Oysters With Chile Lime And Mint Granita Recipes

WATERMELON, LIME AND MINT GRANITA

Steps:

• Working in 2 batches, puree watermelon in a food processor. Strain puree through a sieve and strain out solids, forcing liquid out with a wooden spoon. Discard solids. Combine the watermelon puree, lime juice, mint and sugar in a 9 by 13-inch metal pan. Place mixture in the freezer, scraping thoroughly with a fork every 20 to 30 minutes for about 2 1/2 hours, or until the granita resembles coarse crystals. Scrape 1 last time and spoon into parfait glasses or bowls. Top with a mint sprig.

OYSTERS WITH CHILE, LIME AND MINT GRANITA

Steps:

• Bring the water to a boil in a small pot and add the mint. Reduce heat and simmer until the liquid reduces by half. Remove from heat and add the lime juice, sugar and fish sauce. Stir the mixture until the sugar dissolves. Discard the mint sprigs. Add the chile-garlic sauce and mix well.
• Transfer the mixture to a stainless-steel or glass pan and place in the freezer. Whisk the mixture every 10 to 20 minutes and continue to freeze until the mixture is consistency of shaved ice, about 2 hours. Break up crystals and whisk before serving.
• Top each oyster with a tablespoon of the granita and serve immediately.

LIME GRANITA

Steps:

• In a small saucepan, combine sugar with 3 cups water.
• Bring to a boil.
• Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
• Chill for 1 hour.
• Stir in lime juice and zest.
• Pour mixture into a shallow metal cake pan and freeze, crushing and stirring the lumps with a fork every 30 minutes for 2 to 3 hours, or until it has a slushy, granular texture.
• Serve immediately.

MANGO, LIME, AND CHILE GRANITA

Steps:

• In a large pot over medium heat, combine the water and sugar. Cook and stir until the sugar has dissolved and the syrup looks clear, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool the syrup by pouring it into a bowl and putting it into the refrigerator or over an ice bath.
• Put the sugar syrup, lime zest, lime juice, and mango chunks into a blender. Puree until smooth. Pour the mango mixture into a shallow baking pan and freeze for 1 hour. Using a fork or a couple of chopsticks, break up all the ice crystals on the bottom and sides of the pan. This incorporates air so the final product literally melts in your mouth. Freeze for 3 to 4 hours, until the mixture has reached a frozen granular consistency. You can serve it two ways: Either rake the granita with the tines of a fork for a snow-cone-like product or run an ice-cream scooper down the length for a smooth Italian-ice-like result. Spoon it into a wine or martini glass and lightly sprinkle with the chile powder.

OYSTERS ON THE HALF SHELL WITH WATERMELON GRANITA

Steps:

• Puree watermelon in a blender until smooth. Strain mixture through a fine sieve into a 5-by-9-inch nonreactive loaf pan; discard solids. Stir in lemon juice, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Cover with plastic wrap; freeze until firm, about 3 hours.
• Scrape granita with a fork until fluffy. Freeze again while shucking oysters.
• Shuck oysters, and arrange on a bed of crushed ice. Garnish ice with lemon zest. Top each oyster with 1 to 2 teaspoons granita toward the narrow end of the oyster shell.