[1] These pops have some non-dairy milk and are sweetened with maple syrup. Here’s the recipe (photo © Fit Mitten Kitchen).

[2] Mojito ice pops for adults only, with rum, lime juice, and mint. Here’s the recipe (photo © Broma Bakery).

[3] These pops are simply puréed blueberries and honey, with a bit of lemon juice. Here’s the recipe (photo © Will Cook For Smiles).

[4] Make a creamy blueberry pop with yogurt or non-dairy milk. This pop has both almond and coconut milks. Here’s the recipe (photo © A Healthy Life For Me).

[5] These blueberry cream pops are a bit more lush, made with heavy whipping cream. Here’s the recipe (photo © Taste of Home).

[6] Don’t have ice pop molds? Use paper cups and sticks or plastic spoons. But ice pop molds are inexpensive. If you enjoy making pops, treat yourself to a set (photo © The Nibble).

Updated September 2026

September 2nd is National Blueberry Popsicle Day, following close on the heels of National Cherry Popsicle Day, August 24th.

But the name of the holiday needs to be changed, to Blueberry Ice Pop Day. Why?

“Popsicle” is a registered trademark of Unilever used for a brand of frozen treats. It is not a synonym for “ice pop.”

The should not be used as a generic synonym for every frozen treat on a stick.

As far as we could veryify, there has never been a single-flavor blueberry Popsicle (the flavor is used in some berry blends—here are the current Popsicle flavors).

So it’s not possible to celebrate a product that has never existed!

But that doesn’t stop the celebrating: We proclaim this day, September 2nd, as National Blueberry Ice Pop Day.

Celebrate by making your own blueberry ice pop. We guarantee that to an adult palate, they’ll be tastier than a Popsicle.

Even if you don’t have ice pop molds, we’ve got you covered.

Below:

> Recipe: easy blueberry ice pops.

> Recipe: blueberry-yogurt ice pops.

> Blueberry measurement conversions.

> How to make ice pops without an ice pop mold.

> The Popsicle® trademark.

> Are you guilty of genericide?

Elsewhere on The Nibble:

> The history of Popsicles (a happy accident).

> The history of blueberries.

> 30 more blueberry recipes: beverages, breakfasts desserts, mains, and sides.

> The year’s 50+ ice cream and frozen dessert holidays.

> The year’s 35+ berry holidays.
 

[7] You can make ice pops in a flash, by pouring blueberry juice or puréed frozen blueberries into ice pop molds—or use a combination of the two. You could use fresh blueberries, but for puréeing into ice pops, the expense isn’t worth it (photo © The Nibble).
 
 
1. RECIPE: EASY BLUEBERRY ICE POPS

The easiest way to make blueberry ice pops is to freeze blueberry juice or a purée of frozen blueberries. This recipe uses both.

Ingredients

First, choose what kind of blueberry you’ll use: blueberry juice, fresh, or frozen blueberries. See the conversion table below.

• Option 1: 24 ounces blueberry juice (our favorite is Knudsen)
• Option 2: 1 pound bag frozen blueberries, puréed – or –
• Option 3: 2 to 4 pints fresh blueberries, puréed

 
Sweetener

Next, choose your sweetener. These are pretty low-caloric pops if you use non-caloric sweetener or agave (you need only half the amount of agave, as it’s twice as sweet as sugar). The blueberry juice may be sweet enough that you don’t need to add anything.

• Agave
• Granulated (table) sugar
• Honey
• Non-caloric sweetener (the different types of sweeteners)
• Simple syrup

Plus

• 1/3 cup water
• Optional: 2 tablespoons fresh lemon or lime juice (add a 3:1 ratio of juice to zest if you like)
• Ice pop molds or paper cups with sticks or plastic spoons

 
Preparation

1. BRING the sugar (or other sweetener) and the water to a boil in a small saucepan over high heat, stirring until the sugar (or other sweetener) dissolves. If using blueberry juice, it may be sweet enough to avoid this step. Taste and decide.

2. TRANSFER to a large measuring cup or other container and refrigerate for 30 minutes, until cool.

3. COMBINE the blueberry juice or puréed blueberries with the lemon or lime juice. Add the sweetener/water mix to taste.

4. STIR thoroughly and pour into ice pop molds. Freeze for 4-6 hours, with the mold tops on. If you’re not using ice pop molds with built-in handles, insert a stick into each mold after 1 or 2 hours when it can stand up straight. If you won’t be eating the pops in short order, you might want to put some foil or plastic wrap around the open top, and insert the stick through to elminate potential freezer odors. When ready to eat:

5. RUN the molds under warm water to release the pops for serving.
 
 
2. RECIPE: YOGURT & BLUEBERRY POPS

• 2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen
• 2 tablespoons honey or other sweetener
• 2 cups vanilla or blueberry Greek yogurt

 
Preparation

1. PURÉE the blueberries and sweetener together. Pour into a large bowl.

2. FOLD in the yogurt gently. For a swirled effect, use a spatula to make swirls in the bowl. You can also add the yogurt first, then the blueberries, to get a half-and-half effect in photo #2, above. Otherwise, combine thoroughly for a lighter purple pop.

3. TASTE and adjust sweetener if desired, then pour into the molds or cups. Freeze for 4-6 hours, with the mold tops on.

If you’re not using ice pop molds with built-in handles, insert a stick into each mold after 1 or 2 hours, when it can stand up straight.

4. RUN the molds under warm water to remove the pops.

These measurements are from CooksInfo.com. Volume equivalents will vary based on size of the berries.

Depending on how many pops you’re making and how many ounces are in each mold, determine how much fruit you need:

• 1 pint fresh blueberries = 2 cups
• 1 pound bag frozen berries = 3-1/2 cups
• 1 cup fresh blueberries = 5 to 6 ounces (weight)

 
4. MAKE ICE POPS WITHOUT AN ICE POP MOLD

Ice pop molds are inexpensive, and if you like the idea of making your own, get one. In a pinch, these options aren’t elegant, but they work.

Leave room for expansion, which will happen when the mixture freezes, and be ready to insert sticks when the mixture is firm enough to hold them.

• Ice Cube Trays: Make mini ice pops using cocktail sticks, or small wooden sticks.
• Loaf Pan: Freeze the mixture and cut it into bars once firm. Insert sticks before it freezes completely, then re-freeze.
• Muffin Tins: Line the wells with paper or silicone liners, add the mixture, and insert sticks when firm enough.
• Paper Bathroom Cups: Fill the cups and freeze until partially firm, insert the sticks, then freeze completely. Peel away the paper cup to serve.
• Plastic Drinking Cups & Empty Yogurt Containers: Use the same method.
• Silicone Molds: Another use for your small silicone muffin cups.

 
No wooden sticks? Substitute:

• Bamboo skewers, with the sharp end trimmed
• Chopsticks, long but fun
• Coffee stirrers
• Small metal or reusable silicone spoons (like espresso spoons)
• Sturdy plastic drinking straws

We even saw a recommendation for an uncoated paperboard strip!
 
 
5. THE POPSICLE® TRADEMARK

Pretty much everyone we know would use “Popsicle” when meaning an ice pop. In fact, it’s hard to find any reference to an ice pop that doesn’t call it a Popsicle or popsicle.

This phenomenon is known in trademark law as genericization or genericide: a brand name becomes so successful that the public uses it to refer to the entire category of product.

Popsicle® and similar brands actively fight this usage in their marketing to avoid losing their trademark protection entirely—a fate that befell former trademarks like aspirin, escalator, granola, thermos, tv dinner, and heroin (yes, Heroin® (diacetylmorphine) was trademarked by Bayer in 1898 as a non-addictive cough suppressant and a substitute for morphine).

Yet even the New York Times published a recipe called Blueberry Cream Popsicles.
 
 
Is Popsicle about to become a generic term?

Probably not, but only because no one has the money to take on the lawsuit.

Our finding in researching recipes for this story is that virtually everyone used popsicle as a generic term for their recipes, i.e., never “pineapple ice pops,” always “pineapple popsicles.”

This highlights the sharp divide in trademark law between legal status and cultural reality. On paper, Popsicle® is a protected trademark; in actual human language, it has already gone generic.

Widespread generic use could be relevant to a trademark dispute, but determining whether a mark has become generic is a fact-specific legal question (an area in which we claim no expertise).

If a judge sees that a preponderance of published recipes—from major media to food bloggers—use “popsicle” as a common word for “frozen juice on a stick,” that’s strong legal evidence that the word has lost its trademark significance in the public consciousness.
 
 
So why hasn’t Unilever lost the Popsicle trademark?

Who would undertake such an expensive legal action? Stripping a massive brand of its trademark requires an expensive, multi-year federal lawsuit.

Most food companies find it far cheaper to simply label their products “ice pops,” “pop ice,” “pop sticks,” “frozen fruit bars,” or something else, rather than fund a massive legal war against Unilever, a global powerhouse with $57 billion in revenue in 2025.

If someone did want to mount the case, would they win?

Possibly.

When courts determine whether a trademark has become generic, they rely heavily on the “Primary Significance Test,” a look at how the purchasing public uses and understands the word. Courts examine:

• Media and Consumer Usage: News outlets, food blogs, online recipe databases, dictionaries.
• Search Engine Data: How often people search for or publish the term as a standard noun rather than a brand.
• Competitor Usage: Whether rival companies are using the term without being sued.
• Enforcement Activity (The “Paper Trail”): In the case of Popsicle®, Unilever actively sends cease-and-desist letters to publications, food bloggers, artisanal pop makers, and companies that commercialize the term (although apparently, not to the dozens of blog recipes we reviewed for this article).
• Cease-and-desist letter: In 2010, Unilever sent People’s Pops a cease-and-desist letter concerning the use of “popsicle” on its website, and replace it with the generic “ice pop.” By showing a court a steady paper trail of defending the name, they prove they haven’t abandoned their trademark.

It’s not too difficult to look at the evidence that popsicle is a generic, common use.
 

[9] Popsicle® offers many flavors; we were unable to verify a single-flavor blueberry product (photo © The Nibble)
 
 
6. ARE YOU GUILTY OF GENERICIDE?

These trademarked food and beverage brand names are routinely used as generic terms. How many of these trademarked names do you use generically?

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[1] (photo courtesy Keys To The Cucina). [2] Green beans with petite potatoes and basil (photo courtesy Kqed.org). [3] Petite potatoes, grown in Idaho, are the size of a cherry tomato (photo courtesy Potato Goodness).[4] Check farmers markets for specialty green beans, and pull together a rainbow of colors (photo courtesy The Pines | Brooklyn).

For the big weekend, you may be making potato salad, macaroni salad or cole slaw.

We’d like to suggest a substitute: a delicious, crunchy and good-for-you green bean salad.

As a constantly-dieting college student, it was one of the first recipes we perfected (perfection meaning exactly what we like).

Over the years we’ve tried different dressings we enjoy on other salads—herb vinaigrette; balsamic, lemon or lime vinaigrette; yogurt dressing—but we still return to our original Dijon vinaigrette—and anchovies.

Ideally this salad should be made with haricots vets, the thin French green beans; but they tend to be pricey. So use whatever you find.

We like to go to the farmers market for mixed beans in green, purple and yellow (photo #4). We also spring for Idaho petite potatoes (sometimes called marble or pearl), bite-sized cuties that are have even more flavor than standard sizes (photo #3).

If your crowd loves anchovies, top the salad with them. Otherwise, set the anchovies or tuna next to the platter so people can help themselves.

You can make this recipe four hours ahead or overnight, for the flavors to blend.
 
RECIPE: FAVORITE GREEN BEAN SALAD

Ingredients For 8 Side Servings
 
For The Salad

 
For The Dijon Vinaigrette

 
Platter Garnishes

 
Preparation

1. COOK the potatoes in a large pot of salted water until fork-tender but not overly soft (remember that the potatoes will continue to cook a bit from their internal heat). Drain and set aside to cool.

2. COOK the beans in large pot of rapidly boiling salted water to al dente crisp. Rinse with cold water to stop the cooking, drain and transfer to bowl. If you use larger potatoes, cut them in half after they’re cool.

3. COMBINE all the salad ingredients in a large bowl and make the vinaigrette: Add the garlic to the olive oil, then whisk in the mustard, followed by the vinegar. Season to taste. Taste the salad right before you serve it and adjust seasonings if desired.

5. PLATE. We like to serve this on a platter or large serving plate, rather than in a bowl. Mound the salad in the center of the platter, and rim the perimeter with the sliced eggs and tomatoes. If using anchovies, place them on top of the salad or on a separate small plate.

RECIPE: YOGURT-MINT DRESSING

You can make this up to 3 days in advance, and store tightly covered in the fridge.

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. PLACE the yogurt in a medium jar or a bowl with a lid. Add the lemon juice and shake or whisk to combine. Add the garlic and stir or whisk.

2. CHIFFONADE the mint leaves: Stack them, then roll them lengthwise into a tight bundle. Cut the bundle crosswise with a sharp knife. For a dressing, cut the strips in quarters or thirds.

3. SEPARATE the pieces with your fingers (we pick them up and drop them a few times). Then stir the mint into the dressing.

With a yogurt dressing instead (photo courtesy Good Eggs | SF).

5. SHAKE or stir thoroughly before serving.
  

[1] A Spicy Watermelon Margarita? Sure! (photo © STK LA).

[2] A Watermelon Mojito. Here’s a mocktail version from The Merry Thought (photo © The Merry Thought).

[3] Tajin seasoning, a versatile hot spice blend (photo © Tajin; see more about Tajin below.

If you’re buying a watermelon for the holiday weekend, buy a bigger one and make watermelon cocktails.

STK LA, which sent us this recipe, calls it the Secret Affair, made with Don Julio tequila.

Somehow, that name didn’t ring true so we’re calling it as we see it: a Spicy Watermelon Margarita. We have more watermelon cocktail recipes below.
 
 
RECIPE: SPICY WATERMELON MARGARITA

Ingredients Per Drink

 
For The Rim

Thanks to The Merry Thought for this luscious cocktail. Designated drivers, kids, non-drinkers and the regular cocktail crowd will clamor for it.

For extra fun and flavor, make the ice cubes from watermelon juice.
 
Ingredients For 2 Drinks

 
Preparation

1. BLEND the watermelon, lime juice and 1 teaspoon sugar in a blender until smooth. Muddle 2 mint leaves with 1/4 teaspoon sugar in the bottom of each glass. Add the watermelon pur ée, filling the glass about 1/2 full.

2. ADD the ice and a splash of ginger ale and top with club soda. Stir to combine. Garnish as desired and serve.
 
 
MORE WATERMELON COCKTAIL RECIPES

 
________________

*Provide a shot glass and stirrers with the bottle.
 
 

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