Watermelon Granita
Here’s a refreshing icy treat for the kids when they come home from school on hot summer afternoons. All you need is a sweet seedless watermelon, lemon juice and sugar – and a little rosewater for an exotic flavour.
Inroduction
About this Recipe
By: Sheridan Rogers
The amount of sugar you need depends on the sweetness of the melon (and your tooth!)
The addition of rosewater is optional but adds flavour and fragrance.
Ingredients
Serves 4
- watermelon puree 750ml (3 cups): you’ll need approx 1.75kg unpeeled watermelon
- caster sugar 90g
- lemon 1, or 2 limes, strained juice only
- rosewater, 1 – 2 teaspoons (optional)
Remove flesh from melon, discarding any seeds. Chop up and put into a blender in batches. Puree each batch until smooth. Push through a sieve to remove any remaining seeds.
Stir through the sugar and lemon juice. Taste and make adjustments if needed.
Place in the freezer in a tray (about 28cmx18cm).
When almost set, remove and beat well. Re-freeze. Remove from freezer ten minutes before serving.
More Cool Ways with Watermelon:
– Have some fun by making balls with a melon baller. Thread them onto a bamboo skewer, sprinkle with a little freshly chopped mint, set on a tray lined with foil and freeze 1 – 2 hours. Eat frozen as a real fruit iceblock.
– Place a long thin slice of watermelon under a piece of grilled or poached fillet of firm white fish to give a new texture and dimension to the dish. Lightly sprinkle the fish with your favourite curry blend before cooking and serve with wedges of lemon or lime.
– Make a savoury watermelon salad: combine chunks of seedless watermelon with julienne slivers of fresh ginger, finely chopped lemongrass and lime juice. Toss together with fresh coriander and mint leaves.
– And how about a watermelon curry? In the blisteringly hot state of Rajasthan in India, watermelons are one of the few fruits available in summer and are used to make an interesting semi-dry curry.
– Or watermelon gazpacho?
Note: No part of the watermelon need be wasted – did you know that the seeds are oily and nutritious, and the rind can be pickled?