Sweet Lime & Mint Granita

The inspiration for this post came from the same Central Market trip discussed in my last post.  Since it's winter and citrus is in season, they had a huge section devoted to it.  Meyer lemons, cara cara oranges, blood oranges, pummelos, buddha's hand, and sweet limes were just a few of the myriad of beautiful orange, yellow, and green orbs.  Since I had never tried sweet limes before, I decided to get a pound and then see what direction they led me in the kitchen. 

In shape, sweet limes look like limes, but they have a yellowish color.  The inside flesh is a light yellowish green and the taste is somewhere in between an orange and a lime.  You could peel one and eat it like an orange as the flesh isn't all that tart.  After tasting one, I originally wanted to make a sweet lime and yogurt tart or a small batch of sweet lime marmalade.  But, I got busy and several days went by before I realized I needed to do something with them before they went bad.  Since we had some unseasonably warm weather this past week, my mind went towards something cool and refreshing (and easy).  I had some leftover mint in my fridge so I figured I could combine it with the sweet limes into a slightly tart and sweet granita.

The resulting granita was quite lovely.  It was refreshing and light and the leftovers made a tasty cocktail when mixed with a bit of whiskey and lemon soda.  If you can't find sweet limes, feel free to sub in a 1/2 cup of any citrus and adjust the amount of simple syrup to your liking. 

Sweet Lime & Mint Granita
serves 2

3 sweet limes, juiced
1 regular limes, juiced
large handful of fresh mint
1/4 cup organic raw cane sugar
1/4 cup water plus about 2 tbsp

Make the simple syrup: In a small sauce pan, combine 1/4 cup of the water, the sugar, and most of the mint leaves (reserve a few leaves for the granita mixture).  Using a wooden spoon, bruise the mint so it will release its oils into the syrup.  Warm the mixture over medium low heat, stirring until all the sugar has dissolved.  Once the sugar has dissolved, remove the pan from the heat and set aside so the mint can infuse the syrup as it cools.  When the syrup has cooled, strain out the mint and discard it. 

Make the granita: Combine the sweet lime juice and lime juice in a bowl.  For me, this was about a 1/2 cup of juice, but this will vary depending on how juicy your fruit is.  Add 2 tbsp of water and 2 tbsp of the mint simple syrup to the juice.  Taste the mixture and then add more simple syrup if you would like it sweeter.  With your remaining mint leaves, julienne them into very fine strips and then add them to the granita mixture.  Pour the mixture into a flat ceramic or glass dish and place it in the freezer.  Leave it there at least 3 hours or overnight, then remove it and scrape the surface with a fork to fluff the granita.  Place it back in the freezer for at least one more hour.  Right before you serve it, fluff it with a fork once more, then serve and eat it immediately.  Enjoy!