So in the middle of heat wave number 4,012, I decided the fans and cold drinks weren't quite cutting it. I needed something a little cooler, a little more refreshing to help me chill out. Granitas are easier than ice cream, and usually don't take too much effort to prepare. The end result, in this case, is a tart, icy number that's sure to perk up your palate and hopefully cool down your body temperature on a day when it's almost too much effort to change the channels on the remote control.
Start by removing the peels and pith from four lemons. I used five because my lemons were small, and were smaller after I peeled them none too carefully.
Pack 'em up and put 'em in the freezer for a while. A few hours at least, or in my case, a few weeks. Kinda forgot about them in there to be honest.
Then when they're frozen lemony balls, place them in your food processor.
And add the mint. You'll need about 35-40 leaves, all rinsed and picked off the stems.
Then pulse and blend 'til the mix looks a little like this. Next, let the mixture sit for about 15 minutes.
Scrape the whole mixture into a strainer, and push out as much juice as you can. Then, pour four cups of water, mixed with about three tablespoons of sugar over, pressing with a spatula to extra as much flavour as possible. Note that my method doesn't exactly follow the recipe below, mostly due to the fact that I didn't bother to read it properly. I suggest you pay more attention than I did and do it the proper way for better results.
You're left with this. Pop it in the freezer and let it sit for about 40 minutes or so until it starts to freeze.
Or.....remember it about two hours later and pierce frantically with a fork to break up the ice crystals. The goal here is to have flecks of shaved ice, rather than the glacier like chunks of ice I ended up with. Oops.
I suppose I could have thawed and re-frozen in order to achieve the proper texture, but I was too lazy, and too melty hot to bother. So I chopped out enough chunks to fill a bowl and let the lemony chilling commence. This is kind of like a grown up version of the slushee, and dare I say, would be made ever more excellent with a generous glug of limoncello on top. Refreshing indeed!Lemon mint granita (adapted from Smitten Kitchen)
4 lemons
4 cups water
Sugar, to taste (we used 3 tablespoons, like a tart lemonade)
Handful of fresh mint leaves
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. (You can skip this step if you don’t want to serve them in frozen lemon cups.) 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. (35-40 leaves.) Add the frozen lemons, 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. You’ll 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. (Otherwise it takes forever to freeze, trust me. A 9×13-inch pan worked great here.)
Freeze for about 40 minutes, then remove the mixture and scrape with two forks to break up the ice. (Your freezing time will vary, depending on the temperature and muscle of your freezer.) Return to the freezer and freeze until solid, about 2 to 3 hours, scraping it again with forks every hour or so.
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