Granita! Fresh strawberries, lemon juice, sugar, and a pinch of salt. Simple ingredients and 4 hours of prep (I promise its not hard) and you have a lovely and refreshing summer dessert.
This is a special treat that comes from Sicily but can be found all over Italy. It can be made with various fruits or coffee. It is related to Italian ice and sorbet. The desired textures are also different depending on the region. I like a more crystalized and chunky texture. Like you see here.
To make we will be pureeing fresh strawberries in a blender or food processor. Adding in lemon juice, sugar, and a pinch of salt. Pour into a baking sheet or large/shallow dish. Freeze for 30 minutes and lightly start to scrape up the frozen parts. Freeze for 30 more and continue until 4 hours has passed. You will get a texture that looks similar to below.
I like to top it with fresh lime zest, a sprig or two of mint and sometimes even Tajin! It is such a fun semi-frozen treat.
Lets’s get started!
Strawberry Granita
Equipment
- blender or food processor
- baking sheet
Ingredients
- 4 cups fresh strawberries, quartered
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1/4 cup sugar
- pinch of salt
Optional toppings
- fresh lime zest
- fresh mint
- tajin
Instructions
- In a blender or food processor add the strawberries, lemon juice, sugar, and salt.
- Puree until smooth.
- Pour into the baking sheet and spread evenly to all the corners.
- Freeze for 30 minutes. Scrape around the edges where it is begining to freeze with a fork.
- Very gently scrape up the parts of the puree.
- Freeze again for 30 minutes and repeat the scraping. Continue the process for 4 hours. Keep scraping unil the texture is crunchy.
- Keep in the freezer until ready to serve. Scoop even amounts into dessert serving bowls or drink/martini glasses.
- Garnish with lime zest and mint.
- ENJOY!
