Southern Watermelon Granita
Southern Watermelon Granita is the perfect cool-down treat for these hot summer days. This three ingredient granita is as refreshing as it is show-stopping gorgeous!
Equipment
- Food processor with steel blade or blender
Ingredients
- 8 cups seedless watermelon chunks (½ seedless watermelon) (See Tip 1)
- ¾ cup (6-ounces) frozen limeade concentrate, thawed
- 1 ½ cups (12-ounces) Sprite or 7-Up (See Tip 2)
Instructions
- Working in batches, place watermelon in food processor fitted with a steel blade or blender. Purée until watery and smooth, 6 to 7 pulses. (See Tip 3)
- Add limeade concentrate and Sprite; stir to combine.
- Pour into 9 x 13-inch pan. Place in freezer until mixture begins to freeze around the edges.
- With a fork, draw ice from the edges towards the center. Return to the freezer, and then repeat this process about 3-4 times, every 30 minutes, or until all of the granita mixture is formed of ice crystals. (See Tip 4)
- Serve frozen. Yield: 10 servings. (See Tips 5 and 6)
Tips/Notes
- The easiest way to cut a watermelon is to first cut it in half. Then, place one of the halves cut-side down on a cutting board. Cut 1 to 1 ½-inch vertical slices through the watermelon. Next, turn the watermelon 90° and cut 1 to 1 ½-inch vertical slices to form a crosshatch pattern. This produces watermelon “sticks” that are then a piece of cake to cut into cubes!
- I used regular Sprite. However, you could also use sugar-free Sprite or 7-Up.
- Because of its high water content, watermelon doesn't take much processing to purée. However, be careful not to overfill the food processor or blender. Otherwise, it'll overflow and make a mess. Depending on the size of your food processor or blender, it's better to purée the watermelon in several stages.
- Rather than fool with shaving the ice every 30 minutes or so, you can freeze the whole pan of granita. Once it's frozen, draw a fork over the granita until all of the mixture is formed of ice crystals.
- Store granita ice crystals in the freezer in Ziploc bag or covered container.
- For variation, use the watermelon granita mixture to make popsicles!
Nutrition
Calories: 59kcalCarbohydrates: 15gProtein: 1gFat: 1gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 5mgPotassium: 136mgFiber: 1gSugar: 13gVitamin A: 690IUVitamin C: 10.4mgCalcium: 9mgIron: 0.3mg
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