I don’t know about you, but it feels like full-blown summer where I live. People are soaking up the flowers, cool breezes, and all the luxuries that come with springtime. Some of those luxuries, like beautiful weather, lazy afternoons, and fruity cocktails, do extend into summer. But honestly, recently all I can concentrate on is how hot it already is outside.

Are we really that far into summer? One morning last week I woke up wondering why my leg was inching so fiercely, and then I noticed multiple mosquito bites around my ankle. I was so disappointed! Mosquito bites already?

Yes, the season of bug spray, SPF 1000, and sweating through your clothes the second you step outside is upon us. But thankfully we have the aforementioned luxuries to help us through it. That’s where sangria popsicles come in.

These pops are extremely easy to make and are so perfect for a hot afternoon or warm day at the lake or beach. You only need four ingredients, plus one or two popsicle molds and some popsicle sticks. I found my popsicle molds at Wal-mart and Old Time Pottery, but any mold will do. If you can’t find the popsicle sticks at your local grocery store, you can find them at craft stores near the wooden crafts and dowels.

And in case you were wondering, you can indeed freeze wine. Some with higher alcohol contents just require lower temperatures to freeze. But most wines will become solid in the freezer you have in your kitchen. That being said, these popsicles can get a little slushy if you eat them too slowly, but that’s true of any popsicle. Plus, they are so refreshing and tasty you’ll want to eat them as soon as possible!

Strawberry Sangria Popsicles:

1 cup chopped strawberries

8-12 strawberries cut in half, 3-4 halves per popsicle

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 cups pink moscato (I used Barefoot)

1. In a food processor or blender, puree 1 cup chopped strawberries until smooth. If you like, you can strain the seeds through a fine mesh strainer.

2. Add the lemon juice and pink moscato and stir to combine.

3. Slide the strawberries onto the popsicle sticks, or arrange the strawberries in the popsicle molds and slide the popsicles through them. Either way, you need to put the popsicle sticks through the strawberries before freezing the popsicles. After they are frozen, the strawberries will be much harder than the liquid around them, and it will be extremely difficult to get the popsicle through.

− Or if you don’t want the large slices of strawberries, you can chop them much smaller and stir them into the moscato mixture. Pour the mixture into the molds and freeze for 30 minutes to an hour. Then add the popsicle sticks and freeze overnight.

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4. After the strawberries are on the popsicle sticks, fill the molds 2/3 full of the moscato mixture and insert the popsicle sticks. The liquid should rise, but you can top it off if you need more.

5. Freeze for at least 6 hours, but it’s easiest to let them freeze overnight.

6. When removing the popsicles from the mold, tug on the sticks until the pops slide out. If you can’t get them out, you can dip the molds in hot water for a second (literally, one second).

7. Enjoy your popsicles!

Beth Branch is a graduate of the University of Alabama, where she lived in an old dorm room that had a tiny, miniature oven. Her passion for baking and creating recipes developed that year and she has been been baking ever since. Beth currently works at MyRecipes.com and shares her own personal recipes on her blog, bethcakes.com.