Tart Apple, Ginger and Basil Granita

Just before Valentine's Day, we held a dinner party at our house.  Hence, the rose petals on the buffet above.  Between dinner and dessert, we served a Tart Apple, Ginger and Basil Granita.  And man, was it good!  The perfect palate cleanser!  Now, I made mine with my fabulous new juicer, however I think I know of a way to make it without a juicer too, if you are interested!  I'll provide both methods for you!

Tart Apple, Ginger and Basil Granita
adapted a bit from Epicurious

Ingredients:
4 1/2 lb Granny Smith apples (approximately 7)
1 (500-mg) tablet vitamin C, crushed
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 (2-inch) piece peeled fresh ginger
1/2 cup sugar
2 TB finely chopped fresh basil, more depending on taste

Juicer Instructions:
Slice apples and process enough through the juicer to measure 3 1/2 cups of juice, skimming away and discarding any accumulated foam.  I used 7 apples, though it will depend on the size of your apples.  Transfer the juice to a large bowl and stir in the vitamin C tablet.  This helps prevent the apple juice from browning.  Process the ginger in the juicer, and stir the ginger juice into the apple juice.  You should have created about 1 TB ginger juice.  Use more if you like more of a kick.

Place the sugar and basil in a small food processor or blender and pulse until the sugar is bright green and the basil is finely ground.  Stir the sugar mixture into the apple juice until the sugar has completely dissolved.  Let stand about 5 minutes and then pour though a fine-mesh sieve into an 8- or 9- inch metal baking pan.  You could use a cake pan or a square or oblong baking dish - whatever metal pan you have will do!

Place the pan in the freezer and stir, crushing lumps with a fork every 45 minutes, until the mixture is completely frozen.  This will take 3-4 hours.  Scrape with a fork to lighten the texture before serving.

No-Juicer Instructions:
Puree the apples with approximately 3/4 cup of water in a food processor until almost smooth.  Use as little water as you can, adding water as necessary to create liquid.  Line a fine-mesh sieve with a few layers of cheesecloth and press the puree through the cloth.  Squeeze as much juice as possible through the cheesecloth.  Continue this method until you have approximately 3 1/2 cups of juice.  Pour the juice into a bowl and stir in the crushed vitamin C tablet.  Discard the apple solids left in the cheesecloth.  Finely grate the ginger and press this through cheesecloth as well to squeeze out the juice.  Stir the ginger juice into the apple juice.

Follow the instructions for the sugar and basil as instructed in the "juicer" recipe.
Printable Recipe

This granita was really light and refreshing.  We enjoyed it for several days as a treat after dinner!  It may take a little more work to make this without a juicer, but I suggest giving it a try.  Or, maybe this will be the final impetus to making a juicer splurge??  I love mine, I admit!