Watermelon Granita

Cave City? Hope? Your own backyard? No matter what kind of watermelon or where they are grown in Arkansas, one thing is for certain: landing that perfectly sweet specimen is a rite of passage for summer. Sweet, juicy, sticky and always best served cold, watermelon brings people together. It take a group to eat one!

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If you are looking for a creative way to serve this favorite fruit, a granita is perfect. This version is sweetened with honey, although if your watermelon is very sweet you probably won’t need to use it. If you have never had a granita before, it is a frozen slushy dessert reminiscent of a sorbet, but does not require an ice cream maker. All you need is a blender and a 9- x 13-inch baking pan to get a dreamy, sweet watermelon dessert you can share with everyone.

The key is to make sure you scrape the granita over the course of a few hours; otherwise it will be too frozen to do so when you are ready to serve. You could certainly top this with a scoop of freshly whipped sweet cream and a sprig of mint to make it look fancy, but the reality is it is perfect as-is.

I refuse to join in the battle of who grows the best watermelon because to me they are all fabulous. Arkansas melons are the best I’ve had, so in my mind everyone wins! The great news is that from July 5 through Sept. 15 you can devour all of the fantastic watermelon you want.watermelon-granita-2

WATERMELON GRANITA

Serves 6-8
Ingredients:

  • 1 medium seedless watermelon, rind removed and flesh cubed
  • juice from 1 lime
  • 1/4 cup honey

Directions:

  1. Combine the watermelon, lime juice and honey in a blender.
  2. Blend until completely smooth.
  3. Pour the mixture, froth and all, into a 9- x 13-inch dish and place immediately in the freezer.
  4. Let the mixture freeze for about 2 hours, then scrape into a slushy-like consistency. It is possible that the mixture will still have some liquid in the bottom; that is fine.
  5. Let the mixture freeze for another hour, then scrape again.
  6. Continue to scrape every hour until all of the liquid is frozen.
  7. Scoop into glasses and serve ice cold.
  8. Enjoy!

By Arkansas Women Bloggers member Heather Disarro of HeathersDish.com.