Stars & Stripes Cheesecake Popsicles

I hope you all have enjoyed your Memorial Day. Memorial weekend harbors a lot of different emotions and feelings. Sadness for those we grieve, eagerness for kids to start summer and joy to spend time with friends and family. My parents instilled very patriotic values into our family, so for us Memorial Day weekend means paying respect to those who lost their lives fighting for our country and seeing those who matter most to us.

One thing that always makes Memorial Day weekend so special is the food! Barbecues, corn on the cob, margaritas, and popsicles all make a welcomed appearance. There is no limit!

Cheesecake popsicles filled with fresh fruit and patriotic colors are the perfect treat for capping off a glorious meal. These popsicles take a little effort but they are quite the treat! They are best enjoyed on a front porch with the shimmer of lightning bugs in the sky.

Stars & Stripes Cheesecake Popsicles

Ingredients:

1 (5 ounce) can evaporated milk
3 tbsp sugar
3 ounces cream cheese
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/2 cup blueberries
2 cups strawberries, sliced
1 1/2 tbsp corn syrup
1/2 tsp lemon juice

Directions:

Cream Cheese Mixture: In a small saucepan, combine evaporated milk and sugar. Cook for three minutes over medium heat. Pour milk mixture over cream cheese into a medium-sized mixing bowl. Stir until blended. Mix in vanilla extract and yogurt.
Strawberry Mixture: In a blender, mix strawberries, corn syrup and lemon juice until it is a purée consistency. Pour into a small bowl, cover and refrigerate.
Stars Layers: To get the blueberries throughout the lower half of the popsicle, add one tbsp of cream cheese mixture and a couple blueberries to popsicle molds. Freeze for an hour. Repeat this process in one tbsp increments until the popsicle mold is halfway filled. (If you do not wish to have a “stars and stripes” appearance, you can add blueberries all at once, however they will likely all sink or float in the popsicle.) Refrigerate cream cheese mixture to be used for the “stripes layers” of the popsicle.
Stripes Layers: Add one tbsp of the strawberry mixture to the popsicle mold. Freeze for an hour. Add one tbsp of the cream cheese mixture. Freeze for an hour. Repeat this process until popsicle mold is full.
Add Popsicle Sticks: Because popsicles will be frozen, it may be difficult to add popsicle sticks. As an easy trick, take a small, pointed knife and run it under hot water. Carefully poke the knife into the area where the popsicle stick will be inserted. Pull knife out and slide in popsicle stick. Freeze popsicles overnight prior to serving.

Yield: six popsicles.