Honeydew Granita

It’s one of the freshest frozen desserts you’ll ever taste—because you make it yourself right in your own freezer.

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It’s so easy. Chunks of ripe melon popped in the blender with lime juice and the tiniest bit of sugar and salt. Strain the juice and freeze—and a couple of hours later you’ll enjoy a heavenly frozen dessert.

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Total Time : 2 hours 20 minutes
Prep Time : 20 minutes
Freeze Time : 2 hours

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons bottled or fresh lime juice (1 lime yields about 2 Tablespoons)
4 Tablespoons granulated sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
8 cups honeydew melon (about 2 1/2 pounds), seeds and rind removed, cut into 2-inch pieces

Optional

Fresh mint leaves or wafer cookies can be used as garnish.

Variations

Cantaloupe or watermelon can be substituted for honeydew.

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Directions

step 1Put the lime juice, sugar and salt into a blender or food processor and cover. Turn the blender on and drop the melon pieces in through the opening in the lid. Blend until the melon is completely puréed, about 1 minute. You should have about 8 cups.

step 2 Place a fine mesh sieve over a large bowl. (You can also use a regular sieve lined with cheesecloth or a sieve with no cloth—just be sure not to push the pulp through.) Pour the puréed melon into the sieve, letting the juice strain into the bowl and leaving the pulp in the sieve. Gently scrape the bottom of the sieve with a rubber spatula to help the juice strain through. You should have about 4 cups of juice.

step 3 Pour the juice into a 9-by-12-inch metal baking pan and place in the freezer for 1 hour. The mixture will begin to freeze.

step 4 Stir or scrape the mixture with a fork, taking care not to score the metal pan. Continue to scrape every 20 minutes until the mixture is completely frozen and has crystallized (about 1 hour more). Cover with Saran™ Premium Wrap and keep in the freezer until ready to serve. Just scoop into dessert bowls and garnish with fresh mint or a wafer cookie if desired.

chef's notes

Sugar can be reduced to 2 Tablespoons, depending on sweetness of melon.

Save time and buy packaged chunks of honeydew.

If a 9-by-12-inch pan is too large for your freezer, pour the juice into two 8-by-8-inch metal baking pans instead.

Granita can be made ahead. Once it is scraped, it will retain its light consistency. It may just need a quick stir before serving.

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