Remember that, if you’re using your ice balls to cool your drinks, they’ll need to be able to fit inside your glasses. Thus, when it comes to water balloons, generally, the smaller, the better.
Once again, you’ll want to make sure that your ice balls are small enough to fit in whichever glass you plan to use. A good way to check this is to put your glass around the balloon as it fills. Keep in mind that water expands when it freezes, so you want to leave a little extra room on each side. [1] X Research source
Note that, even with this precaution, ice balls made using this method won’t be perfectly round. Instead, they’ll have one side that’s a little flattened (the side of the balloon that it was resting on. )
Silicone molds: Made from flexible silicone material, which makes it easy to “pop” the frozen balls into drinks. Screw-together molds: Made from hard plastic, but screw construction eliminates much of the danger of spillage. Novelty molds: Usually designed to make the ice take the shape of a specific spherical object, like a baseball, the Death Star, etc.
Some molds may come with caps for the filling hole — if this is so, secure the cap before freezing.
Be wary if you are using a silicone mold — some models may not be sturdy enough to retain their shape unless you put them on a flat surface.
Fill the cup or mug to the brim. Set aside. Fill your mold. Keep a finger over the mold’s fill hole. Turn the mold so that the hole points down and your finger is blocking the flow of water. Put the cup in the sink (or somewhere else where you don’t mind spilling water. ) Slide the mold into the cup hole-down (keep your finger over the hole as long as possible as you slide it into the cup. ) The extra water should flow over the sides of the cup. The hole in the mold should point down at an angle — not straight down. Put the cup and mold into the freezer. If you have trouble removing the mold when the ice is frozen, run warm water over the outside of the cup where it meets the mold.
If you’re throwing a party, try putting out a serving bowl full of ice balls of many different colors. This way, guests can add whatever color they want to their drinks!
Lime slices Lemon slices Mint leaves Basil Berries Candy For these ingredients, you’ll want to make smaller ice balls than you normally would — ideally, just bigger than whatever you put in them. If you make full-sized ice balls, your fillings will sink to the bottom or float on the top, concentrating them all in one part of the ball.
If you’re using flavored liqueurs, note that alcohol has a lower freezing point than water and a colder the temperature will be needed to freeze it. Hard liquor is very difficult to freeze with anything but a commercial freezer.
