Sour Cherry Granita Food

SOUR CHERRY GRANITA

Steps:

• Set a colander over a bowl, and drain cherries, reserving all the liquid.
• Place cherries in a food processor or in a blender, and puree. Pass the puree through a fine sieve, set over a medium bowl. Using the back of a spoon, press cherries to extract the juice. If any solids remain in juice, pass juice through the sieve again. Discard pulp left in the sieve.
• Add reserved liquid from step one and vinegar to the strained juice.
• In a medium saucepan, combine sugar with 2/3 cup water; cook over medium-high heat until sugar has dissolved, about 4 minutes. Remove the pan from heat, and let stand until cool.
• Add cooled syrup to juice mixture, and stir until combined. Pour this new mixture into a shallow metal pan large enough to hold the liquid; place in freezer until ice crystals begin to form around edges, about 1 hour. Using a fork, stir the ice crystals into the center; return to the freezer. Stir ice crystals once an hour until all the liquid has frozen and has a grainy consistency, about 5 hours. Serve, or store in the freezer, covered, up to 2 days.

HONEY TANGERINE GRANITA WITH SOUR CHERRY SYRUP AND FRESH RASPBERRIES

Steps:

• Granita:
• Pour the water, tangerine juice, and lemon juice into a saucepan and place over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, add the honey and sugar, and stir until dissolved. Pour the mixture into a shallow metal pan and let cool to room temperature. Place in the freezer and stir every 30 minutes for 2 to 3 hours. You'll want the granita to be firm but not rock hard.
• Syrup:
• Place the cherries in the bowl of a food processor and process until smooth. Put all the ingredients into a saucepan and place over high heat. Let it come to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer for 10 minutes. Pour into a heatproof pitcher and let cool to room temperature.
• Assembly:
• Divide the granita among 4 martini glasses, top with fresh raspberries, and drizzle the whole thing with the syrup.

COCONUT SOUR-CHERRY GRANOLA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Toss the oats, coconut, pistachios, pepitas and salt in a large bowl. Warm the brown sugar, maple syrup and olive oil in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring, until the sugar dissolves. Fold the sugar mixture into the oat mixture to evenly coat.
• Spread the granola on the prepared baking sheets and bake, stirring often, until dry and lightly golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and toss with the dried sour cherries. Let cool to room temperature. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 1 month.

SOUR CHERRY GRANITA

Steps:

• Wash the cherries, then drain and pit them into a bowl, keeping all the juice.
• Place the cherries and their juice in a food processor or in a blender and purée. Pass the purée through a fine sieve, set over a saucepan, and throw away the pulp.
• Measure the cherries and add enough water to bring the total amount of fruit and water up to three cups. This should be about 2/3 cup water.
• Put the cherries and water in the saucepan over a medium heat, along with the sugar and the ginger.
• Cook until the sugar has dissolved, then take the pot off the heat and cool.
• Run through a sieve again, if you feel it is necessary.
• Pour into a shallow dish and freeze, stirring about once every hour, bringing ice crystals from the edge into the centre.
• It will take about 5 hours to freeze completely.
• Serve, or store in the freezer, covered, up to 2 days. You may have to take it out of the freezer for a few minutes before serving.