Purple Pomegranate Granitas Food

TAMARIND AND POMEGRANATE GRANITAS

Steps:

• Combine the tamarind paste and 3 cups water in a small saucepan. Place over medium heat, bring to a boil, then lower heat to a simmer, stirring occasionally, until paste is very soft, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a strainer and press on the solids until you have extracted 1 1/2 cups of juice and pulp. Discard solids. Place liquid in a small container.
• Bring 1/2 cup of the sugar and 1/2 cup of water to a boil in a small saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Stir this into the liquid. Let come to room temperature.
• Meanwhile, combine 1/2 cup water and the remaining 1/4 cup sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Transfer to a small container and stir in the pomegranate juice and lime juice. Let come to room temperature.
• Place the tamarind and pomegranate mixtures in the freezer. When they're frozen, use a thin-tined fork to flake the ices (the tamarind will be a little sticky) and transfer each to an airtight container. Freeze again. To serve, place small scoops of each granita side by side in dessert bowls or stemmed glasses and sprinkle with pomegranate seeds.

ROASTED CELERY ROOT WITH POMEGRANATE

Steps:

• Put a rimmed baking sheet on a rack positioned in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Toss together the celery root, oil, cumin, 1 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of black pepper in a large bowl. Carefully remove the hot baking sheet from the oven and spread the celery root on it in an even layer.
• Roast until the celery root is lightly browned and very tender, about 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Transfer to a serving bowl and toss with the parsley leaves and pomegranate seeds. Drizzle olive oil over top.

GREAT BIG FORTUNE COOKIES WITH POMEGRANATE GRANITA

Steps:

• To make the Granita: In a bowl whisk the liquids together. Take off 1/2 cup of the liquid, add the sponged gelatin and warm it to melt the gelatin. Combine all the liquids and pour into an 8 by 8-inch pan. Freeze overnight. Scrape the next day into a freezer container.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• To make the Fortune Cookie: Cut a stencil out of a plastic coffee can lid in the shape of a 6-inch disk.
• Whip the egg whites until stiff and chill.
• In a mixer, cream the butter; then add the sugar and continue mixing. Add the flour and blend in; then add the vanilla and blend again. Add the chilled egg whites and mix on low until well incorporated and the batter is smooth.
• With a small offset spatula, spread batter through the stencil onto a silicone baking mat- or parchment paper-lined cookie sheet, about 4 per cookie sheet. Bake until light golden brown, 7 to 8 minutes.
• Quickly remove the pan from the oven and 1 at a time place a fortune across the center with a bit hanging out. Fold cookie circle in half over fortune; then in half again with flaps only slightly overlapping each other, bringing the opposing sides together and pinch. Let cool. Serve next to a frozen bowl of granita.

POMEGRANATE GRANITA

Steps:

• Slice off the top and bottom of the pomegranates, then break them apart and remove the seeds. With your hands, squeeze all of the juice out of the seeds, then push the mixture through a sieve, pressing down gently to extract as much juice as possible without pushing the bitter skins through.
• Discard the seeds. In a large shallow glass baking dish that will fit in your freezer, combine the juice with the sugar and stir until the sugar has dissolved (place the pan over a very low flame if desired to speed the dissolving of the sugar). Freeze for 4 hours, stirring every 15 minutes.
• Scrape the surface of the ice with a spoon into large flaky crystals.
• Refreeze if desired. The granita should be served as a chunky ice, not a smooth sorbet.

CRANBERRY POMEGRANATE TERRINE

Steps:

• Pulse the cranberries and 1/4 cup sugar in a food processor until chunky and juicy, about 8 times. Set aside for 20 minutes to macerate.
• Meanwhile, combine the remaining 1/2 cup sugar, 1 1/2 cups pomegranate juice, the cinnamon stick, peppercorns, orange peel and a pinch of salt in a saucepan over medium heat; simmer, stirring, until the sugar dissolves. Remove from the heat; let steep for 20 minutes. Discard the cinnamon, peppercorns and orange peel.
• Place the remaining 1/2 cup pomegranate juice and 1/4 cup cold water in a bowl and sprinkle the gelatin on top. Set aside without stirring until the gelatin softens, about 5 minutes. Add the steeped pomegranate juice to the gelatin mixture and stir until the gelatin dissolves.
• Spread a thin layer of the cranberry mixture in a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan; pour in enough of the pomegranate-gelatin mixture to cover (about 3/4 cup). Refrigerate until just beginning to set, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, stir the remaining cranberries into the remaining gelatin mixture and set aside, unrefrigerated. Once the bottom layer is set, pour in the remaining gelatin mixture and refrigerate until completely set, at least 2 hours or overnight.
• To serve, run a knife around the edges of the pan and invert the terrine onto a platter. (Set the pan in warm water to soften the gelatin if necessary.) Garnish with the orange zest.

POMEGRANATE AND ROSE GRANITA

Steps:

• Add sugar and 7 tablespoons/100 milliliters water to a small saucepan and place over high heat. Stir continuously, until sugar has dissolved and the liquid comes to the boil.
• Add mint, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 1 minute, stirring occasionally.
• Remove from heat and set aside to cool, about 20 minutes. Strain the syrup into a large bowl, pressing on the mint to extract the water. Discard the mint.
• Whisk the pomegranate juice and rose water into the syrup until combined. Pour into a container and freeze for 2 to 3 hours, until clumps form and the edges are solid. (The shallower the container, the shorter the freezing time.) Use a fork to separate the crystals and freeze for another 2 hours. Repeat with the fork again, scraping the tines across the frozen mixture, and continue this process until the liquid has frozen into separate crystals throughout, about 8 to 10 hours total.
• Just before serving, divide the granita between small glasses and sprinkle with the pomegranate seeds and rose petals.

POMEGRANATE RAITA

Steps:

• Stir yogurt, sugar, salt, cumin, black pepper, and chile pepper together in a bowl until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add pomegranate seeds; mix until well combined. Garnish with mint leaves.

POMEGRANATE GRANITA

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the 2 juices and season with sugar, to taste. Pour into a 9 by 13-inch baking dish. Carefully place in freezer and freeze until solid, about 4 hours. Use a fork to scrape into large crystals and spoon granita into chilled glasses. Serve immediately.