Pomegranitas

I'm getting creative witih Pom juice today. I used it to make two sweet treats, this one I call Pomegranita. A granita is an icy treat made of fruit juice, water, and sugar. Popular granitas include coffee, orange, and grapefruit. Think of it as an ice cream with an emphasis on the ice. And no cream. Pomegranates are a tree/shrub fruit native to ancient Persia and cultivated across the Mediterranean world. The part of the fruit that is edible are the tiny sacs of juice that surround each seed.

You can use fruit juice of any sort to make this simple dessert ice, either fresh or pre-packaged. Pomegranate juice is perfect. The color is deep and rich and sweetening the tart juice into an ice makes for a perfect palate cleanser.

Of course you can combine pomegrante with other juices, adjust the sweetness level, or add herbs to infuse the granita. But sometimes the simplest recipe is best, so see this as a base to experiment with.

You will need:
1 c water
1/2 c sugar
2 c pom juice
Splash of lemon juice

Start by making simple syrup - disolve sugar in boiling water.

I decided to expiriment with splenda - they say it taste the same.

It's really light, and they say you measure it equal to sugar.

Once sugar is dissolved, add pom juice or other fruit juice.

I added a splash (about two tablespoons) of lemon juice.

Now pour into the sheet pan and let it cool. In the future I would actually let it cool in the sauce pan and then pour the cooled liquid into the sheet pan after it was in the freezer.

Walking this to the freezer was not easy.

Every 20 minutes I went back to the freezer and scraped the pan with a fork.

Now it is starting to look like a granita.

After an hour, this is what the fruity ice mixture looks like.

It melts really fast, so quickly move the granita to an airtight container and store in the freezer.

Serve quickly and eat fast!

The pom is tart, the splenda is sweet but I would have preferred real sugar. The ice will want to melt quickly, but once you taste it, you won't want give it that chance.