Make Homemade Granita Without A Machine: The Easy Recipe
Preparation halfway between a sorbet and a drink, the granita is a very refreshing frozen delight. This dessert, originating from Sicily, has the double advantage of being very easy to prepare and customizable in endless ways! We offer you an easy recipe to make homemade granita without a machine, with the flavor of your choice.
1- Prepare a large shallow dish
The granité or granita is much easier to prepare than a sorbet or ice cream because it is not necessary to have an ice cream maker or an ice cream machine to make this recipe.
In cafes and bars, this refreshing drink is prepared using crushed ice with the help of a special machine. But it is entirely possible to make homemade granita without a machine and without a blender.
To succeed in this recipe, you simply need a freezer and a large shallow dish. The method to follow is to pour your preparation into the dish and let it set in the freezer before scraping it with a fork to form crystals.
Simply scrape the surface of the preparation with the fork to retrieve crystals to serve in dessert cups, verrines or shooters.
2- Start the recipe the day before.
This granita recipe is easy and quick once the liquid has frozen. However, in order for the preparation to be completely frozen and able to be scraped into small crystals, it is best to start well in advance.
To make homemade granita without a machine, I recommend starting the preparation the day before and letting the dish freeze overnight.
By allowing a freezing time of 12 to 24 hours, you will avoid any unpleasant surprises when making your ice crystals.
3- Measure the syrup carefully.
In Sicily, where this recipe originates, the traditional composition of granita is very simple: water, sugar, and lemon! However, this flavored crushed ice can be made in an infinite variety of flavors by using soda, fruit juice, or syrup as a base...
One of the simplest methods to make homemade granita without a machine is to use Coca-Cola because the coke flavor is one of children's favorites.
You can also freeze a slightly strong mixture of water and grenadine, lemon, or mint syrup! Whatever your favorite flavor is, remember that the mixture should be well balanced and sweet enough to still have flavor once frozen.
4- Add sugar if necessary.
If you are preparing a mixture based on fresh fruits or vegetables, you should blend the ingredients like for a smoothie and add cane sugar syrup as a flavor enhancer.
To make a homemade granita without a machine, you can also prepare your own sugar syrup by mixing 20 cl of water with 50 g of powdered sugar in a saucepan and bringing this mixture to a boil.
Let it simmer for 5 minutes, then let the sugar syrup cool before blending it with fruits such as peaches or apricots, for example.
5- Vary the pleasures
One of the great advantages of granitas is that they can be prepared with an infinite variety of ingredients. They can be sweet or savory, with or without alcohol, and flavored with herbs or spices!
In addition to the classic syrup-based versions, you can make homemade granita without a machine using tea or coffee.
You can also try original combinations with vegetables such as:
- the sweet version with cucumber, mint, and lime
- the savory version with tomato, vodka, Tabasco, and celery salt.
Alcoholic granitas, reserved for adults and consumed in moderation, allow you to transform classic cocktails into frozen versions. For example, you can try a sangria-style granita made with peaches, orange juice, star anise, and red wine. Be creative: the possibilities are practically limitless!
