Cinema Snacks: recreating recipes from the silver screen

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Welcome to Bite Club, where we recreate iconic screen eats so you can munch your way through the movies. This week, we’re heading back to the animal metropolis of Zootopia, and recreating the sweetest con in cinema: PAWPSICLES! All in honour of the long-awaited sequel finally hitting our screens, nearly a decade after the original (how did that happen?!)

In the movie, Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde first cross paths in the pastel perfection of ice cream parlour Jumbeaux's Café. At the top of the scene, we see the shop’s signature treat: colourful berry ice cream, topped with a mountain of peanuts, and a bright red maraschino cherry. Judy spots seemingly doting dad Nick trying to buy a giant red popsicle for his “son”, and is tricked into paying. Later, Officer Hopps spots the crafty fox melting down the giant popsicle, to create small paw-shaped versions, to sell to the lemmings of Zootopia for a tidy profit. Cheeky.

Today, we're turning Judy's misfortune to our advantage, to create our very own Zootopia Pawpsicles. Our version is easy, healthy, and kid-friendly, making them a perfect project to get little paws involved in the kitchen. Of course you can whip these up using regular ice lolly moulds, but to go full movie magic, grab a couple of paw-shaped moulds, the ones we used are linked here.

Now, I think we can all agree that one frozen treat just isn’t enough, so we’ve taken inspiration from Zootopia’s second frozen treat moment: the ice cream at the beginning of the scene. We’ve reimagined it as a Peanut Butter & Jelly ice cream, complete with a cherry on top. This recipe is tailored for the Ninja Creami, the viral gadget taking social media by storm (one to look out for in the Black Friday sales!).

Whether you’re hosting a movie night to rewatch the original, or need the perfect treat for a Zootopia 2 screening, these cool, colourful desserts will have the whole family roaring for more. Check out the video for a step-by-step guide, and don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel for more movie-inspired recipes, straight from the screen to your spoon.

See you in the kitchen, critters 🦊🍧

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Features in Zootopia at 22 mins & 30 secs

INGREDIENTS (makes 4)

• 400g frozen strawberries 

• 200 ml cherry juice (can be substituted for apple juice or water)

• 1 tbsp lemon juice 

• 1 tbsp honey or maple syrup 

• Pinch of salt

• Optional: a few freeze dried strawberries to intensify the flavour

METHOD

Add all the ingredients into a blender, and whizz them all up until smooth. Taste and if necessary, add additional honey/maple syrup to increase the sweetness.

If desired, strain through a fine mesh sieve (we don't bother!)

Place into paw shaped moulds, add lolly sticks, and freeze for at least 4 hours.

Features in Zootopia at 18 minutes and 45 seconds

INGREDIENTS (makes one pint)

• 250 ml whole milk 

• 250 ml double cream 

• 4 egg yolks

• 100 g brown sugar 

• 1 tsp vanilla extract 

• 200 g smooth peanut butter

• 30-40g chopped peanuts

Raspberry sauce

• 300g frozen raspberries 

• 4 tbsp sugar 

• 1 tsp lemon juice

To serve - optional

• Maraschino cherries

• Chopped peanuts

Equipment

• Ninja Cremi

METHOD

Raspberry sauce

Into a small saucepan, place the raspberries, lemon juice and sugar. Place on a medium-high heat, and once defrosted, squish down the berries with the back of a wooden spoon. Bring to the boil, and cook for 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat, and strain through a fine mesh sieve, pushing through as mush of the flesh as possible, this will thicken the sauce. Leave to cool

Ice cream base

In a medium saucepan, heat the milk and vanilla extract, warm until just below simmering.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks and sugar until fully combined.

Pour the warmed milk over the egg yolks/sugar, and whisk to combine, tempering the eggs. Strain through a fine mesh sieve to get rid of any lumps of cooked egg (eww!).

Return to the saucepan, and heat for a few minutes, until the custard is thickened and coats the back of a spoon (73°C / 165°F). Remove from the heat.

Warm the peanut butter in the microwave until pourable. Pour the peanut butter into the custard base, mixing to combine. 

Add the double cream, and mix until fully combined. 

Freeze the ice cream base overnight.

The next day...

Place in the Ninja Cremi, and churn on the regular 'ice cream' setting, until smooth.

Add in the chopped peanuts and churn on the Ninja Cremi's 'mix in' setting. 

Serve generously scooped, and topped with a drizzle of raspberry sauce, a sprinkling of chopped peanuts, and a maraschino cherry on top 🍒

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