Lemon Ricotta Granita Recipes

LEMON RICOTTA GRANITA

Steps:

• Stir the water and 3/4 cup of sugar in a medium saucepan over high heat just until the sugar dissolves.
• Whisk in the lemon juice.
• Pour the lemon mixture into an 8-inch square glass dish.
• Cover and freeze, stirring occasionally, until the liquid just becomes slushy, about 2 hours.
• Using a fork, scrape the granita every 30 minutes until it is completely made up of ice crystals.
• (The granita can be prepared up to 2 days ahead. Cover and keep frozen, and scrape every so often so that the crystals stay loose.).
• Whisk the ricotta, remaining sugar, and pinch of salt in a medium bowl to blend.
• Spoon the granita into dessert bowls.
• Top with a dollop of the ricotta.
• Zest the lemon peel over the desserts and serve.

LEMON RICOTTA COOKIES WITH LEMON GLAZE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Cookies:
• In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
• In the large bowl combine the butter and the sugar. Using an electric mixer beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating until incorporated. Add the ricotta cheese, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Beat to combine. Stir in the dry ingredients.
• Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Spoon the dough (about 2 tablespoons for each cookie) onto the baking sheets. Bake for 15 minutes, until slightly golden at the edges. Remove from the oven and let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 20 minutes.
• Glaze:
• Combine the powdered sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest in a small bowl and stir until smooth. Spoon about 1/2-teaspoon onto each cookie and use the back of the spoon to gently spread. Let the glaze harden for about 2 hours. Pack the cookies into a decorative container.

LEMON GRANITA

Steps:

• Pour the water and sugar into a small saucepan, and bring to a boil. Boil until the sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from heat, and stir in the lemon juice. Let cool slightly.
• Pour into twelve 8-ounce plastic or paper cups, and freeze overnight or until solid. For a granular ice another option is to put the lemon mixture in a wide ceramic baking pan and set it in the freezer, scraping and mixing it every half hour as it solidifies. When all the liquid has solidified into loose crystals it is ready to serve. Spoon into decorative glasses.

ZESTY LEMON GRANITA

Steps:

• In a small saucepan, bring water and sugar to a boil. Cook and stir until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat; stir in lemon juice and thyme. Transfer to an 8-in. square dish; cool to room temperature., Remove thyme sprigs. Freeze for 1 hour; stir with a fork. Freeze 2-3 hours longer or until completely frozen, stirring every 30 minutes., Stir granita with a fork just before serving; spoon into dessert dishes. Garnish with lemon zest.

LEMON-GIN GRANITA

Steps:

• In a saucepan over medium heat, bring honey, lemon juice and 1 cup water to a boil, whisking until honey dissolves. Remove from heat and whisk in zest and gin. Pour mixture into a shallow dish. Freeze for 1 hour, then stir with a fork. Freeze for 40 minutes more, then rake with fork, repeating every 40 minutes until granita is icy and slushy (about 3 hours total). Serve in cocktail glasses.

LEMON RICOTTA CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a tube pan.
• Mix cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl.
• Beat sugar and butter with an electric mixer on medium speed in a separate bowl until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, and beat until well combined. Beat in ricotta cheese, lemon juice, lemon zest, lemon extract, and vanilla extract until well blended. Add flour mixture and mix until batter is smooth. Pour batter into the prepared tube pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 40 to 50 minutes. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before inverting on a wire rack to cool completely, about 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, mix together powdered sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Drizzle glaze over cooled cake.

AUTHENTIC SICILIAN GRANITA AL LIMONE

Steps:

• Pour water and sugar into a saucepan. Heat over medium, stirring until sugar melts; do not bring to a boil. Remove from heat when the sugar has completely dissolved and the water is no longer cloudy. Add lemon juice and stir until combined. Refrigerate until cold, about 30 minutes.
• Pour into a freezer-safe dish that has a tight lid. Cover and put into the freezer until it begins to freeze around the edges, but is still slushy in the center, about 45 minutes.
• Lightly stir the crystals from the edge of the granita mixture into the center using a fork and mix thoroughly. Replace the lid. Close the freezer and chill until granita is nearly frozen, 30 to 40 more minutes.
• Mix lightly with a fork as before, scraping the crystals loose. Repeat freezing and stirring with the fork 3 to 4 times until crystals are separate and the granita is light, dry, and fluffy.
• Serve each portion with 1/2 of a lemon wheel and fresh lemon zest on top.

LEMON GRANITA

Steps:

• With a vegetable peeler remove zest in long pieces from 2 lemons. Squeeze 1/2 cup juice from lemons.
• In a small heavy saucepan heat water and sugar, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Stir in zest and transfer syrup to a bowl to cool. Chill syrup, covered, until cold. Discard zest and stir in lemon juice.
• For eastern-Sicilian granita:
• Freeze lemon mixture in an ice-cream maker until spoonable but not crumbly and serve immediately.
• For western-Sicilian granita:
• Freeze lemon mixture in a metal bowl, stirring every 30 minutes to remove ice crystals from side of bowl, until liquid has become granular but is still slightly slushy, about 3 to 4 hours. Serve granita immediately.