food to glow

I suppose most of us need another ice lolly recipe like we need another hole in the head. But before you wander away and look at prettier pictures (these are fairly scrappy. sorry) can I just point out that these taste a hell of a lot nicer than they look. Despite the healthy ingredients, and the brownness of it all, these are indeed fudgesicles. Or at least fudge-like sicles. 

To bite into a fudgesicle, ice lolly or popsicle is to be transported back in time. It never ceases to bring a smile whenever I see perennially wool-suited older ladies at the Scottish seaside, patiently lined up with the harassed Dads and the harassing kids, waiting their turn at the ice cream van, for an old-fashioned “99“, or a crinkly-wrappered – and rather hideous – Fab.  They giggle with their friends like children as they unwrap their cold treat and get stuck in. These might be ladies for whom a sandwich is legitimately tackled with a knife and fork, and eating a biscuit necessitates a plate, napkin and cup and saucer of tea. But ice lollies are that most democratic of foods. No one can eat it politely. Everyone is a kid.

Of course none of the ones we buy are really much good, or good for us. They have been in the deep freeze for too long, and so cold they taste not of what is depicted on the wrapper, but actually the wrapper – a plasticky, sickly-sweet wrapper. But they do cool you down.

Sometimes even the most radioactively coloured ice lolly beats a bowl of fruit salad, despite knowing that all E numbers that can legally be crammed into it will be.

It’s the stick. We love food on sticks. Americans really love food on sticks. Go to any State Fair and you will see pork chops on sticks, deep-fried Twinkies on sticks, nachos on a stick, boiled eggs dipped in honey on a stick (I kid you not). Don’t believe me, look here. The most we ever saw growing up was cotton candy on a stick, corn dogs on a stick, and of course all kinds of popsicles and fudgsicles. How else was the dirt that you were kicking as you scuffed your way from scary ride to junior rodeo going to stick to you?

On this side of the world, food on sticks is limited largely to wedding buffets. But in the summer months there is always an outbreak of stick fever, so I thought that for once I wasn’t going to miss out on the all the fun. I missed out on State Fairs for most of my life (my choice. weird child.), but I’m up for some food on sticks. Hold the Twinkies though. 😉

Sharing this sweet treat over at Kavita’s Bloggers Scream For Ice Cream for her Crowd-Pleasing Coolers theme, over at Choclette’s for We Should Cocoa, and finally to Elizabeth’s for her awesome No Waste Food Challenge.