I love ice candy especially in the summertime but I dread the the labor-intensive process of making it smooth. That’s why I am sooo excited to let you in on a little secret on how I make my ice candy.

One day, I was cleaning and checking the expired ingredients in my pantry. As I was doing so with the 2 boxes of Jell-o Instant Vanilla pudding mix, I noticed modified cornstarch as a major ingredient. I had an aha moment and immediately started experimenting with a box of fresh strawberries in the fridge. I played with the amounts of pudding to add to the mixture and my thoughts were spot on. I was able to make a fuss-free (almost instant) ice candy in no time. The hardest thing is waiting for the ice candy to harden.

Print Recipe

Super Easy and Smooth Strawberry Ice Candy

Ice candy is a frozen dessert made with milk, fruit (or flavoring) and sugar. An all-year round dessert/snack in the Philippines, I usually make it here in the summertime when it’s hot and berries are abundant. Make it ahead and tuck in your cooler before heading to a picnic.
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Filipino
Keyword: ice candy
Author: Pam

Ingredients

  • 4 Tablespoons Jello-O Instant Vanilla Pudding Mix*
  • 2 cups fresh milk I used full fat or 3.25%
  • 3 Tablespoons granulated sugar**
  • 1 – 1.5 cups strawberries quartered and measured***
  • Ice candy wrappers**** or ice pop pouch or popsicle mold bag

Here’s How:

  • In a large bowl, add the strawberries and sugar. Stir well and let stand for 5 minutes to macerate. Using a potato masher or fork, mash the berries leaving just a few chunks.
  • In a large measuring cup, mix the pudding and milk. Make sure all the pudding has dissolved then pour into the strawberries. Mix well until combined. Fill an plastic ice candy wrapper 2 / 3 full and tie the end. You can also use a popsicle mold if you can’t find ice candy wrappers.
  • Freeze for a few hours until rock solid. Enjoy!

Notes

* You can use up to 4 tablespoons of pudding mix if your fruit is too watery for a smoother result.
**Make it 3 tablespoons if you want it sweeter or your fruit is a little tart.
***You can replace with other fruits like ripe mango, melon, avocado. In this case, there’s no need to macerate the fruit. Just mash and add to the mixture.
****Ice candy wrappers can be purchased at Filipino stores or you can use the ice pop pouches and popsicle mold bags available at amazon.