Boozy Espresso Martini Popsicles Recipe

These espresso martini popsicles — brought to us by recipe developer A.J. Forget — transform that favorite eyelid-lifting cocktail into a sweet treat that runs triple duty. Not only will these popsicles cool you off on a hot day, they'll also wake you up with a hit of caffeine, and loosen you up with a little bit of booze. Not to mention that they're delicious to boot, offering a coffee-forward flavor that is mellowed out thanks to a little bit of sugar, with just the right hit of booziness to be palatable and not at all overwhelming. When you feel that heat-induced afternoon stupor this summer, these are what you'll crave.

A delicate balance of espresso, vanilla vodka, coffee liqueur, sugar, and water, these popsicles taste exactly like an espresso martini, pack the same punch as half a glass of wine, and are just plain fun to eat. If you are looking for a frozen treat for an adult pool party or the perfect way to finish a meal and get ready to go dancing, you need look no further. Just a few minutes of mixing ingredients and a few hours in the freezer is all it takes to whip up a batch of these delicious, boozy popsicles.

For this recipe you will need strong coffee, sugar, water, coffee liqueur, and vanilla vodka. 

In a heat-safe bowl, stir together the coffee and sugar until the sugar dissolves.

Add the water, coffee liqueur, and vanilla vodka.

Transfer to a pouring vessel and carefully pour the mixture into a popsicle mold.

Add the popsicle sticks to the mold.

Place in the freezer overnight, or until frozen solid.

When you are ready to serve, carefully remove the popsicles from the mold and serve immediately.

Turning a cocktail into a popsicle can be a bit of a finicky business. Alcohol freezes at a much lower temperature than water, so it is very important to get your ratios right or else your popsicles will never take proper form. Fortunately, here we've done that work for you.

The espresso martini popsicles in this recipe are 10% alcohol by volume (ABV), which is similar to many wines, and about twice as strong as an average beer. This is just about the high-end for what level of ABV will freeze in a standard household freezer. Most popsicle molds are around 3-ounces in size, which means that, at 10% ABV, each popsicle contains about as much booze as half of a 12-ounce beer.

For this recipe we used 40% ABV (80-proof) vanilla vodka, which is the industry standard strength for spirits. The coffee liqueur we used was 25% ABV (50-proof), which is about average, though certain brands may be high or lower than that. Be sure to check the label, as alcohol content much higher than that may prevent the popsicles from freezing properly. Lower alcohol is no problem.

We would not suggest trying to increase the alcohol content of these popsicles, as we can't guarantee a successful freeze, but if you wish to make them a bit less boozy, feel free. Increasing the ratio of water to alcohol or adding a splash of milk will bring down the alcohol content.

It is something of a delicate process to freeze a cocktail into a popsicle, but as long as you keep your ratios of alcohol right, there are all sorts of ways in which you can customize these espresso martini popsicles to your heart's desire.

The simplest place to customize these is with the liquor. So long as you stick to 80-proof liquor (40% alcohol by volume), which is the industry standard, you can substitute whatever you like in place of the vanilla vodka. You could try other flavors of vodka, such as caramel or peppermint, or even replace it with Irish whiskey to give it more of an Irish coffee vibe.

The coffee liqueur is an integral part of an espresso martini, but if you want to make yourself a mocha martini, consider replacing half of the coffee liqueur with creme de cacao. This recipe is designed around a 50-proof coffee liqueur, so just be sure whatever you are adding is no stronger than that.

Finally, while an espresso martini does not traditionally contain any dairy products, who doesn't like a bit of milk in their coffee? Feel free to replace the water with your milk of choice (dairy or otherwise) to add a bit of creaminess to these boozy treats.