MUSKEGON, MI — The recipe at Smitten Mitten Ice Pops is simple: fresh fruit, a dash of sugar and some herbs.
Brandon Archer, a 21-year-old Muskegon man, is using his passion for food to sell handcrafted popsicles made with clean ingredients through his newly launched business.
“No dyes, no artificial flavor, nothing like that,” said Archer, the owner of Smitten Mitten.
Archer says he “fell in love with food” while going through the culinary program at the Muskegon Area Career Tech Center as a Reeths-Puffer High School student.
After graduating in 2018, he started working at Ice Box Brand — a Muskegon-based ice cream company — and noticed a growing demand for dairy-free and gluten-free frozen treats.
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This spring, Archer secured commercial kitchen space, bought molds and started experimenting to make fruit-focused popsicles.
“I feel like we eat so many things nowadays and we don’t even look at the ingredient list,” he said. “We don’t even bat an eye at it, whether it’s fast food or just general things you’d pick up at a grocery store. I think if people turned around the box, they would be surprised.”
It took plenty of batches, heavy prep work and storing the popsicles in a minus 27-degree freezer before Smitten Mitten rolled out its current six flavors: strawberry sunshine, blueberry bliss, razzleberry, peanut butter banana, tropical trio and cucumber lime.
Each popsicle is about 95% fresh fruit. Simple syrup is used the sweeten the natural flavors, and some include herbs like basil or mint.
Archer says he is excited to own a business in Muskegon, a city that he has always been “a large advocate for” as he has watched the downtown area be revitalized.
“I love the fact that we have small businesses and not just large corporate businesses pushing their ways,” he said. “It’s really cool to see more of a community in that.”
Archer partnered with Ice Box Brand to sell his popsicles at its storefront, 4207 Whitehall Road, and out of its trailers. He also plans to sell his ice pops on his own — out of a small freezer during events in Muskegon this summer.
“I’m definitely excited to get out there and have people try something I created,” he said.
Smitten Mitten popsicles cost $3.50 each.
The Ice Box Brand store is open Monday through Friday, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
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The Link LonkJune 05, 2021 at 06:07PM
https://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/2021/06/local-eats-muskegons-smitten-mitten-refreshes-ice-pops-with-fresh-fruit-clean-ingredients.html
Local Eats: Muskegon’s Smitten Mitten refreshes ice pops with fresh fruit, clean ingredients - MLive.com
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