Meyer Lemon & Honey Granita

LEMONS + SUGAR + WATER + HONEY =A DELECTABLE NEW LEMONADE DESSERT

Isn't math so fun?!

This recipe is a sophisticated, tart & sweet alternative to regular lemonade. Its perfect on a hot summer day when you want a cool & refreshing, low-calorie treat. Granita is an Italian ice dessert that is fundamentally flavored and sweetened scraped ice. However, it's different than a snow cone or shaved ice in that the flavor (juice, sweetener, flavoring, etc) is frozen in the ice, not poured on top. 

In this recipe, I used fragrant Meyer lemons from my backyard. The citrus is a cross between a lemon and a mandarin orange; it has a sweet and less bitter taste than conventional lemons. Us Cali folk are fortunate to have Meyer Lemons in supermarkets year-round, but if you live somewhere else or are unable to find them feel free to substitute regular lemons for the Meyer ones. This recipe requires barely any hands on time, however it needs to be put in the freezer overnight before it can be scraped into granita. 

Ingredients:
At least two large/ four to five small Meyer Lemons. (You should have about 1/4 cup of juice and one tbsp of  zest, but you can add more to taste)
1 cup water + 1/2 cup water for later
1 cup sugar
2 tsp honey

Instructions:
1. Wash your lemons to clear away any particles of dirt.  Applying light pressure, roll each lemon in between the palms of your hands to release the juices. Carefully zest all of your lemons, avoiding the bitter white pith under the fragrant yellow-orange rind.
* It's OK if you end up with more zest than instructed. You may want to add more.

2. Cut the lemons in half and juice them in a small bowl along with the zest.

3. 

3. Make simple syrup (or sweet syrup). Boil 1 cup water and 1 cup white sugar in a small saucepan, stirring until the sugar has completely dissolved.

4.  Mix in honey.

5. Pour the simple syrup and suggested amount of lemon juice/zest mixture into a large plastic food container thats neither too deep or wide (mine was about 8x5x4)

6. Add the 1/2 cup of water or more if the mixture tastes too sweet. Adjust amounts of zest/juice to your liking, then cover with the lid and place it in your freezer.
  7. Let it rest overnight or until the mixture is completely solid. Remove from the freezer and scrape the ice with a fork to create ice crystals. Keep scraping until all of the ice is fluffy, or you can scrape a single-serving amount.

*Garnish with a slice of lemon, lemon peel or a shortbread cookie! HAPPY SUMMER!!!!