These paletas de guayaba (gauva popsicles) are super refreshing & delicious! Guava is one of my favorite fruit flavors, especially during the summer months. Tropical fruits always hit in the summer!

What is guava?

Guava is a fruit native to Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central & South America. I would describe the taste as sweet, tart, and a bit tropical!

The skins are typically green or yellow, and there are two main kinds of guava- pink and white. Pink guava is not as sweet as white guava, so we will be using the white variety for this recipe. 

Ingredients:

• Guava- pink or white, it’s up to you or whatever is available. I recommend white guava because it’s much sweeter, and you won’t need as much sugar.

• Sugar- cover the guava in sugar (I prefer turbinado sugar) for about 20 minutes. This process is called maceration. It softens the fruit and brings out more of a fresh fruit flavor. You can also make adjustments to the amount of sugar used depending on your taste and natural sweetness of your guavas.

• Guava nectar or water- if you don’t have the nectar its totally fine to use water. When making fruit paletas I try to find a nectar to amplify the fruit flavor since fruits tend to lose a little flavor when frozen.

• Lime juice- add the juice of one lime (or lemon if you prefer).

• Salt- just a pinch of salt to bring out the flavor. I know this sounds wrong but a tiny bit of salt actually amplifies the fruit’s natural flavor.

• Stabilizer- optional but highly recommened! You honestly dont need a stabilizer for water-based paletas that use a lot of fruit flesh (such as this one), but I am very particular about popsicle texture and I find that a stabilizer like cellulose gum can really help to improve the mouth-feel. Think of a smooth, icy treat rather than a hard block of large ice crystals. 

How to tell if your guavas are ripe

White guavas are harvested when they are light green, and one visual cue to when they have ripened is when they turn yellow. However, this is not always the case.

In my opinion, guavas taste the sweetest right before they are about to spoil, and by this time they are usually speckled with brown spots. Sometimes they do not turn yellow! A better way to tell if they are ripe is by texture. It should feel soft to the touch, easy to squeeze through them with your fingers. 

You could also just taste them 🙂 

Seeds or no seeds?

Paletas de guayaba are usually made with chunks of flesh and seeds inside. I like the chunks of flesh & skin, but I absolutely HATE the seeds! Which is unfortunate because they are very nutritious. I just can’t get past the texture- they are hard and kinda starchy…yuck!

I have provided a few options in the recipe card on how to make this with or without seeds and/or chunks of guava skins. There are a few options here:

1. A completely smooth paleta, with the seeds blended into it (a nutritious option but keep in mind the seeds will still add a little texture and starch).
2. A completely smooth paleta WITHOUT the seeds blended into it.
3. Chunks of guava skins AND seeds without blending at all.
4. Chunks of guava skins, in a blended mixture, WITHOUT the seeds at all (which it what I made here!)

Equipment needed:

To make paletas, you will need a popsicle mold, popsicle sticks, and plastic bags for storing. You will also need a blender.

I recommend a silicone popsicle mold because they are easier to remove the popsicles from. The exact one I have is no longer available on Amazon, but I found a similar one that you can purchase. It also comes with the popsicle sticks and baggies. Here is the link to purchase:

Popsicle mold, sticks, & baggies

What is the difference between a popsicle and a paleta?

Though very similar, paletas and popsicles do have some key differences that make paletas way better, in my opinion.

Popsicles are mass produced and have lots of additives and artificial flavoring. Paletas use natural ingredients like fruits and are made fresh, so they don’t require additives or preservatives to extend shelf life. 

Paletas also have a rich history and are culturally important to Mexican street snacks. Nowadays, you will find plenty of brick and mortar paleta shops but it is still common to get your paletas on the street from paleteros (ice cream carts). 

Two Types of Paletas:

There are MANY paleta flavors & combinations, but there are generally 2 types of paletas made:

1. Water based (paletas de agua)- these are typically fruit pops that have a water or juice base. These paletas are more true to the integrity of the fruits, and are also healthier (and vegan too!). Some of my most popular water-base paletas on the blog are lime, strawberry, and mango & chamoy!

2. Cream based (paletas de leche)- these are creamy paletas with a texture that is more similar to ice cream than a popsicle. They usually have some combination of heavy cream and/or milk, mexican crema, and sweetened condensed milk. These also tend to have more flavors available because it isn’t limited to fruits- some common popular flavors are coconut, coffee, arroz con leche, and, pecan.

Try some of my other paleta recipes:

Click here to see a list of ALL of my paleta recipes!