Lemon Mint Granita

Granitas are a perfect dessert for the summertime, especially if you live in a hot and humid area like Florida. Smitten Kitchen, a website everyone should know about, recently posted a fantastic entry on lemon mint granitas. This is a simple dessert to make and most of the ingredients already exist in your kitchen! In addition, this can be made ahead of time which is perfect for a dinner party.

Ingredients

4 lemons

4 cups water

Sugar, to taste (about 3 tablespoons for a tart lemonade)

Handful of fresh mint leaves

Directions

Clean and wash the lemons.

Cut off the top quarter of the lemons and slice a thin bevel off the bottom, so they can stand up straight. 

Using a grapefruit knife, carefully remove all of the lemon flesh and juice (working over a bowl ensures you won’t lose any), being careful not to cut through the bottom. 

Stand the lemons on a plate or cookie sheet and freeze until solid.

Using a food processor (a blender will work as well), toss a handful of washed and dried fresh mint leaves into the work bowl. (Smitten Kitchen used about 25 to 30 leaves from 6 to 9 sprigs). 

Add the scooped out lemon flesh and juice, and pulse until mostly pureed. 

Let mixture stand for 15 minutes, so the mint releases its flavor, then press the mixture through a fine-mesh strainer to end up with approximately one cup of lemon-mint juice.

Stir in the water, then sugar, one tablespoon at a time until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is to your desire level of sweetness. 

Pour the mixture into a large roasting pan or baking dish, large enough that the liquid isn’t more than one-inch deep. A 9×13-inch pan is suggested.

Freeze for one hour, then remove the mixture and scrape with two forks to break up the ice. (Freezing time may vary). 

Return to the freezer and freeze until solid, about 2 to 3 hours, scraping it again with forks every hour or so.

When the granita is frozen, rake until glittery. 

Scoop into frozen lemon shells.

I love granitas and they are always a hit with guests.  But they are not simply reserved for dessert; try a cucumber mint granita served as a palate cleanser; a ginger granita to give you an energy boost; or take the lemon mint granita up a notch by adding Limoncello or making a hibiscus mint granita with rum!  There are endless possibilities to this recipe so have fun incorporating it into your event.