Sgroppino Ice Pops
The ice cream truck meets cocktail hour, and how bad could that be? There’s nothing more summery and more fun than dessert on a stick, and this take on the classic Italian sgroppino is it. Part cocktail and part dessert, sgroppino is an addicting frothy and slushy combination of lemon sorbet, prosecco and vodka that screams la bella vita. A prepare-ahead dessert that’s both easy and impressive, these treats are infused with mint and finished with a base of honeyed Greek yogurt for a nod to the classic Creamsicle. A perfect way to end the evening—or get the party started! I’ve used an ice pop mold with 3-ounce slots that yields 10 pops, but any frozen treat mold will do. Also, to make a nonalcoholic version, replace the prosecco with lemonade, and replace the vodka with lemon juice.
Ciao ragazzi! Those long beautiful summer days and evenings are here, and so is gathering around the table with—well, everyone!—for meals alfresco. The inspiration? Idyllic Italian summers—whether spent in Positano, Tuscany or Sardinia—are all about sun, water, an Aperol Spritz or two and long lazy afternoon lunches with big platters of simple, delicious food served family style. My riffs on some of my all-time Italian favorites are perfect for summer meals outdoors. The classic vitello tonnato (a beloved Piedmontese dish of thinly sliced veal with a creamy tuna sauce) gets a pescatarian twist and a lighter sauce; panzanella, the famed Tuscan salad, becomes an updated one-platter meal with grilled shrimp and peaches and a luscious miso-lemon vinaigrette. And what’s for dessert? Ice pops with a fizzy Venetian twist. So this summer, gather friends and family, raise a glass of chilled vino rosato (that’s rosé to some of you, summer water to the rest of you) and celebrate. Cin cin e salute!
Find this recipe & article on The Purist.
Makes 10
INGREDIENTS
1½ cups lemonade
2 cups prosecco
Juice and zest of 1 lemon
4 tablespoons honey, divided
¼ cup vodka
10 mint sprigs, 1-inch long
½ cup Greek yogurt
METHOD
Combine lemonade, prosecco, lemon juice and zest, 3 tablespoons of honey and vodka in a small bowl.
Pour mixture into mold until slots are ¾ full. Insert sprig of mint. Freeze for 1 hour.
Mix yogurt and remaining honey in a small bowl. Fill the remaining ¼ of each slot with yogurt mixture. Insert sticks.
Freeze for 4 hours or longer. When firm, serve immediately—because of the alcohol content they will melt faster than normal.