watermelon granita
It is so hot in Rome that we choose the gelateria on our once, twice, thrice daily visits according to the shadow/sun ratio of the route to get there.
And sometimes, we just have to stay at home and eat one of these:
melon granita
chocolate sorbet
watermelon granita unveiled
These are all so easy to make. For any granita, you just need any ripe, real fruit. Puree, add a tiny bit sugar (do this even if your fruit is very sweet, sugar helps with the crystallization of the granita) and a little bit lemon or lime juice. Mix and put in the freezer. For a granita you absolutely don’t need to mix it in between, just before serving, take it out and scrape with a (stable!) fork to obtain the fluffy mountain of cold goodness. Of course you can add alcohol, herbs, just be creative!
For the chocolate sorbet, I used David’s recipe (via Smitten Kitchen). Serve with some pistachios, hmmm!
These were not the only ice creams and granitas in my kitchen. I also adapted David’s Vietnamese Coffee Ice Cream (via Cafe Fernando). Just mix a can of condensed milk, one can (use the milk can) of strong espresso, add the fabulous cajeta you have in your fridge (I omitted the ground coffee as I dislike the gritty texture), mix and put in your freezer. You will have to mix this every couple of hours to get a nice, smooth ice cream without ice crystals.
Another great quick ice cream was fig ice cream. Boil a pound of figs with some brown sugar, grated lemon peel and some juice and a dash of homemade vanilla vodka. After it cools, mix it with 250 ml of cream, add some more lemon juice and freeze, as above, working it every once in a while with your stick blender. Serve with little pieces of candied orange peel!
And here are some tips for making very quick ice cream from none other than Harold McGee!
Keep cool!
melon granita - scratch with a fork!
Filed under: italy, recipes, staying in | Tagged: granita, ice cream, Rome blogs |
food vagabond 
Fabulous ice cream ideas! I’m seriously thinking fig ice cream. Amazing. And I absolutely love the look of that chocolate sorbet. Out of control!
i wouldn’t be sad if i could make 3 gelato rund a day!!
This post made me sooo happy! I love all of your cold desserts!
I LOVE the bowl the chocolate granita is in. Gorgeous!
OK, why don’t I make granita more often?? I LOVE that picture of the watermelon flavour, as well as the choc sorbet with pistachios.
They sound delicious – your cold desserts! I think my favourite is the watermelon granita!
joythebaker,
thanks for visiting and the compliments. The fig ice is really good and I am sure you will find something baked to go with that. I will be watching!
Jonathan,
yes, living in Rome has its upsides ;-) Btw, you made me crave farinata. I will be in Liguria for 18 hours in 2 weeks time and there will be a big dinner at a friend’s house during those hours but still I have to squeeze in some farinata. I wonder how…
My Sweet & Saucy,
happy to make you happy!
Kristen,
I love that bowl, too. It was a present from my brother 5 years ago, it is a set of 2 small bowls (pictured), 2 bigger bowls, and 3 differently shaped plates. They are great for snacks, too. What you can’t see that good in the picture is that the insides are a crackly green, I love the contrast!
Jeanne,
maybe the British weather? :-P
Kirsten,
do try the watermelon granita, it is very refreshing and tastes almost better than a watermelon by itself, if that is possible….
[…] over some fabulous photos of frozen delights), head on over to our friend Hande’s blog, Food Vagabond, and check out the amazing things she keeps in her […]
Wow, this looks sooooo refreshing.
My favorite is the melon granita – scratch with a fork!