Week 14: Orange Granita

Its ironic that this recipe is in an ice cream book because it A) isn't ice cream, B) its not really even sorbet, and what puzzles me more as to why its there is that C) it didn't even require use of the ice cream maker. Although it may not fit the reasons that one might include it in an ice cream book, it is icy and sweet. For your history lesson...what is granita?

The orange juice is slightly tart while the added sugar makes it sweet. The fact that it is frozen and then scraped over and over gives it a fluffy airy quality that sorbet just doesn't have. This is a great summer dessert. Its a very adaptable recipe too. You could pretty much use any juice and cut down the amount of sugar depending on the sweetness of the juice you use or how healthy you want to make it. I took a trip to Stew Leonard's and got their fresh squeezed orange juice. Sorry guys I didn't slave all day squeezing oranges! But I think this juice was just as good. It tasted real to me, anyway. For those of you who try it, I'd like your thoughts. 

On a side note I was at the Brimfield Antique show and tried orlimonade - we laughed at our pronunciation it but it had orange, lemon and lime juices blended together with sugar and water. It was awesome! On a hot day like Friday it was perfect! I need to learn how to make it. It might actually make a great granita...ooohhh.

Make this one, its easy, doesn't require fancy equipment, and tastes refreshingly good.

4 cups orange juice (or any juice), 1 cup sugar, pour into a shallow dish, put in freezer, and every fifteen minutes or so scrape with a fork until fully frozen and fluffy. Eat and enjoy! 

Week 8: Loco for Coco-nut! Orange Pineapple Coconut Sorbet and Mango Coconut Ice Cream

I made two ice creams this week. One as a slightly belated birthday present for my mom (Mango Coconut Ice Cream) and the other for the usual gig (Orange Pineapple Coconut Sorbet).

First the sorbet. This was by far the easiest recipe yet! 3 ingredients, and it took practically no time to prepare. If it wasn't for letting the mixture cool overnight in the fridge, this could easily have been done in 15 minutes. I was pretty pleased with the outcome of this flavor combo but I would have preferred a stronger coconut flavor. The orange and pineapple juices overpowered the coconut milk. But the milk did add a creaminess that would have been lacking if it was just juice alone. I think if I try this one again I'll use cream of coconut instead of coconut milk, to make the coconut stand out more and make the mixture more creamy. Regardless this is refreshing.

Mom requested Mango Coconut ice cream for her birthday which was a few weeks ago. It just took me a while to get to it but it was definitely worth the wait. She found the recipe in the Hartford Currant living section. Very simple to make with little ingredients. A few mangoes pureed, coconut milk, whipping cream, and sugar ( I used sugar syrup to simplify the process - no heating the mixture to dissolve the sugar). Topped with fresh mango slices and toasted coconut; it really makes it amazing!!! The coconut adds crunch and the mangoes make the mango in the ice cream really stand out.

They are the perfect type of ice creams to make to start off a beach weekend. Fresh, bright, tropical flavors - perfect to cool off from the heat. Should Monday be another scorcher, the sorbet will certainly be appreciated.