Sour Cherry Granita
Being a Michigan girl (in an Ohio world no less) there is one summer time fruit that makes my heart go pitter-patter: Cherries! Sour Cherries to be specific!
In my younger years my mother would pack me and my sister in our Ford Windstar and head to the farm for some serious cherry picking. This woman had it down to science involving belts, empty milk jugs, and 2 free hands for efficient picking. (Not to mention a happy meal to reward our efforts).
Mom would make cherry jam and cherry pie filling (my favorite) to enjoy all year round!
In an attempt to follow in my mother’s footsteps, lucky little me managed to get a hold of a 10 pound bin of cherries from a farm in Lebanon, OH – Irons Fruit Farm. I made jam, and pie fillings but had a little left over so I decided to branch out and make a sour cherry granita which is the perfect summer snack you’ve been waiting for…let’s take a look shall we?
In the bowl of a food processor or blender pulverize about 2 cups of cherries.
Pour the cherries into a fine mesh sieve to allow the juices to strain through leaving the pulp behind. The cherries may need a little help so I had to whip out my little “enforcer”…my trusty spatula!
Meanwhile, make a simple syrup using sugar and water. Heat the mixture over medium heat and stir until all of the sugar has dissolved. See, it’s simple!
Add the simple syrup to the strained cherry juice and stir together. Then let’s make it decadent with a tablespoon of Balsamic Vinegar. Trust me, this is a game changer!
Once everything is thoroughly mixed together, pour the juice mixture into a 9×12 dish. Place in your freezer for an hour till crystals begin to form around the edges. Use a fork and begin to scrape the mixture toward the middle of the pan.
Continue to do the scraping once an hour for about 5 hours till it looks like this.
Voila! You have a delicious summer dessert that’s easy on the waistline…if you know what I mean!
This dish is adaptable to any fruit you would like to use so have fun with it! If you’re curious, the cherry pie filling and cherry jam turned out SPECTACULAR!
Don’t worry, I will share these recipes soon but in the mean time enjoy the flavors of summer while it lasts! Can you believe it’s August already!? Time to start prepping my next trip to Irons Fruit Farm for their fall bounty! Keep you posted!
- 2 pounds Sour Cherries
- 1 tsp Balsamic Vinegar
- 3 Tbs Sugar
- Strain the cherries of excess juices then add cherries to the bowl of a food processor. Pulverize the cherries till it forms a puree. Strain the puree through a fine mesh sieve. Discard the pulp.
- Meanwhile, in a small sauce pan over medium high heat add the sugar to ⅔ cup of water. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Take off the heat.
- Add the balsamic vinegar and the simple syrup to the strained cherry juice. Stir till mixed well. Pour mixture into a 9x12 pan. Place pan into the freezer for an hour. Ice crystals should begin to form around the edges. Using a fork, scrape the mixture towards center of the pan. Return to freezer. Repeat this process till all liquid is frozen and the ice crystals form a granular texture. This will take about 5 hours total.
- Serve, or store in freezer covered for up to 2 days.
Love ya!
JJ
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