill the popsicle mold almost to the top with the lemon sherbet. Do not overfill them or they will overflow thus making it harder to extract the popsicles. Press the sticks deep inside the molds. The deeper they are, the easier it will be to take out the popsicles. Freeze for 4 hours or overnight.